Building Up and Protecting Soil

After reading this long but very informative article, I found a lot of really interesting things. The three things that really caught my eye where that without soil, our continents would be barren wastelands because soil traps and absorbs most of the rainfall and waters plants, replenishes aquifers, lakes, rivers, and streams. Another thing is that wind and water erosion are major threats to soil because it accomodates other types of soil degradation or environmental problems. Lastly, I  found it interesting that I learned about urban erosion which is erosion to soil due to housing and construction projects that gouge the soil and strip it of it's vegetation in order to make space for buildings. This leaves the soil exposed to the elements for a long period of time which causes higher erosion rates and for the soil to be unable to absorb the water from rooftops that would usually be trapped by plants. One thing I will look for next time I am in the garden is if the soil is healthy or not. One question I have is what can you do to make sure your soil remains healthy all year long?