Uplift of land affects the Earth system in variety of ways, including: Over millions of years sustained uplift due to tectonic process can lead to mountain building, such as the Himalayas. See mountain building for how mountain building can affect the Earth system.

Description. Erosional processes and rates of uplift strongly influence the overall shape of eroding landscapes. Uplift of a mass above base level increases the potential energy of the land. Uplift steepens stream profiles, energizing the streams, which then cut into the land mass.

Uplift, in geology, vertical elevation of the Earth’s surface in response to natural causes. Uplift of the Earth’s surface also has occurred in response to the removal of Pleistocene ice sheets through melting and wastage.

Just like sedimentary rocks, metamorphic rocks can be forced to the Earth’s surface too. All this movement can cause rocks that were once underground to be brought up to the Earth’s surface. This process is called uplift. Once exposed to the elements the rock on the Earth’s surface begins to weather and erode.

The high relief originated when mountains are built, creates disequilibrium within the Earth’s crust. The removal by erosion of large volumes of rock from high altitude and its deposition elsewhere can result in a lightening of the load on the lower crust and mantle that can cause isostatic uplift.

Soil erosion also reduces the ability of soil to store water and support plant growth, thereby reducing its ability to support biodiversity. Erosion promotes critical losses of water, nutrients, soil organic matter and soil biota, harming forests, rangeland and natural ecosystems.