Videos on Midwest Desertification and Soil Degradation

Desertification in the Midwest encompasses both the historic Dust Bowl catastrophe of the 1930s—America's worst man-made ecological disaster—and modern accelerating soil erosion driven by intensive agriculture and climate change. Current research shows Midwestern topsoil is eroding 10 to 1,000 times faster than natural formation rates, with profound implications for food security and water systems.nsf​

Historical Documentaries: The Dust Bowl Era

The Dust Bowl by Ken Burns

This definitive two-part, four-hour documentary chronicles the 1930s environmental catastrophe that transformed the Great Plains into a desert. Through interviews with 26 survivors, rare footage, and previously unpublished photographs, the film examines how government policy, World War I wheat demand, and farming practices created conditions for massive dust storms that devastated 100 million acres across Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, Colorado, and New Mexico. The documentary reveals how dust storms carried Midwest soil to the Atlantic Ocean and White House, while "dust pneumonia" killed thousands, particularly children.kenburns+2​

Availability: PBS and Ken Burns websitepbs+1​

Surviving the Dust Bowl (PBS American Experience)

A 51-minute focused examination of the decade-long disaster, featuring firsthand accounts of families who endured drought, dust, disease, and economic collapse. The program documents community disintegration as families abandoned farms, with dust accumulating to windowsills and wiping out entire neighborhoods.pbs​

Availability: PBS streaming platformpbs​

Stories from the Dust Bowl (2005)

Smoky Hills Public Television's 56-minute documentary preserves oral histories from Kansas plains residents who lived through the crisis. Using archival photographs, music, and film, it captures recollections of hardship and survival from a generation whose stories are rapidly disappearing.youtube​

Availability: YouTubeyoutube​

Modern Soil Erosion and Drought

Soil Erosion in the Midwest: A $2 Billion Annual Loss

CNBC's in-depth report (2022) examines how plowing and tilling erode topsoil by two millimeters annually—the thickness of a nickel—costing Midwest farmers approximately $2 billion yearly in lost productivity. University of Massachusetts research featured in the report quantifies the region has lost 60 billion metric tons of topsoil, with erosion rates orders of magnitude exceeding USDA allowable limits.youtube​nsf​

Availability: YouTube (CNBC Television)youtube​

Drought Devastating Midwest Crops (Reuters, 2023)

This three-minute Reuters report documents abnormally dry conditions across the Midwest, with farmers reporting direct climate change impacts. The video captures how extreme weather patterns are reshaping agricultural viability in America's breadbasket.youtube​

Availability: YouTube (Reuters)youtube​

How Dry Spells Threaten America's Food Security (2025)

A comprehensive 10-minute analysis exploring how Midwest drought affects national food security, grocery prices, and global markets. The video examines the 2012 drought as a precedent, discusses increasing extreme weather frequency, and highlights climate-smart agriculture innovations. It specifically addresses impacts on corn, soybeans, and wheat production in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, and Kansas.youtube​

Availability: YouTube (Mohsin Insights)youtube​

Corn Belt Drought Recovery and Extreme Weather (2025)

A 34-minute technical discussion with meteorologist Eric Hunt from the University of Nebraska analyzing 2025 conditions. The program covers depleted soil moisture, heat stress, wind erosion events, and comparisons to four decades of historical data. It examines how precipitation patterns—when, where, and in what form—create critical thresholds for soil health and crop survival.youtube​

Availability: YouTube (Market to Market)youtube​

Midwest Drought Resilience: St. Louis Ecosystems Face New Reality (2025)

This report from October 2025 documents how drought conditions persist in Missouri and Illinois despite periodic rainfall. The video features experts explaining why sporadic precipitation fails to restore soil moisture deficits and how ecosystems are adapting to prolonged aridity.youtube​

Availability: YouTubeyoutube​

Scientific Analysis and Climate Impacts

Farmers Seeing Climate Change Impacts (2018)

A PBS report from central Illinois where a 56-year veteran farmer acknowledges changing rainfall patterns: "When it rains it pours" on flat farmland, causing flooding that kills crops within days. The video connects increased precipitation intensity to soil erosion, plant disease, and pest proliferation.youtube​

Availability: YouTubeyoutube​

Save Our Soil, Save Our Planet (TEDx, 2018)

Iowa State University professor Rick Cruse presents research on soil erosion's role in civilization decline, drawing parallels between historical societies and current Midwest agricultural practices. His work demonstrates how nature-based solutions can combat climate change while preserving topsoil.youtube​

Availability: YouTubeyoutube​

Black Sunday: The Dust Bowl's Worst Day (PBS)

A short documentary excerpt focusing on April 14, 1935, when the most severe dust storm reduced visibility to zero across the Plains. The clip provides visceral understanding of desertification's human impact, serving as cautionary context for modern soil management.pbs​

Availability: PBS websitepbs​

Key Research Findings

University of Massachusetts scientists used beryllium-10 isotope analysis from 14 remnant prairie sites across Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas to determine that pre-agricultural erosion rates were orders of magnitude lower than current losses. The research indicates that reducing erosion to natural levels is essential not only for agricultural productivity—costing tens of billions annually—but also for climate mitigation strategies depending on soil carbon storage.nsf​

For watershed managers and hydrogeologists, these videos collectively document how intensive tillage, reduced soil organic matter, and altered precipitation patterns create feedback loops accelerating land degradation, with direct consequences for groundwater recharge, surface water quality, and long-term agricultural viability in the region.

1. https://www.nsf.gov/news/soil-midwestern-us-eroding-10-1000-times-faster-it
2. https://kenburns.com/films/dust-bowl/
3. https://www.pbs.org/video/surviving-the-dust-bowl-jjzxxl/
4. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2357472/
5. https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/the-dust-bowl
6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tlWqZHbsOA
7. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJVQGOzJgyw
8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-txx2tQqp0g
9. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kzrjZ1t2N4
10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IijgaPG9uM
11. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxUPl62TsvI
12. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elrhj3Z2GqQ
13. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mCIrxhNsBs
14. https://www.pbs.org/video/dust-bowl-dust-bowl-black-sunday/
15. https://edition.cnn.com/2024/10/28/world/video/cnn-academy-desertification-nigeria
16. https://www.midstory.org/how-climate-change-is-transforming-how-the-midwest-farms/
17. https://www.holganix.com/blog/soil-erosion-5-videos-you-need-to-watch
18. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/sRuJLuSRD4I
19. https://www.nbcnews.com/video/midwest-plains-crops-drying-out-44424771878
20. https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/ecological-disaster-ken-burns-dust-bowl/ken-burns-the-dust-bowl/