Process identification of soil erosion in steep mountain regions

Abstract

Abstract. Mountainous soil erosion processes were investigated in the Urseren Valley (Central Switzerland) by means of measurements and simulations. The quantification of soil erosion was performed on hill slope scale (2·20 m) for three different land use types: hayfields, pastures with dwarf shrubs and pastures without dwarf shrubs with three replicates each. Erosion rates during growing season were measured with sediment traps between June 2006 and November 2007. Long-term soil erosion rates were estimated based on Cs-137 redistribution. In addition, soil moisture and surface flow were recorded during the growing season in the field and compared to model output. We chose the WEPP model (Water Erosion Prediction Project) to simulate soil erosion during the growing season. Model parameters were determined in the field (slope, plant species, fractional vegetation cover, initial saturation level), by laboratory analyses (grain size, organic matter) and by literature study. The WEPP model simulates sheet erosion processes (interrill and splash erosion processes, please note that no rill erosion occurs at our sites). Model output resulted in considerable smaller values than the measured erosion rates with sediment traps for the same period. We attribute the differences to observed random gravity driven erosion of soil conglomerates. The Cs-137 measurements deliver substantially higher mean annual erosion rates, which are most likely connected to snow cover related processes such as snow gliding and avalanche activities.

Spatial and temporal variability of rainfall erosivity factor for Switzerland

“…Most cultivated areas (e.g. winter crop, corn, vegetable fields) as well as alpine grasslands will have low vegetation cover and water saturated conditions in May ( Vandaele and Poesen, 1995;Le Bissonnais et al, 2002;Konz et al, 2010) and will be harvested/grazed in September/October (Favis-Mortlock and Boardman, 1995;Leek and Olsen, 2000;Helming et al, 2005) and will thus be susceptible to erosion during snow melt and/or heavy rain events.…”

An attempt to estimate tolerable soil erosion rates by matching soil formation with denudation in Alpine grasslands

“…In the meantime, we have to use erosion estimates resulting from different methods of single case studies when evaluating the balance between soil formation and soil erosion. Methods vary from sediment trap measurements (Felix and Johannes 1995;Frankenberg et al 1995;Langenscheidt 1995;Konz et al 2012), the measurement of fallout radionuclides 137 Cs or 239+240 Pu Alewell et al 2013), modelling (Konz et al 2010) or a combination of remote sensing and modelling ).…”

A review of radiometric analysis on soil erosion and deposition studies in Africa

“…Accelerated soil erosion is one of the main environmental problem (Zapata and Agudo, 2000;Konz et al, 2010;Othman and Ismail, 2012) that largely affects sustainable use of soil and water resources (Patrocinio and Andrello, 2009). Soil erosion is a major threat to soil productivity and represents the main mechanism of land degradation worldwide (IAEA, 2014).…”