12 Amazing Reasons Why Soil Is Important

Our soil is the fundamental source of life on Earth and supports life on Earth, provides us food, the ability to move around, provides an ecosystem for microorganisms to thrive, and much more, but why is soil important? Let’s begin first by understand what is soil and types of soil we know.

What Is Soil And Types Of Soil

Well, It is a mixture of: –

1. Organic matter
2. Minerals
3. Gases
4. Liquids and
5. Organisms that together support life.

It is basically the material on the ground where the plant grows easily. Soil is also known as the upper layer of Earth where plant grows.

It varies due to its structure and composition.

There are many types of soil present on Earth, and they are: –

1. Alluvial Soil
2. Black Soil
3.  Red Soil
4. Loamy Soil
5. Sandy Soil
6. Silt Soil

Why Soil Is Important?

It is known as the life supporting system and it also perform several functions which are essential for us.

Some of them are as follows: –

• Absorbs and holds water and nutrients. This allows farmers to focus on growing crops and also increasing the production that supports food security
• Preventing Floods and is efficient in protecting the planet and humans from migration
• Anchoring the roots
• Filtering rainwater and cleaning contaminated water and also recharging aquifer, this is extremely useful and many people are benefitted from this act
• Storing large amount of organic carbon
• Providing home to a large number of organisms such as Earthworms and Termites, supports microorganisms and soil as an ecosystem is fundamentally important for our soil
• Storing seeds
• Absorbing, storing and reflecting the sun’s energy.
• Providing us some essential construction and manufacturing materials
• Acting against pollutants is extremely beneficial in today’s world, as we are already witnessing the reality of extreme climate change
• Protects and improves the overall quality of groundwater
• Holding millions of micro-organisms that fix nitrogen and decompose organic matter

Status Of World’s Soil Reserves

It was the first major global assessment ever on the upper layer of Earth and related issues.

The report provides a global view on the : –

1. Current state of the upper layer.
2. Its role in providing economic services.

Major Steps Of This Report

The major points of this report are as follows : –

1. They are the fundamental sources of life on Earth.
2. Further loss will boost food-price and it will drive millions of people in the state of poverty.
3.  If we can manage this upper layer of Earth then it can can increase the food supply.
4. Achieving sustainable management will help us to generate large benefits for all nations.

Some of the major threats are  : –

Nutrient Imbalance: –

• It leads to food insecurity
• Poor water quality and
• Greenhouse gas emissions.

Effects Of Affecting Soil Erosion

Soil erosion is not beneficial for the environment.

Upper layer Acidification: – Building up of hydrogen and aluminium ions and loss of cations such as 

• Calcium
• Potassium
• Magnesium and
• Sodium 

Loss of biodiversity: – Decline in the diversity of micro and macro-nutrients present in the upper layer of the Earth.

Contamination: – Addition of chemicals in the upper layer of the Earth.

Conclusion On 12 Amazing Reasons Why Soil Is Important

Soil protects and conserves life on Earth and also influences climate change but as we humans are triggering climate change, this can affect the quality of our soil in future, this is why we all must be aware of climate change and must understand how climate change is transforming the planet.