with the beauty of our lawns, parks, campgrounds, and the safety of swimming and playing in clean water, but seem impervious to poor land management practices elsewhere. One of the most important services provided by nature is the production of oxygen. The creation of oxygen begins with healthy soil. The soil generates the proper elements to grow trees. We sometimes call trees “the lungs of the earth”. The world needs lungs! Trees absorb carbon dioxide which aids in the reduction of global warming. Global warming is partially a result of deforestation. Since trees help to process harmful carbon dioxide, it is necessary to protect them. (Gore, 1992) All things grown from soil aid in absorbing and detoxify pollutants. Trees and other plants can detoxify these natural impurities. Also, healthy soil contains microorganisms that can convert some pollutants into harmless compounds. Soil services also include the cleansing of our ground water sources. Water is filtrated down through the soil and debris and harmful bacteria are removed. The soil service usually makes groundwater safe for drinking. Water contamination kills four to five million people each year. Naturally, we should invest in soil conservation to offer safe alternatives for drinking water. (Nebel / Wright, 1998)CONCLUSION As you can see, protecting our worlds topsoil is an important issue. As humans, we must realize the long term effects caused by the loss of topsoil and its chain-reaction effect on the environment. Although many years of damage has been done, I see the answer to ending this abuse summarized in three basic steps: awareness, management, and restoration.Awareness: We must continue to make the world aware of the problems.Management: We must recognize the balance between man and nature and protect the land as a valuable resource.Restoration: We must identify the areas around the world that have already...
