FIRST QUARTER

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Module 5

DIGGING IT UP!
(Soil Health)

Most Essential Learning Competency: Identify human

activities, such as farming, construction of structures, and waste
disposal, that affect the quality and quantity of soil. (S11ES-Ih-
17)

HAZEL G. DE LEON
Author

To the Learners
Before starting the module, I want you to set aside other tasks that will disturb you
while enjoying the lessons. Read the instructions below to successfully enjoy the
objectives of this kit. Have fun!

1. Read and understand all the contents carefully. Follow the instructions indicated
on every page of this module.
2. Writing enhances learning. Keep this in mind and take note of the important
concepts in your notebook.
3. Perform all the provided activities in the module.
4. Let your facilitator/guardian assess your answers using the answer key card.
5. Analyze the post-test and apply what you have learned.
6. Enjoy studying!

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 Expectations
This module was designed to help you master how to identify human activities,
such as farming, construction of structures, and waste disposal that affect the quality
and quantity of soil.

After going through this module, you are expected to:

1. Identify human activities, such as farming, construction of structures, and

waste disposal that affect the quality and quantity of soil.

Pre-Test
Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write the chosen letter on a separate sheet of
paper.

1. ____ is described as the growing of crops or the of keeping animals by people for food
and raw materials.
A. Erosion B. Farming C. Tillage D. Weathering

2. What human activity is defined as the change in the soil’s health status that
diminishes the capacity of the ecosystem to provide goods and services to its
beneficiaries.
A. Soil Erosion B. Soil Compaction C. Desertification D. Soil Degradation

3. Which of the following does not describe soil degradation?

A. Physical decline in soil quality C. Biological decline in soil quality
B. Chemical decline in soil quality D. Social decline in soil quality

4. What is described as the expansion of desert conditions in areas where the natural
plant cover has been destroyed?
A. Soil Erosion B. Soil Compaction C. Desertification D. Soil Degradation

5. Urban development activities can cause rapid soil ____ and ______.
A. sedimentation and degradation C. compaction and sedimentation
B. erosion and sedimentation D. degradation and sedimentation

Looking Back
From your previous lessons, you learned that soil is a combination of mineral,
organic matter, air, and water that supports the growth of plants. It is the main
component of land resources, agriculture, and ecological sustainability. Soil is
important in sustaining man’s existence and provides humans with the following
services:
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 1. Arable land for agriculture
2. Regulating water and filtering potential pollutant
3. Nutrient cycling
4. Foundation and support
5. Mineral Deposits

Characteristics of Soil
 consist mainly of weathered rock and organic matter
 vary, depending on climate
 affected by organisms
 soil properties can be measured.

Basic Types of Soil:

1. Clay – the finest particle and is a fine-grained cohesive soil
2. Silt – particle size is intermediate with that of clay and sand
3. Sand – the largest particle, consists of particles of rock and hard minerals
4. Loam – is a mixture of clay, sand and silt

Brief Introduction

Soil is a nonrenewable, finite resource that is generally not recoverable within a

human lifespan. It is an important natural resource that is often overlooked.

The way people use land can affect the levels of nutrients and pollution in soil.
Any activity that exposes soil to wind and rain can lead to soil loss or soil degradation.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (UNFAO) define soil
degradation as a change in the soil health status, resulting in a diminished capacity of
the ecosystem to provide goods and services for its beneficiaries.

Different Ways on How Soil Loss Its Quality and Quantity:

1. Soil Erosion

https://youmatter.world/en/definition/soil-erosion-degradation-definition/

Soil erosion is the most visible effect of soil degradation. It is a natural process
but is often made worse by poor management practices that causes the loss of topsoil
and nutrients in the soil.

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2. Soil Compaction

http://www.corinsa.es/en/technology/compaction/soil-compaction/

Reduces the amount of air, water, and space available to roots and soil organisms.
An example of compaction is caused by constant traffic or travelling on wet soil.

3. Desertification

https://ourworld.unu.edu/en/to-fight-desertification-lets-manage-our-land-better

It is the irreversible change of the land to such a state where it can no longer
be recovered for its original use. It is characterized by droughts and arid conditions
because of human activities and exploitation.

4. Intensive agriculture

https://www.fwi.co.uk/arable/land-preparation/soils/is-regenerative-agriculture-the-future-of-arable-
farming

To cope with the growing population, agriculture have become more machine
dependent. This intensification has led to the use of more and heavier machinery,
deforestation, and clearing of land for cultivation. As a consequence, these activities led
to the loss of organic matter, soil compaction and damage to soil physical properties.

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5. Urbanization
The increasing population has led to the conversion of land to urban centers
which are generally characterized by concrete structures, roads, and pavements that
leads to a significant loss of soil.

Three Main Activities that Affects the Quality of Soil:

1. FARMING

https://theprint.in/science/turns-out-organic-farming-is-far-worse-for-climate-change-than-
conventional-agriculture/310097/ https://www.britannica.com/explore/savingearth/livestock-farming

Farming is an activity of growing crops and raising livestock, necessary for food
supply and sustainable agricultural production. It is an important source of national
income for most agricultural countries. Due to the scientific advancement, farming
methods develop over the years.

Negative Effects of Farming:

A. Tillage – is the agricultural preparation of soil by mechanical process like digging,

stirring or overturning.
- it causes direct damage to soil macrofauna and potentially expose them to
new predators.

B. Use of Fertilizer – Farmers often add nutrients to soil in the form of organic or
artificial fertilizers to make their crops grow better.
- some fertilizers make it difficult for microorganisms in the soil
to produce nutrients naturally.
- it also adds to water pollution when rainwater draining from
fields carry the excess nutrients to rivers, lakes, and oceans.

C. Pesticides – diverse group of chemicals used to eradicate insects and other

organisms harmful to cultivated plants and animals.
- study shows that there is little evidence of long-term harmful effects
on the overall activity or population of soil organism.

D. Overgrazing – it occurs when farm animals eat large amounts of the land cover.
- it destroys natural vegetation and causes the soil to wash or blow
away more easily.

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Positive Effects of Farming:

A. Herbicides – have a range of target effects on plant cover (restricting weed emergence
and/or growth and stimulating crop growth) which are likely to result in a range of
indirect effects on soil organism such as the removal of aboveground vegetation and
reductions in nutrient cycling.

B. Growing plants – it provides energy through root growth and exudation in the soil
during growth, amount and quality of litter or residues returning to the soil.

C. Organic manures and other organic fertilizers – these provide inputs of organic
matter thus providing a source of energy/food for many of the soil organisms.

D. Drainage and Irrigation – it stabilizes the soil moisture regime away from
extremes by regulating the seasonal effects of rainfall patterns.

2. CONSTRUCTION OF STRUCTURES

http://staplesconstruction.com/

A method of assembling structural components and infrastructure elements

which requires digging up soil.

Urban development activities can cause rapid soil degradation and

sedimentation. Construction activities such as grading and filling, reduce soil quality
on construction sites.

Some soil at the construction sites washes or blows away because its protective
plant cover has been removed. Thus, causing problems like:
a. making rivers and lakes muddy and harming the organisms that live in them.
b. building-up of soil on riverbeds raises the level of the rivers and may cause
flooding.
c. filling up lakes and reservoir.

3. WASTE DISPOSAL

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 Waste disposal is the collection, processing, and recycling or deposition of waste
materials of human society. It greatly affects the quality of soil by exposing it to toxic
substances including heavy metals that directly penetrates the soil and eventually
contaminating it and affect the vegetation in the area.

Contaminants are hazardous chemicals that get into the soil. These can harm
the plants when they take up the contamination through their roots. The soil became
the major recipient for this waste and there was little concern about depositing it in or
on the soil.

Activity 1
OBJECTIVE: Identify the effect of different human activities on soil.
DIRECTIONS:
Look around you and extend your imagination to other places. List at least 5 activities
that you can see or think of that affects the quality of soil. Identify whether this activity
has a positive or negative effect on soil then be able to give an evidence why you say so.
Write your answer on the table below:

EFFECT
HUMAN ACTIVITY EVIDENCE
(Positive or Negative)

Activity 2
OBJECTIVE: Demonstrate soil erosion
DIRECTIONS: Perform the activity by following the instructions.
1. Prepare 2 small plastic containers.
2. Fill the first container with soil. On the other container put soil with plant.
3. Place both container in front of an electric fan that is running at its maximum speed.
Observe what happens.
4. This time, pour about 1 liter of water to the container with soil only, observe what
happens. Then do the same thing to the container with soil and plant, observe what
happens.

Guide Questions:
A. Describe what happened to the soil in each of the 2 containers when placed in front
of a running electric fan. _____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

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B. Describe what happened to the soil in each of the 2 containers when water is poured
in. __________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

C. From the activity, define what is soil erosion. _______________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

D. What are the things that may brought about soil erosion?
_____________________________________________________________________________________

E. Give at least one way to prevent soil erosion.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Activity 3
OBJECTIVE: Identify the important terms in the lesson.
DIRECTIONS:
Identify the terms being described.

desertification contaminants soil erosion

waste disposal tillage

1. Hazardous chemicals that get into the soil.

2.It is the agricultural preparation of soil by mechanical process like digging, stirring or
over turning.

3. It is the collection, processing, and recycling or deposition of waste materials of

human society.

4. It is the irreversible change of the land to such a state where it can no longer be
recovered for its original use.

5. It causes the loss of topsoil and nutrients in the soil

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 Remember
 Soil degradation is the physical, chemical and biological decline in soil quality

 Sedimentation is the process of deposition of a solid material from a state of

suspension in a fluid

 Macrofauna are soil organisms like earthworms, termites, ants, and millipedes

 Soil gradation is the classification of soil based on particle size

 There are three human activities that affect the quantity and quality of soil:
farming, construction of structure and waste disposal.

 Positive effects of farming include: a) the use of herbicides promotes the

growth of soil organisms b) growing plants produces energy through root
growth c) organic manures and fertilizers provide inputs of organic matter
d) drainage and irrigation system stabilzes soil moisture

 Negative effects of farming include: a) tillage b) use of fertilizers c) pesticides

d) overgazing and derstification

 The increasing demands of a continuously growing population is putting

pressure on the world’s soil resources through agriculture, rapid
urbanization and land conversions.

Check Your Understanding

Directions: Supply the missing words to complete the following statements.

What Have I Learned?

I learned that…
Soil is an important natural resource that is (1) ____________ because it generally
not recoverable within a human lifespan. Many human activities lead to soil (2)
____________ which is a change in the soil health status, resulting in a diminished
capacity of the ecosystem to provide goods and services for its beneficiaries. There are
three possible ways by which soil lose its quality and quantity namely: (3) ____________,
(4) _____________, and (5) _____________.

Human activities that affect the quality of soil include (6) _______________, (7)
______________ and (8) _________________.

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 Post-Test
Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write the chosen letter on a separate sheet of
paper.

1. Which of the following term is define as the change in the soil’s health status that
diminished the capacity of the ecosystem to provide goods and services to its
beneficiaries?
A. soil erosion B. soil compaction C. desertification D. soil degradation

2. What human activity is described as the expansion of desert conditions in areas where
the natural plant cover has been destroyed?
A. soil erosion B. soil compaction C. desertification D. soil degradation

3. Which of the following processes involves the growing of crops or the keeping of
animals by people for food and raw materials.
A. erosion B. farming C. tillage D. weathering

4. Urban development activities can cause rapid soil ____ and ______.
A. sedimentation and degradation C. compaction and sedimentation
B. erosion and sedimentation D. degradation and sedimentation

5. What is the physical, chemical and biological decline in soil quality?

A. soil erosion B. soil compaction C. desertification D. soil degradation

Reflection
A. Write three things that you learned from the lesson.
1. ____________________________________________________________________
2. ____________________________________________________________________
3. ____________________________________________________________________

B. Answer the following questions based on your own idea.

4. What would the world be like without a healthy soil cover?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
5. Write one question that you still have in mind about the lesson.
___________________________________________________________________________

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