Sub-chapter 2.3.3. Challenges for mitigating Mediterranean soil erosion under global change

Raclot, Damien; Bissonnais, Yves Le; Annabi, Mohamed; Sabir, Mohamed

doi:10.4000/books.irdeditions.23538

Cited by 12 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 1 publication

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The components of the Mediterranean environment are considered one of the most fragile around the world, especially as regards soils, which are exposed to severe degradation processes [36,37]. In several cases, rainfall and runoff have induced soil erosion, which is a well-known degradation challenge in terms of ecological mismanagement [8,38].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimating Human Impacts on Soil Erosion Considering Different Hillslope Inclinations and Land Uses in the Coastal Region of Syria

Mohammed

Abdo²,

Szabó

et al. 2020

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Soils in the coastal region of Syria (CRoS) are one of the most fragile components of natural ecosystems. However, they are adversely affected by water erosion processes after extreme land cover modifications such as wildfires or intensive agricultural activities. The main goal of this research was to clarify the dynamic interaction between erosion processes and different ecosystem components (inclination, land cover/land use, and rainy storms) along with the vulnerable territory of the CRoS. Experiments were carried out in five different locations using a total of 15 erosion plots. Soil loss and runoff were quantified in each experimental plot, considering different inclinations and land uses (agricultural land (AG), burnt forest (BF), forest/control plot (F)). Observed runoff and soil loss varied greatly according to both inclination and land cover after 750 mm of rainfall (26 events). In the cultivated areas, the average soil water erosion ranged between 0.14 ± 0.07 and 0.74 ± 0.33 kg/m2; in the BF plots, mean soil erosion ranged between 0.03 ± 0.01 and 0.24 ± 0.10 kg/m2. The lowest amount of erosion was recorded in the F plots where the erosion ranged between 0.1 ± 0.001 and 0.07 ± 0.03 kg/m2. Interestingly, the General Linear Model revealed that all factors (i.e., inclination, rainfall and land use) had a significant (p < 0.001) effect on the soil loss. We concluded that human activities greatly influenced soil erosion rates, being higher in the AG lands, followed by BF and F. Therefore, the current study could be very useful to policymakers and planners for proposing immediate conservation or restoration plans in a less studied area which has been shown to be vulnerable to soil erosion processes.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimating Human Impacts on Soil Erosion Considering Different Hillslope Inclinations and Land Uses in the Coastal Region of Syria

Mohammed

Abdo²,

Szabó

et al. 2020

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, soils are often threat by several degradation factors among them soil erosion which is a clear indication of land degradation in the Mediterranean (García-Ruiz et al, 2013;García-Ruiz et al, 2017;Montanarella et al, 2016). Therefore preventing and combating soil erosion is a major environmental and economical challenge in this region where climate change is already perceptible (Den Biggelaar et al, 2004;Giorgi and Lionelle, 2008;Raclot et al, 2016). In Tunisia, the problem of soil erosion is more pronounced in the north part of the country in which the landscape is hilly and high-energy storms are frequent on bare soils during the autumn season (Jebari, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial variability of soil aggregate stability at the scale of an agricultural region in Tunisia

Annabi

Raclot

Bahri

et al. 2017

CATENA

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

International audienceSoil aggregate stability is a key factor in soil resistance to water erosion, which is a threat to soils in a large part of northern Tunisia. The analysis of the spatial variability of soil aggregate stability provides both agronomic and environmentally useful information. However, extensive measurements of soil aggregate stability remain tedious and expensive. This study explores two different approaches as alternative to measurements of soil aggregate stability. One approach estimated aggregate stability via laboratory measurements of soil elementary properties using multiple linear regressions known as pedotransfer functions. The second approach, which is methodologically innovating, was based on the geological pattern as a proxy for aggregate stability using regression-kriging analysis. A set of 113 soil samples from an 800 km² agricultural region that included the Lebna watershed (Cap Bon, Tunisia) were collected from the soil surface layer (0-10 cm depth). Samples were analyzed for elementary properties (i.e., soil texture, total carbon and nitrogen, iron, CaCO3, salinity, CEC and pH) and for soil aggregate stability according to the normalized method (ISO/DIS 10930, 2012), which considers three indexes (MWD) calculated for three contrasted wetting conditions and disruptive energies. Most soils in the study area were non-salted with an alkaline pH and relatively low organic carbon content. Of the soils, 35% were clay soils, and 55% had a balanced soil texture. The average of the three soil aggregate stability indexes (MWDmean) ranged from 0.38 to 2.80 mm, and this property showed large variability from instable soils to very stable ones. Analysis of pedotransfer functions determined that the best predictor variables for soil aggregate stability were silt, organic matter and iron. Geostatistical analyses at the regional scale showed spatially structured soil aggregate stability (variograms with sills reaching a 5 km distance). Using geological information as ancillary data, the prediction of soil aggregate stability with regression-kriging was similar to that of pedotransfer functions. A regression-kriged map of soil aggregate stability associated with a map of prediction uncertainties was developed. The resulting maps and methods of this study can be useful in the development of management options that minimize water erosion risks in the studied area

show abstract

“…Humidity and temperature also influence microorganisms' activities involved in organic matter transformation that ultimately affect soils chemical properties (Allison and Treseder, 2008;Borsali et al, 2021;Kheir et al, 2021). Consequently, in the Mediterranean basin, current soil-loss rates drastically exceed soil formation rates (Raclot et al, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Land use legacy footprint in Mediterranean forest soils: An infrared spectroscopy approach

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Sub-chapter 2.3.3. Challenges for mitigating Mediterranean soil erosion under global change

Cited by 12 publications

References 1 publication

Estimating Human Impacts on Soil Erosion Considering Different Hillslope Inclinations and Land Uses in the Coastal Region of Syria

Estimating Human Impacts on Soil Erosion Considering Different Hillslope Inclinations and Land Uses in the Coastal Region of Syria

Spatial variability of soil aggregate stability at the scale of an agricultural region in Tunisia

Land use legacy footprint in Mediterranean forest soils: An infrared spectroscopy approach

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About