Assessment of soil erosion by RUSLE model using remote sensing and GIS - A case study of Nethravathi Basin

Ganasri, B.P.; Ramesh, H.

doi:10.1016/j.gsf.2015.10.007

Cited by 699 publications

(456 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…The P factor is mechanical practices such as the effects of contouring, strip cropping, or terracing and the resultant average annual soil loss rate due to water erosion [103]. The P factor ranges between 0 and 1, where the value closer to 0 shows good conservation practices and the values close to 1 is showing little conservation practices [47]. Several studies have tried to generate the P factor value considering the slope gradient and conservation practices [54,87,117,118].…”

Section: Of 25 Support Practice (P) Factormentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial Modeling of Soil Erosion Risk and Its Implication for Conservation Planning: the Case of the Gobele Watershed, East Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia

Woldemariam

Iguala

Tekalign

et al. 2018

Land

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Abstract:Soil erosion by water has accelerated over recent decades due to non-sustainable land use practices resulting in substantial land degradation processes. Spatially explicit information on soil erosion is critical for the development and implementation of appropriate Soil and Water Conservation (SWC) measures.The objectives of this study were to estimate the magnitude of soil loss rate, assess the change of erosion risk, and elucidate their implication for SWC planning in the Gobele Watershed, East Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia. Applying remote sensing data, the study first derived the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model parameters in an ArcGIS environment and estimated the soil loss rates. The estimated total soil loss in the watershed was 1,390,130.48 tons in 2000 and 1,022,445.09 tons in 2016 with a mean erosion rate of 51.04 t ha −1 y −1 and 34.26 t ha −1 y −1 , respectively. The study area was divided into eight erosion risk classes ranging from very low to extremely high. We established a change detection matrix of the soil erosion risk classes between 2000 and 2016. The change analysis results have revealed that about 70.80% of the soil erosion risk areas remained unchanged, 19.67% increased in total area, and 9.53% decreased, showing an overall worsening of the situation. We identified and mapped areas with a higher and increasing erosion risk as SWC priority areas using a Multi-criteria Decision Rules (MCDR) method. The top three priority levels marked for the emergency SWC measures account for about 0.04%, 0.49%, and 0.83%, respectively. These priority levels are situated along the steep slope areas in the north, northwest, south, and southeast of the Gobele Watershed. It is, thus, very critical to undertake proper intervention measures in upslope areas based on the priority levels to establish sustainable watershed management in the study area.

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Section: Of 25 Support Practice (P) Factormentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial Modeling of Soil Erosion Risk and Its Implication for Conservation Planning: the Case of the Gobele Watershed, East Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia

Woldemariam

Iguala

Tekalign

et al. 2018

Land

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“…The steeper the slope, the greater is the erosion. The LS factor is calculated by Equation (8) [46].…”

Section: Slope Length and Steepness (Ls) Factormentioning

confidence: 99%

Extent of Cropland and Related Soil Erosion Risk in Rwanda

et al. 2016

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Land conversion to cropland is one of the major causes of severe soil erosion in Africa. This study assesses the current cropland extent and the related soil erosion risk in Rwanda, a country that experienced the most rapid population growth and cropland expansion in Africa over the last decade. The land cover land use (LCLU) map of Rwanda in 2015 was developed using Landsat-8 imagery. Based on the obtained LCLU map and the spatial datasets of precipitation, soil properties and elevation, the soil erosion rate of Rwanda was assessed at 30-m spatial resolution, using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model. According to the results, the mean soil erosion rate was 250 t¨ha´1¨a´1 over the entire country, with a total soil loss rate of approximately 595 million tons per year. The mean soil erosion rate over cropland, which occupied 56% of the national land area, was estimated at 421 t¨ha´1¨a´1 and was responsible for about 95% of the national soil loss. About 24% of the croplands in Rwanda had a soil erosion rate larger than 300 t¨ha´1¨a´1, indicating their unsuitability for cultivation. With a mean soil erosion rate of 1642 t¨ha´1¨a´1, these unsuitable croplands were responsible for 90% of the national soil loss. Most of the unsuitable croplands are distributed in the Congo Nile Ridge, Volcanic Range mountain areas in the west and the Buberuka highlands in the north, regions characterized by steep slopes (>30%) and strong rainfall. Soil conservation practices, such as the terracing cultivation method, are paramount to preserve the soil. According to our assessment, terracing alone could reduce the mean cropland soil erosion rate and the national soil loss by 79% and 75%, respectively. After terracing, only a small proportion of 7.6% of the current croplands would still be exposed to extreme soil erosion with a rate >300 t¨ha´1¨a´1. These irremediable cropland areas should be returned to mountain forest to foster environmental sustainability or further sustainable alternative erosion control techniques may be applied, such as applying Vetiver Eco-engineering Technology due to its economical soil erosion control and stabilization of steep slopes and the construction of erosion control dams to absorb and break down excess runoff from unusually intense storms in various parts of the watersheds.

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“…The degradation of agricultural land as a result of soil erosion is a worldwide phenomenon leading to the loss of nutrientrich surface soil and increased runoff from the more impermeable sub-soil that leads to the lowering of agricultural productivity (Erkossa et al 2015;Taguas et al 2015;Ganasri and Ramesh 2015;Keesstra et al 2016;Nigussie et al 2017). Soil erosion is more severe in the sub-Saharan African countries where the population livelihood is dependent on the soil (Sunday et al 2012;Erkossa et al 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prediction of soil and water conservation structure impacts on runoff and erosion processes using SWAT model in the northern Ethiopian highlands

et al. 2017

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Purpose Land degradation due to soil erosion is a serious threat to the highlands of Ethiopia. Various soil and water conservation (SWC) strategies have been in use to tackle soil erosion. However, the effectiveness of SWC measures on runoff dynamics and sediment load in terms of their medium-and short-term effects has not been sufficiently studied. Materials and methods A study was conducted in 2011 to 2015 in the Gumara-Maksegnit watershed to study the impacts of SWC structures on runoff and soil erosion processes using the soil and water analysis tool (SWAT) model. The study was conducted in two adjacent watersheds where in one of the watersheds, SWC structures were constructed (treated watershed (TW)) in 2011, while the other watershed was a reference watershed without SWC structures (untreated watershed (UW)). For both watersheds, separate SWAT and SWAT-CUP (SWAT calibration and uncertainty procedure) projects were set up for daily runoff and sediment yield. The SWAT-CUP program was applied to optimize the parameters of the SWAT using daily observed runoff and sediment yield data. Results and discussion The runoff simulations indicated that SWAT can reproduce the hydrological regime for both watersheds. The daily runoff calibration (2011)(2012)(2013) results for the TW and UW showed good correlation between the predicted and the observed data (R 2 = 0.78 for the TW and R 2 = 0.77 for the UW). The validation (2014)(2015) results also showed good correlation with R 2 values of 0.72 and 0.70 for the TW and UW, respectively. However, sediment yield calibration and validation results showed modest correlation between the predicted and observed sediment yields with R 2 values of 0.65 and 0.69 for the TW and UW for the calibration and R 2 values of 0.55 and 0.65 for the TW and UW for the validation, respectively. Conclusions The model results indicated that SWC structures considerably reduced soil loss by as much as 25-38% in the TW. The study demonstrated that SWAT performed well for both watersheds and can be a potential instrument for upscaling and assessing the impact of SWC structures on sediment loads in the highlands of Ethiopia.

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Assessment of soil erosion by RUSLE model using remote sensing and GIS - A case study of Nethravathi Basin

Cited by 699 publications

References 15 publications

Spatial Modeling of Soil Erosion Risk and Its Implication for Conservation Planning: the Case of the Gobele Watershed, East Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia

Spatial Modeling of Soil Erosion Risk and Its Implication for Conservation Planning: the Case of the Gobele Watershed, East Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia

Extent of Cropland and Related Soil Erosion Risk in Rwanda

Prediction of soil and water conservation structure impacts on runoff and erosion processes using SWAT model in the northern Ethiopian highlands

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