Rylee Phillips was a winner in the Association of Illinois Soil & Water Conservation Districts’ 2024 Illinois Soil Health Week Essay Contest. She’s a fifth grader from Mulberry Grove and represents Bond County Soil & Water Conservation District.
See also story on fellow winner Toby Williams for Stark County Soil & Water Conservation District. Watch on YouTube.
Soil Health Week essay contest winner Rylee Phillips (for Bond County Soil & Water Conservation District) with Dr. Michael Woods, executive director of the AISWCD, at the State Capitol in Springfield for Soil Health Week Lobby Day Wednesday March 6, 2024.
If you want to hear how healthy soil makes healthy bodies, then listen to this. We would not be able to survive without soil. Soil helps produce food and lifesaving medicines. Healthy soil also helps purify water. Another reason we could not live without healthy soil is because our oxygen comes from trees and other plants that grow.
First, soil helps produce food as well as medicines. Farmers need soil to grow their crops. If we did not have nutrient rich soil, then the farmers would not be able to grow their crops. Without crops, there would not be any fruits and vegetables for us to eat. These foods help keep our bodies healthy and strong. Lifesaving medicines and vaccines are produced using healthy, rich soil. Without medicines, we would get sick and die. Some of these medicines are created from plants and help fight heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and help with brain growth and development.
Second, soil purifies water so we can drink it without getting sick. For instance, soil carries an important biota that helps transform and decompose certain contaminants from the soil. This allows water to be filtered and then is safer for people to drink from natural springs.
Another reason healthy soil creates healthy bodies is it allows trees to grow strong. Trees produce oxygen. We need oxygen to survive on Earth. The healthier the soil is, the healthier and stronger the trees and other plants that grow in it will be. This makes it possible for us to live healthy lives.
In conclusion, healthy soil is an important factor for us to live. It helps do so many wonderful things that allow us to keep our bodies healthy.
Dr. Michael Woods, executive director of the AISWCD, recognizes the accomplishments of Soil Health Week essay contest winners (left) fifth grader Rylee Phillips (for Bond County Soil & Water Conservation District) and freshman Toby Williams (for Stark County Soil & Water Conservation District) at the State Capitol in Springfield for Soil Health Week Lobby Day Wednesday March 6, 2024.
Rylee Phillips shows her relief after reading her winning Soil Health Week essay contest at the State Capitol in Springfield during Soil Health Week Lobby Day Wednesday March 6, 2024. Rylee is a fifth grader representing Bond County Soil & Water Conservation District. Clapping at right is fellow essay contest winner Toby Williams representing Stark County Soil & Water Conservation District.
Soil Health Week essay contest winner Rylee Phillips after reading her winning Soil Health Week essay contest at the State Capitol in Springfield during Soil Health Week Lobby Day Wednesday March 6, 2024.
