Chapter 6: We Are Turning Soil into Dirt & Running Out of Fresh Water

When we clear forests and grasslands for agriculture, development, and timber, the soil is either removed or it dies. According to the World Wildlife Fund, we have destroyed half of all soil on Earth in the past 150 years, which is roughly equivalent to the amount of forests and grasslands we have razed. Recall that we can think of soil as a sponge that holds water when it rains. Without this soil sponge, rain washes away instead of absorbing into the land and causes flooding. Over time, drought ensues.

Picture the following, something that is all too common in most sub/urban spaces today: we cut down trees, remove soil, and grade the land to build a shopping center. In this new space we find asphalt, sidewalks, buildings, mowed grass, and perhaps the occasional planted tree or shrub. There is nothing on this site that can hold water. Even the mowed grass is unable to do so—with its short stalks and tiny root system, it does virtually nothing to build soil. In places like these, rain water rushes downhill, causing flooding in low-lying areas. The force and volume of this water loosens sediment, which causes erosion, clogs waterways, and harms the life living there.

Now imagine this happening across larger areas. Here in Wake County, North Carolina where I live, developers have cleared and paved over 11,000 acres of land in the past decade. One inch of rain across 11,000 acres yields 297 million gallons of water runoff (recall that 1 inch of rain yields approximately 27,000 gallons of water per acre). This sort of development is happening in many other counties across the state. Now routine rain events quickly turn into billions of gallons of water runoff, which causes serious flooding, especially near the coast. This is not unique to North Carolina. We see this happening all over the world.

The story gets worse. When this rain falls, it does little good for hydrating trees and refilling aquifers—there is no soil sponge to hold it. The rain washes back into the rivers and oceans and the cycle repeats. Without water in the soil and trees to pump that water into the atmosphere, conditions become hotter and drier. Water levels in aquifers begin to drop.

This generates high-pressure heat domes that make it hard for rain systems to enter this area. Only the big, fierce storms have the power necessary to breach these heat domes. The net result is less frequent, more intense rain and thunderstorms. They dump large amounts of water in short periods of time. This water does not absorb into the land and instead washes downhill, leading to more intense floods. This cycle repeats and the water levels in the aquifers keep dropping.

Meanwhile, we continue to pump water from the aquifers to drink, irrigate crops, and cool equipment used in energy production. None of these systems are efficient—we lose a substantial amount of water thanks to old and leaky infrastructure. The water levels in aquifers drop further.

Those trees and plants that are not able to grow deeper roots become increasingly thirsty and die. Streams and creeks disappear. A decline of all life becomes the norm. The land becomes barren and there is no water, leading to drought and widespread suffering. Allan Savory said it best when he stated, “it’s not drought that causes bare ground, it’s bare ground that causes drought.”

This helps illustrate the points I’m trying to make:

According to E.O. Wilson, who is widely considered one of the greatest natural scientists of our time, “The world as a whole is already well into a water crisis. About eighteen countries, home to half the world’s population, are draining their aquifers. In Hebei Province, in the heart of China’s northern grain belt, the average water level in the deep aquifer is dropping nearly three meters a year. Underground water levels are falling so fast in the lowlands of rural India that in some localities drinking water must be trucked in.”

Research based on NASA satellite data confirms this very point: of the 37 largest aquifers on Earth, 21 have surpassed tipping points and are now on their way to being depleted. Of these, 13 are considered highly stressed—or worse—threatening regional water security and resilience. As of 2016, an estimated 4 billion people—two-thirds of the global population—faced severe water scarcity for at least one month of the year. For half a billion, water scarcity was a year-round crisis. Recent reports indicate that the situation has continued to deteriorate.

Let’s stop for a moment and envision ourselves in one of these situations. Imagine worrying about water for one month every year—or worse. Water is critical to our existence. We talk a lot about the implications of running out of oil; how much worse would it be if we ran out of fresh water?

Consider recent events: Cape Town, South Africa nearly ran out of water in 2018 and California has faced numerous serious water shortages in the past decade. News stories about droughts in East Asia, East Africa, Western Europe, and other parts of the world are becoming more numerous. This same trend is happening here in the United States—our major aquifers are running dry.

Photosynthesis, soil, and fresh water availability are all closely entwined. A decrease in one—particularly photosynthesis—results in a decrease for all. This places stress on multiple types of life, many of which are already under dire pressure from overhunting and habitat destruction.