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Conditions in the So‐Called Dust Bowl as Revealed by a Recent Soil Conservation Survey
Author(s) -
Joel A. H.
Publication year - 1937
Publication title -
soil science society of america journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.836
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1435-0661
pISSN - 0361-5995
DOI - 10.2136/sssaj1937.03615995000100000061x
Subject(s) - citation , soil conservation , section (typography) , service (business) , salt lake , library science , archaeology , history , computer science , geology , business , advertising , geomorphology , marketing , structural basin , agriculture
Considering the amount of publicity that has been given to the matter, little need be said as to the great seriousness of .wind erosion in the many portions of the Great Plains Region that have been affected by this destructive agent in recent years. Suffice it to say that only by observing the situation on the ground can one fully appreciate the seriousness of the damage already done, as well as the great menace to the future agriculture and to the general well-being of people in the regions affected. The survey herein discussed was an attempt to obtain first-hand information regarding the situation, based on a survey of physical features related to the erosion problem and also on the accumulation of other pertinent information which might be gathered in connection with such a survey. The survey was made by the Soil Conservation Service at the request of the Resettlement Administration. Operations were conducted during the winter of 1935 and 1936 by a force of 35 soil conservation • surveyors working out of Lamar, Colorado. The survey was a detailed reconnaissance, made on base maps of a s,cale of one mile per inch. The area surveyed was approximately 25,000 square miles in extent and comprised a solid block of 20 counties located in southeastern Colorado, southwestern Kansas, and the panhandles of Oklahoma and Texas. The area was considered to be representative of the southern Great •Plains wind-eroded country. The following features were mapped: Character and degree of erosion, land use (including native vegetation), slopes and soils. The "Standard Procedure for Making Soil Conservation Surveys" was used as a field guide in the interpretation and mapping of the various features. Soils were mapped as nearly as possible on the basis of correlated soil types, and were later grouped on the basis of erosion susceptibility and agricultural adaptation. . The completed field maps were subjected to planimeter measurement and the planimeter data analyzed to reveal the relation of erosion to soils, to land use, and to slopes. Some of the more important facts and relations revealed by the survey and by the analysis of the survey data are given in this very brief summary of the report. The figures given relate to accelerated erosion. A total of 53.4$ of the surveyed area has been affected by all types of accelerated erosion to a serious degree. A total of 42.5$ of the area has been affected by wind erosion to a serious degree. A total of 91.6$ of all serious erosion has been by wind. Combined removal and accumulation is by far the most important type of wind erosion, 58.2% of the area having been affected in this manner to a slight or serious degree. Water erosion is relatively unimportant, only 4.4$ of the area having been affected to a serious degree. However, there is frequently heavy loss of moisture through excessive runoff, and the need for moisture conservation is, therefore, urgent. All counties surveyed are affected to a serious degree by erosion. However, those with the larger proportion of cultivated and idle land and the larger proportion of soils highly susceptible to erosion, are affected most. The greatest percentage of serious erosion for a single county was 78.4$, and the least was 20$. 79.3$ of all cultivated land was affected by serious erosion, and 89.4$ of all idle land and 26.9$ of all pasture land were affected in a similar manner.