scholarly journals Geospatial Assessment of Soil Erosion Intensity and Sediment Yield Using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) Model

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahsen Maqsoom ◽  
Bilal Aslam ◽  
Usman Hassan ◽  
Zaheer Abbas Kazmi ◽  
Mahmoud Sodangi ◽  
...  

Land degradation caused by soil erosion is considered among the most severe problems of the 21stcentury. It poses serious threats to soil fertility, food availability, human health, and the world ecosystem. The purpose of the study is to make a quantitative mapping of soil loss in the Chitral district, Pakistan. For the estimation of soil loss in the study area, the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model was used in combination with Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS). Topographical features of the study area show that the area is more vulnerable to soil loss, having the highest average annual soil loss of 78 ton/ha/year. Maps generated in the study show that the area has the highest sediment yield of 258 tons/ha/year and higher average annual soil loss of 450 tons/ha/year. The very high severity class represents 8%, 16% under high, 21% under moderate, 12% under low, and 13% under very low soil loss in the Chitral district. The above study is helpful to researchers and planners for better planning to control the loss of soil in the high severity zones. Plantation of trees and structures should be built like check dams, which effectively control the soil erosion process.

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. L. D. Panditharathne ◽  
N. S. Abeysingha ◽  
K. G. S. Nirmanee ◽  
Ananda Mallawatantri

Soil erosion is one of the main forms of land degradation. Erosion contributes to loss of agricultural land productivity and ecological and esthetic values of natural environment, and it impairs the production of safe drinking water and hydroenergy production. Thus, assessment of soil erosion and identifying the lands more prone to erosion are vital for erosion management process. Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (Rusle) model supported by a GIS system was used to assess the spatial variability of erosion occurring at Kalu Ganga river basin in Sri Lanka. Digital Elevation Model (30 × 30 m), twenty years’ rainfall data measured at 11 rain gauge stations across the basin, land use and soil maps, and published literature were used as inputs to the model. The average annual soil loss in Kalu Ganga river basin varied from 0 to 134 t ha−1 year−1 and mean annual soil loss was estimated at 0.63 t ha−1 year−1. Based on erosion estimates, the basin landscape was divided into four different erosion severity classes: very low, low, moderate, and high. About 1.68% of the areas (4714 ha) in the river basin were identified with moderate to high erosion severity (>5 t ha−1 year−1) class which urgently need measures to control soil erosion. Lands with moderate to high soil erosion classes were mostly found in Bulathsinghala, Kuruwita, and Rathnapura divisional secretarial divisions. Use of the erosion severity information coupled with basin wide individual RUSLE parameters can help to design the appropriate land use management practices and improved management based on the observations to minimize soil erosion in the basin.


Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pavisorn Chuenchum ◽  
Mengzhen Xu ◽  
Wenzhe Tang

The Lancang–Mekong River basin, as an important transboundary river in Southeast Asia, is challenged by rapid socio-economic development, especially the construction of hydropower dams. Furthermore, substantial factors, such as terrain, rainfall, soil properties and agricultural activity, affect and are highly susceptible to soil erosion and sediment yield. This study aimed to estimate average annual soil erosion in terms of spatial distribution and sediment deposition by using the revised universal soil loss equation (RUSLE) and GIS techniques. This study also applied remote sensing and available data sources for soil erosion analysis. Annual soil erosion in most parts of the study area range from 700 to 10,000 t/km2/y with a mean value of 5350 t/km2/y. Approximately 45% of the total area undergoes moderate erosion. Moreover, the assessments of sediment deposition and erosion using the modified RUSLE and the GIS techniques indicate high sediment erosion along the flow direction of the mainstream, from the upper Mekong River to the Mekong Delta. The northern part of the upper Mekong River and the central and southern parts of the lower Mekong River are the most vulnerable to the increase in soil erosion rates, indicating sediment deposition.


2021 ◽  
Vol 58 (02) ◽  
pp. 177-191
Author(s):  
Ashwini Suryawanshi ◽  
Anupam Kumar Nema ◽  
Rahul Kumar Jaiswal ◽  
Sukant Jain ◽  
Saswat Kumar Kar

Soil erosion is caused due to the dynamic action of erosive agents, mainly water, and is a major threat to the environment. Primary aim of the present study was to study the soil loss dynamics, and identify the environmental hotspots in Madhya Pradesh to aid decision-makers to plan and prioritize appropriate conservation measures. Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) models were applied for erosion rate estimation by generating thematic maps of R (Rainfall erosivity factor), K (Soil erodibility factor), LS (Topographic factor), C (Cover and management factor), and P (Support practice factor) factors by using several input parameters in QGIS software. Subsequently, the different classes of soil erosion and percentage area under these classes were identified. The average annual soil erosion for the entire state as obtained from the USLE and RUSLE model were 5.80 t.ha-1.yr-1 and 6.64 t.ha-1.yr-1, respectively. The areas under severe risk were 1.09 % and 1.80 %, and very severe risk areas were 1.57 % and 1.83 % as estimated by USLE and RUSLE model, respectively. As compared to RUSLE model, USLE model underestimated rate of soil erosion for most river basins of the state as well as for the entire state


2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 23-34
Author(s):  
Oon Y.W. ◽  
Chin N.J. ◽  
Law P.L.

 This research presents the results of a study on soil erosion rates and sediment yields of a proposed Level 4 Sanitary Landfill construction site located in Sibu, Sarawak. Assessments on potential soil erosion rates and sediment yields during pre-construction, construction and operation stages were carried out using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) and Modified Universal Soil Loss Equation (MUSLE), respectively. It was found that soil erosion rates during construction and operation stages fell under "Moderately High" category, whereby highest sediment yield occurred during construction and operation stages. Comparative analysis on with and without Best Management Practices (BMPs) during construction stage demonstrated that BMPs could significantly reduce the rate of soil erosion, and thus sediment yields.


2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamza Bouguerra ◽  
Abderrazak Bouanani ◽  
Kamel Khanchoul ◽  
Oussama Derdous ◽  
Salah Eddine Tachi

Abstract Soil erosion by water is a major problem that the Northern part of Algeria witnesses nowadays; it reduces: the productivity of agricultural areas due to the loss of lands, and leads to the loss of storage capacity in reservoirs, the deterioration of water quality etc. The aim of this study is to evaluate the soil losses due to water erosion, and to identify the sectors which are potentially sensitive to water erosion in the Bouhamdane watershed, that is located in the northeastern part of Algeria. To this end, the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) was used. The application of this equation takes into account five parameters, namely the rainfall erosivity, topography, soil erodibility, vegetative cover and erosion control practices. The product of these parameters under GIS using the RUSLE mathematical equation has enabled evaluating an annual average erosion rate for the Bouhamdane watershed of 11.18 t·ha-1·y-1. Based on the estimates of soil loss in each grid cell, a soil erosion risk map with five risk classes was elaborated. The spatial distribution of risk classes was 16% very low, 41% low, 28% moderate, 12% high and 3% very high. Most areas showing high and very high erosion risk occurred in the lower Bouhamdane watershed around Hammam Debagh dam. These areas require adequate erosion control practices to be implemented on a priority basis in order to conserve soil resources and reduce siltation in the reservoir.


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 100-111
Author(s):  
Miskar Maini ◽  
Junita Eka Susanti

Standar permintaan engineering pesawat agar desain bangunan infrastruktur di area Air Strip Runway 2600 yang ada dapat mempunyai fungsi lain. Sedangkan kondisi lain sangat menentukan keselamatan karena lahan di sekitar Air Strip Runway 2600 Bandara Depati Amir (PGK) jika tidak ditutupi vegetasi seperti rumput, kondisi lain lahan yang belum ditutupi vegetasi di sekitar Air Strip Runway 2600 berpotensi akan mengalami erosi lahan, kemudian hasil erosi lahan ini akan terbawa oleh aliran air sehingga akan masuk ke saluran drainase yang akan menyebabkan sedimentasi pada saluran drainase tersebut, akhirnya akan berkurang efektifitas kinerja saluran drainase tersebut. Metode yang digunakan untuk memprediksi laju rata-rata erosi di area Air Strip Runway 2600 dengan memperhitungkan faktor erosivitas hujan, erodibilitas tanah, kemiringan lereng atau panjang lereng, pengelolaan tanaman dan konservasi tanah, yang masing masing tata guna lahan tersebut mengacu pada Masterplan Ultimate Bandara Depati Amir (PGK). Perhitungan dilakukan menggunakan persamaan USLE (Universal Soil Loss Equation) yang dikembangkan oleh Wischmeier dan Smith (1965, 1978), kemudian Sediment Delivery Ratio (SDR) dan Sediment Yield.Hasil penelitian ini, prediksi laju erosi permukaan pada area Air Strip Runway 2600 Bandara Depati Amir (PGK) tahun pertama yang mencapai 5,60 mm/tahun atau 100,76 Ton/Ha/tahun, laju erosi tahun kedua mencapai 3,38 mm/tahun atau 60,84 Ton/Ha/tahun dapat diklasifikasikan ke dalam kelas bahaya erosi sedang (kelas III) dan nilai SDR adalah sebesar 56,3%, nilai sediment yield (SR) pada tahun pertama sebesar 5.887,59 Ton/Tahun, pada tahun kedua ketika rumput pada area Air Strip telah tumbuh dengan sempurna terjadi penurunan hasil sediment yield yaitu nilai SR sebesar 3.554,85 Ton/Tahun.


Author(s):  
Hammad Gilani ◽  
Adeel Ahmad ◽  
Isma Younes ◽  
Sawaid Abbas

Abrupt changes in climatic factors, exploitation of natural resources, and land degradation contribute to soil erosion. This study provides the first comprehensive analysis of annual soil erosion dynamics in Pakistan for 2005 and 2015 using publically available climatic, topographic, soil type, and land cover geospatial datasets at 1 km spatial resolution. A well-accepted and widely applied Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) was implemented for the annual soil erosion estimations and mapping by incorporating six factors; rainfall erosivity (R), soil erodibility (K), slope-length (L), slope-steepness (S), cover management (C) and conservation practice (P). We used a cross tabular or change matrix method to assess the annual soil erosion (ton/ha/year) changes (2005-2015) in terms of areas and spatial distriburtions in four soil erosion classes; i.e. Low (<1), Medium (1–5], High (5-20], and Very high (>20). Major findings of this paper indicated that, at the national scale, an estimated annual soil erosion of 1.79 ± 11.52 ton/ha/year (mean ± standard deviation) was observed in 2005, which increased to 2.47 ±18.14 ton/ha/year in 2015. Among seven administrative units of Pakistan, in Azad Jammu & Kashmir, the average soil erosion doubled from 14.44 ± 35.70 ton/ha/year in 2005 to 28.03 ± 68.24 ton/ha/year in 2015. Spatially explicit and temporal annual analysis of soil erosion provided in this study is essential for various purposes, including the soil conservation and management practices, environmental impact assessment studies, among others.


Author(s):  
Sumayyah Aimi Mohd Najib

To determine the soil erosion in ungauged catchments, the author used 2 methods: Universal Soil Loss Equation model and sampling data. Sampling data were used to verify and validate data from model. Changing land use due to human activities will affect soil erosion. Land use has changed significantly during the last century in Pulau Pinang. The main rapid changes are related to agriculture, settlement, and urbanization. Because soil erosion depends on surface runoff, which is regulated by the structure of land use and brought about through changes in slope length, land-use changes are one of many factors influencing land degradation caused by erosion. The Universal Soil Loss Equation was used to estimate past soil erosion based on land uses from 1974 to 2012. Results indicated a significant increase in three land-use categories: forestry, built-up areas, and agriculture. Another method to evaluate land use changes in this study was by using landscape metrics analysis. The mean patch size of built-up area and forest increased, while agriculture land use decreased from 48.82 patches in 1974 to 22.46 patches in 2012. Soil erosion increased from an estimated 110.18 ton/km2/year in 1974 to an estimated 122.44 ton/km2/year in 2012. Soil erosion is highly related (R2 = 0.97) to the Shannon Diversity Index, which describes the diversity in land-use composition in river basins. The Shannon Diversity Index also increased between 1974 and 2012. The findings from this study can be used for future reference and for ungauged catchment research studies.


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