Evening star., 1947-01-05
Farmers Try to Save Topsoil
Washing Down the Potomac
Erosion-C Control Practices Pay Off
With Loss 100000 Tons Year
By K. {. HuddIestor,

80 -
Farmers throughout the Potomac
River Basin are cooperating with
the Soil Conservation Service in q
program to prevent the annual loss
through erosion Of more than 5.000,-
600 tons of fertile soil. The program
estimated by conservationists to cost
81 ,66G, 300 over a 24-year period. il
expected to yield more than $685.
600 annually in increased income
from private and public farm ano
forest lands and in reducing food
damage.
Conservation Service officials sale
that during the last 100 years, the
Potomac River has carried more
than a half-billion tons OF soil past
Washington, depositing it in the
navigable section Of the river. This
sediment, due to erosion, is equiva.
lent to about rs tons of soil from
each Of the 100000 acres which
make up the Potomac's drainage
basin above the District. Some o1
the land is in woods and some is sc
steep or stony that it has never
been cultivated. Accordingly, the
actual per-acre loss on the cultivated
landds much greater than indicated
100000 Spent on Dredging.
Moreover, 1t is estimated that ap-
proximately 5,500,000 tons of sedi-
ment will flow by Washington again
in 1947. If a major flood occurs, the
sediment load will be greater. Al
ready the Federal Government has
spent more than $4,000, 600 for main-
tenance dredging in the vicinity OF
Washington alone.
A lot of valuable soil has f1oated
down the Potomac, but, according to
DR.. H. H. Bennett, chief of the Soil
Conservation Service, this estimate
Of soil loss Is but a shadow of the
real damage from erosion.
IN this area" DR.. Bennett said,
probably only a third of all of the
soil eroded ever gets down as far as
Washington. Some of it is deposited
at the bottom of slopes in reservoirs
and on the rich bottomlands. Our
surveys show that during the last
100 years, more than 1,650,000, 900
tons of soil have eroded from the
area above Washington alone.
IF this soil were piled uniformly
over the entire District of Columbia,
which is an area of SO square miles,
it would create a stack of soil 20
feet deep. That would be more than
enough to cover the first story, and
be we'll up into the second floor of
every home in the District.
"Since early Colonial days, erosion
has removed from one-fourth to
three-fourths of the best part of the
crop-producing topsoil from more
than 5000, 900 acres of the complete
1000 ,0O0-acre Potomac River drain
age basin. In addition, from three
fourths to all of the topsoil has
eroded from another 221 900 acres.
1t represents anything but a glorious
agricultural past"
Farm Districts Protect Land.
AS to the future, something Is
being done now. First is the farmer
directed soil conservation districts
program for protecting lands of the
watershed. Second is the Potomac
River Drainage Basin hood-control
work, authorized by Congress. To-
gether with the Forest Service, the
Soil Conservation Service has been
designated by the Agriculture De-
partment to plan and carry out
works of Improvement throughout
the authorized portion of the water
shed. Local soil conservation district
work plans are being developed prior
to actual operations. Farmers in
the area are using their soil con-
districts as a framework
for action, they have developed their
own programs of soil and water
which include proper
use and protection of the land.
Since 1885, when Congress changed
the Soil Erosion Service, started in
1888, to the Soil Conservation Serv-
ice, these farmers have organized
20 soil conservation districts. These
districts embrace almost 5000, 900
acres, or 81 per cent of the basins
land. With the help of Soil Con-
Service technicians, super
visors and farmers already have
worked out almost 5000 complete
conservation farm plans which pro-
vide for the acre-by-acre treatment
of almost 900 900 acres"
First step in the program is to
classify all of the land in the dis
tricts to show the capability or
each acre. When conservation plans
have been completed for all of the
land. each farmer will know the