‘Snirt’ Threatens Minnesota’s Farm Soil

(UMN extension via Minnesota News Connection)

(By Mike Moen. Minnesota News Connection) – Dirty-looking snow piles are common this time of year in Minnesota, but in towns and cities surrounded by farms, they might look even worse thanks to wind erosion wreaking havoc on topsoil.

There are renewed calls for smarter land management to deal with this occurrence, known as “snirt.” It’s when strong winter winds blow around rich, black soil from open farm fields, getting that dirt entangled with whatever snow is flying around.

Western Minnesota farmer Cindy VanDerPol, membership coordinator at the Minnesota Farmers Union, said it’s become more noticeable the past 15 years amid a sea of large-scale row crops. She said homes and businesses are left with dirt-covered windows as the snow melts, and even more concerning is the loss of a valuable resource.

“You don’t want to lose that topsoil,” she said. “We have a limited amount of good planting soil as it is.”