What erodes soils?

Study for the Dual Enrollment Environmental Science Test. Prepare with flashcards and multiple choice questions, complete with hints and detailed explanations. Get ready for your exam!

Multiple Choice

What erodes soils?

Explanation:
Erosion is the removal and transport of soil from its original location by moving agents. The best example among the options is wind or water, because they physically move soil particles away—from the surface by wind and down slopes or along streams by water. Frost wedging is a weathering process that breaks rocks apart but doesn’t remove soil from a site, and chemical weathering by acids changes minerals in place rather than moving them. Animal burrowing mixes soil within the surface layers (a process called bioturbation) and can loosen soil, but it doesn’t primarily transport material away from the area. So wind or water best explains soil erosion.

Erosion is the removal and transport of soil from its original location by moving agents. The best example among the options is wind or water, because they physically move soil particles away—from the surface by wind and down slopes or along streams by water. Frost wedging is a weathering process that breaks rocks apart but doesn’t remove soil from a site, and chemical weathering by acids changes minerals in place rather than moving them. Animal burrowing mixes soil within the surface layers (a process called bioturbation) and can loosen soil, but it doesn’t primarily transport material away from the area. So wind or water best explains soil erosion.

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