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the whole story, though. The snirt was not analyzed for other valuable plant minerals or organic matter content in the snirt. Even if snirt ends up in a different part of the field, rather than a road ditch or yard, it affects the field’s productivity, Rieck-Hinz said.

Topsoil that’s eroded off a slope has a much bigger negative impact on crop production than the accumulation of eroded topsoil on downslope areas, which likely have more-than-adequate topsoil to produce crops.

If that weren’t enough, soil that’s eroded by wind or water can also end up in Iowa’s waterways, where it adds sediment and excess nutrients (including phosphorus) that degrade water quality.

See EROSION, Page 10C

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