The three major aspects of soil physical well-being are

• the absence of sealing and crusting;
• the absence of erosion both by water as by wind; and
• the absence of compaction.

Soil erosion by water may result in severe landscape deterioration by gullies and ravines or the silting up of dams downhill. In the case of wind erosion it may result in huge dust storms that deposit the finest particles thousands of kilometers from the source.  Not all effects of soil erosion are negative and they may indeed improve downstream (or downwind) soil fertility : The farmers in the valley benefit from degrading farming practices uphill and deltas wouldn‘t exist without erosion in the upland mountains. However, it is the overall effect of accelerated erosion that is largely negative as most of the displaced soil and nutrients end up in rivers or dams and finally are largely lost in the sea. Water erosion risk can be estimated based on the amount and intensity of rainfall, the soil inherent vulnerability to erosion, the land cover, the land management and  the slope characteristics.

Soil erosion by wind may result in huge dust storms that deposit the finest particles thousands of kilometers from the source. Wind erosion is  more difficult to estimate than water erosion but a rough estimate of the vulnerability to wind erosion is given by USDA.

The effects of compaction on soil health are variable but they often result in the creation of impermeable soil layers close to the surface and local waterlogging. Compaction of the subsoil occurs under external pressure and may create impermeable layers within the soil that limit the nutrient and water cycles. The most common causes are a strong concentration of livestock particularly in drier climates around water-points, and the use of heavy machinery and inappropriate tilling practices, mostly undertaken in industrialized agriculture