scholarly journals Large-Scale Soil Erosion Estimation Considering Vegetation Growth Cycle

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 473
Author(s):  
Hanchen Zhuang ◽  
Yixin Wang ◽  
Hang Liu ◽  
Sijia Wang ◽  
Wanqiu Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Growth Cycle ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Vegetation Coverage ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity ◽  
Entire Surface ◽  
Vegetation Growth ◽  
Weather Patterns ◽  
Two Factors

The Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) was used to predict the potential soil erosion; it simply multiplies rainfall erosivity and land cover management factors; it does not consider the dynamics of these two factors during a given year or the effect of vegetation growth cycle on soil erosion estimates. This study developed a new method that considers the vegetation growth cycle in different periods of the year by matching monthly rainfall erosivity and a management factor using the entire surface of China as the study area. The data were input into the original equation, and the two methods to estimate soil erosion were compared. Finally, patterns and mechanisms of the influence of vegetation growth cycle on RUSLE estimations under different climatic conditions were obtained. The results show that vegetation coverage inhibits the effect of rainfall on soil erosion potential, which is related to the average and coefficient of variation of cover-management factor and the average of rainfall erosivity due to the significant variations in weather patterns in winter and summer in China. This article discusses the influence of the vegetation growth cycle on the estimation of large-scale soil erosion, which is a key to having a better estimation.

Regulation and Critical Threshold of Grass Cover on Slope Runoff in LoessHilly Gully Region under Artificial

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiufen Zhang ◽  
Xizhi Lv ◽  
Rongxin Chen ◽  
Yongxin Ni ◽  
Li Ma
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Rainfall Intensity ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Vegetation Coverage ◽  
Critical Threshold ◽  
Runoff Generation ◽  
Grassland Vegetation ◽  
Slope Flow ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Slope Runoff

<p>The slope runoff caused by rainstorm is the main cause of serious soil and water loss in the loess hilly area, the grassland vegetation has a good inhibitory effect on the slope runoff, it is of great significance to reveal the role of grassland vegetation in the process of runoff generation and control mechanism for controlling soil erosion in this area. In this study, typical grassland slopes in hilly and gully regions of the loess plateau were taken as research objects. Through artificial rainfall in the field, the response rules of slope rainfall-runoff process to different grass coverage were explored. The results show that: (1) The time for the slope flow to stabilize is prolonged with the increase of vegetation coverage, and shortened with the increase of rainfall intensity; (2) At 60 mm·h <sup>−1</sup> rainfall intensity, the threshold of grassland vegetation coverage is 75.38%; at 90 mm·h<sup> −1</sup> rainfall intensity, the threshold of grassland vegetation coverage is 90.54%; at 120 mm·h <sup>−1</sup> rainfall intensity, the impact of grassland vegetation coverage on runoff is not significant; (3) the Reynolds number and Froude number of slope flow are 40.07‒695.22 and 0.33‒1.56 respectively, the drag coefficient is 1.42‒43.53. Under conditions of heavy rainfall, the ability of grassland to regulate slope runoff is limited. If only turf protection is considered, about 90% of grassland coverage can effectively cope with soil erosion caused by climatic conditions in loess hilly and gully regions. Therefore, in loess hilly areas where heavy rains frequently occur, grassland's protective effect on soil erosion is obviously insufficient, and investment in vegetation measures for trees and shrubs should be strengthened.</p>

scholarly journals Estimation of rainfall erosivity based on WRF-derived raindrop size distributions

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiang Dai ◽  
Jingxuan Zhu ◽  
Shuliang Zhang ◽  
Shaonan Zhu ◽  
Dawei Han ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Weather Prediction ◽  
Wrf Model ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Potential Effect ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity ◽  
Size Distributions ◽  
Raindrop Size

Abstract. Soil erosion can cause various ecological problems, such as land degradation, soil fertility loss, and river siltation. Rainfall is the primary water-driving force for soil erosion and its potential effect on soil erosion is reflected by rainfall erosivity that relates to the raindrop kinetic energy (KE). As it is difficult to observe large-scale dynamic characteristics of raindrops, all the current rainfall erosivity models use the function based on rainfall amount to represent the raindrops KE. With the development of global atmospheric re-analysis data, numerical weather prediction (NWP) techniques become a promising way to estimate rainfall KE directly at regional and global scales with high spatial and temporal resolutions. This study proposed a novel method for large-scale and long-term rainfall erosivity investigations based on the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model, avoiding errors caused by inappropriate rainfall–energy relationships and large-scale interpolation. We adopted three microphysical parameterizations schemes (Morrison, WDM6, and Thompson aerosol-aware [TAA]) to obtain raindrop size distributions, rainfall KE and rainfall erosivity, with validation by two disdrometers and 304 rain gauges around the United Kingdom. Among the three WRF schemes, TAA had the best performance compared with the disdrometers at a monthly scale. The results revealed that high rainfall erosivity occurred in the west coast area at the whole country scale during 2013–2017. The proposed methodology makes a significant contribution to improving large-scale soil erosion estimation and for better understanding microphysical rainfall–soil interactions to support the rational formulation of soil and water conservation planning.

scholarly journals Estimation of rainfall erosivity based on WRF-derived raindrop size distributions

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (11) ◽  
pp. 5407-5422
Author(s):  
Qiang Dai ◽  
Jingxuan Zhu ◽  
Shuliang Zhang ◽  
Shaonan Zhu ◽  
Dawei Han ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Kinetic Energy ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Weather Prediction ◽  
Wrf Model ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity ◽  
Size Distributions ◽  
Raindrop Size

Abstract. Soil erosion can cause various ecological problems, such as land degradation, soil fertility loss, and river siltation. Rainfall is the primary water-driven force for soil erosion, and its potential effect on soil erosion is reflected by rainfall erosivity that relates to the raindrop kinetic energy. As it is difficult to observe large-scale dynamic characteristics of raindrops, all the current rainfall erosivity models use the function based on rainfall amount to represent the raindrops' kinetic energy. With the development of global atmospheric re-analysis data, numerical weather prediction techniques become a promising way to estimate rainfall kinetic energy directly at regional and global scales with high spatial and temporal resolutions. This study proposed a novel method for large-scale and long-term rainfall erosivity investigations based on the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model, avoiding errors caused by inappropriate rainfall–energy relationships and large-scale interpolation. We adopted three microphysical parameterizations schemes (Morrison, WDM6, and Thompson aerosol-aware) to obtain raindrop size distributions, rainfall kinetic energy, and rainfall erosivity, with validation by two disdrometers and 304 rain gauges around the United Kingdom. Among the three WRF schemes, Thompson aerosol-aware had the best performance compared with the disdrometers at a monthly scale. The results revealed that high rainfall erosivity occurred in the west coast area at the whole country scale during 2013–2017. The proposed methodology makes a significant contribution to improving large-scale soil erosion estimation and for better understanding microphysical rainfall–soil interactions to support the rational formulation of soil and water conservation planning.

Towards large-scale monitoring of soil erosion in Africa: Accounting for the dynamics of rainfall erosivity

2014 ◽  
Vol 115 ◽  
pp. 33-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anton Vrieling ◽  
Joost C.B. Hoedjes ◽  
Marijn van der Velde
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity

scholarly journals Soil erosion risk assessment: a case study of the Jos Plateau, Nigeria

2021 ◽  
pp. 109-117
Author(s):  
Ayodele Owonubi
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Vegetation Coverage ◽  
Anthropogenic Factors ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity ◽  
Entire Area ◽  
Jos Plateau ◽  
Erosion Rates ◽  
Erosion Processes ◽  
Soil Erosion Rates

Soil erosion is a treat to global food security. The objective of this study was to evaluate factors influencing erosion on the arable lands of the Jos Plateau; and to estimate the extent of soil erosion in the area. Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) model was used to evaluate soil erosion processes in the study area. This was facilitated with the aid of Geographic Information System Both for Interpolation and Geospatial analysis. Soil data from field survey was the primary source of data for analysis of soil erodibility. Topographic factor was determined from 90-meter elevation data. Rainfall erosivity was determined from rainfall data at 1 kilometer resolution. Whereas vegetation cover factor was determined from Normalized Difference Vegetation Index. Results of the study indicate that rainfall erosivity values were remarkably high and have mean values of 5117MJ.mm/ ha.h.y. Analysis of percent areal coverage indicate that the entire area had 52, 34, 7, and 7% low, moderate, high and very high topographic factors respectively. Further analysis indicate that anthropogenic factors had severely affected vegetation coverage of the Jos plateau, especially on the arable lands. Furthermore, during this research, the mean annual actual and potential soil erosion rates were estimated spatially over the Jos Plateau area. Soil erosion rates were far more than tolerable rates thereby affecting soil fertility and productivity.

scholarly journals Rainfall Erosivity in Soil Erosion Processes

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 722
Author(s):  
Gianni Bellocchi ◽  
Nazzareno Diodato
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Water Resource Management ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
Erosion Processes ◽  
Natural Rainfall ◽  
Raindrop Energy

Regional studies on the erosive power of rainfall patterns are still limited and the actual impacts that may follow on erosional and sedimentation processes are poorly understood. Given the several interrelated challenges of environmental management, it is also not always unclear what is relevant for the development of adaptive and integrated approaches facilitating sustainable water resource management. This editorial introduces the Special Issue entitled “Rainfall Erosivity in Soil Erosion Processes”, which offers options to fill some of these gaps. Three studies performed in China and Central Asia (by Duulatov et al., Water 2019, 11, 897, Xu et al., 2019, 11, 2429, Gu et al. 2020, 12, 200) show that the erosion potential of rainfall is increasing in this region, driving social, economic, and environmental consequences. In the same region (the Weibei Plateau in China), Fu et al. (Water 2019, 11, 1514) assessed the effect of raindrop energy on the splash distance and particle size distribution of aggregate splash erosion. In the Mediterranean, updated estimates of current and future rainfall erosivity for Greece are provided by Vantas et al. (Water 2020, 12, 687), while Diodato and Bellocchi (Water 2019, 11, 2306) reconstructed and investigated seasonal net erosion in an Italian catchment using parsimonious modelling. Then, this Special Issue includes two technologically oriented articles by Ricks at al. The first (Water 2019, 11, 2386) evaluated a large-scale rainfall simulator design to simulate rainfall with characteristics similar to natural rainfall. The data provided contribute to the information that may be useful for the government’s decision making when considering landscape changes caused by variations in the intensity of a rainfall event. The second article (Water 2020, 12, 515) illustrated a laboratory-scale test of mulching methods to protect against the discharge of sediment-laden stormwater from active construction sites (e.g., highway construction projects).

scholarly journals Soil erosion is unlikely to drive a future carbon sink in Europe

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (11) ◽  
pp. eaau3523 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emanuele Lugato ◽  
Pete Smith ◽  
Pasquale Borrelli ◽  
Panos Panagos ◽  
Cristiano Ballabio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Agricultural Soils ◽  
Carbon Sink ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Model Framework ◽  
Erosion Rates ◽  
C Cycle ◽  
The Impact

Understanding of the processes governing soil organic carbon turnover is confounded by the fact that C feedbacks driven by soil erosion have not yet been fully explored at large scale. However, in a changing climate, variation in rainfall erosivity (and hence soil erosion) may change the amount of C displacement, hence inducing feedbacks onto the land C cycle. Using a consistent biogeochemistry-erosion model framework to quantify the impact of future climate on the C cycle, we show that C input increases were offset by higher heterotrophic respiration under climate change. Taking into account all the additional feedbacks and C fluxes due to displacement by erosion, we estimated a net source of 0.92 to 10.1 Tg C year−1 from agricultural soils in the European Union to the atmosphere over the period 2016–2100. These ranges represented a weaker and stronger C source compared to a simulation without erosion (1.8 Tg C year−1), respectively, and were dependent on the erosion-driven C loss parameterization, which is still very uncertain. However, when setting a baseline with current erosion rates, the accelerated erosion scenario resulted in 35% more eroded C, but its feedback on the C cycle was marginal. Our results challenge the idea that higher erosion driven by climate will lead to a C sink in the near future.

ASSESSMENT OF SOIL EROSION USING FOURNIER INDEXES TO ESTIMATE RAINFALL EROSIVITY

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (8) ◽  
pp. 1739-1745 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel Lazar ◽  
Alina Maria Coman ◽  
Georgiana Lacatusu ◽  
Ana Maria Macsim
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Rainfall Erosivity

scholarly journals Influence of the Upstream Terrain on the Formation of a Cold Frontal Snowband in Northeast China

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Na Li ◽  
Baofeng Jiao ◽  
Lingkun Ran ◽  
Zongting Gao ◽  
Shouting Gao
Keyword(s):  
Gravity Waves ◽  
Northeast China ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Control Experiment ◽  
Vertical Motion ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Inertial Instability ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Conditional Instability

AbstractWe investigated the influence of upstream terrain on the formation of a cold frontal snowband in Northeast China. We conducted numerical sensitivity experiments that gradually removed the upstream terrain and compared the results with a control experiment. Our results indicate a clear negative effect of upstream terrain on the formation of snowbands, especially over large-scale terrain. By thoroughly examining the ingredients necessary for snowfall (instability, lifting and moisture), we found that the release of mid-level conditional instability, followed by the release of low-level or near surface instabilities (inertial instability, conditional instability or conditional symmetrical instability), contributed to formation of the snowband in both experiments. The lifting required for the release of these instabilities was mainly a result of frontogenetic forcing and upper gravity waves. However, the snowband in the control experiment developed later and was weaker than that in the experiment without upstream terrain. Two factors contributed to this negative topographic effect: (1) the mountain gravity waves over the upstream terrain, which perturbed the frontogenetic circulation by rapidly changing the vertical motion and therefore did not favor the release of instabilities in the absence of persistent ascending motion; and (2) the decrease in the supply of moisture as a result of blocking of the upstream terrain, which changed both the moisture and instability structures leeward of the mountains. A conceptual model is presented that shows the effects of the instabilities and lifting on the development of cold frontal snowbands in downstream mountains.

scholarly journals Effect of Forest Management Operations on Aggregate-Associated SOC Dynamics Using a 137Cs Tracing Method

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 859
Author(s):  
Geng Guo ◽  
Xiao Li ◽  
Xi Zhu ◽  
Yanyin Xu ◽  
Qiao Dai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Dynamic Change ◽  
Aggregate Size ◽  
Nutrient Loss ◽  
Vegetation Coverage ◽  
Forest Conversion ◽  
Mountain Areas

Although forest conversions have long been a focus in carbon (C) research, the relationship between soil erosion and the dynamic change of soil organic carbon (SOC) has not been well-quantified. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of converting CBF (coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forests) to economic forests, including CF (chestnut forest), HF (hawthorn forest), and AF (apple forest), on the soil structure and nutrient loss in the Huaibei Rocky Mountain Areas, China. A 137Cs tracer method was used to provide soil erosion data in order to quantify the loss of aggregate-associated SOC. The results showed that forest management operations caused macro-aggregates to decrease by 1.69% in CF, 4.52% in AF, and 3.87% in HF. Therefore, the stability of aggregates was reduced. The SOC contents in each aggregate size decreased significantly after forest conversion, with the largest decreases occurring in AF. We quantified the loss of 0.15, 0.38, and 0.31 Mg hm−2 of aggregate-associated SOC after conversion from CBF to CF, AF, and HF, respectively. These results suggest that forest management operations have a negative impact on soil quality and fertility. CF has better vegetation coverage and less human interference, making it more prominent among the three economic forests species. Therefore, when developing forest management operations, judicious selection of tree varieties and appropriate management practices are extremely critical. In addition, measures should be taken to increase surface cover to reduce soil erosion and achieve sustainable development of economic forests.

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