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In this lesson we are going to discuss about soil erosion

Answer Text:
Soil Erosion
- Removal of top soil.
Agents of soil erosion are water, glacier and wind.
Causes of soil erosion are human activities and geomorphic processes such as earthquakes and faulting which cause land slides and
soil creep.
Conditions Favouring Soil Erosion
a) Slope
- Steep slopes accelerate soil erosion while gentle slopes experience less erosion.
- Places with rugged terrain experience gulley erosion.
- Hilly and Steep areas experience rill and gulley erosion.
b) Soil Texture
- Areas with fine textured soils such as volcanic ash are more vulnerable to erosion e.g. Nyambene Hills around
Karama and Muthara.
c) Climate
- Erratic and heavy rains cause splash, rill and sheet erosion.
- Intense heating by the sun causes loosening of soil particles.
- Low rainfall and high temperature leads to scanty or no vegetation which forms protective cover on the soil.
Types of Soil Erosion
a) Splash Erosion

- Removal of soil by rain drops scattering loose particles and carrying them down slope by runoff.
b) Rill Erosion
- Removal of top soil by rain water through small channels.
- Occurs when rate of runoff exceeds infiltration and rain water flows over the surface forming small channels called rills.
c) Gulley Erosion
- Removal of soil through wide and deep channels.
- Occur when moving water or glacier widen and deepen the existing rills.

d) Sheet Erosion
- Removal of top soil inform of a thin sheet.
- Common around L.Baringo and Marigat.