EROSION
Resulting in removing all plants from the ground, especially the topsoil gets exposed to the physical nature such as wind, rain and sun. This leads to cracks in the ground layers and a fast outwashing of nutritions and organic matter as well as important compounds of the soil like clay particles by rain.
Wind carries the smallest particles away, leading to air pollution and desertification. Also wind dries out the top soil.
In the worst case whole hillsides can collapse in landslides and be another severe danger for people living nearby.
Finally the erosion of land very often leads to an over-sedimentation in the rivers and the sea along the coast, destroying ecosystems such as coral reefs and polluting water that could be used to drink.