Journal of Food, Agriculture and Environment

Estimation of soil erosion in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area of China using RUSLE, remote sensing and GIS

Author(s):

Changguang Wu ¹, Zhixiang Zhou ^1*, Wenfa Xiao ^2*, Pengcheng Wang ¹, Mingjun Teng ¹, Zijie Huang ¹

Recieved Date: 2011-02-06, Accepted Date: 2011-04-10

Abstract:

Soil erosion by water is one of the most critical environmental hazards in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area (TGRA) in China, where authorities have created the largest water conservancy project in the world. Quantifying the amount and the spatial distribution of erosion over large areas is essential for the effective implementation of conservation efforts. This study integrates the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) with remote sensing and GIS to estimate soil loss and identify risk erosion areas in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area. The average soil erosion rate in the TGRA estimated by RUSLE is 32.80 t ha^-1 yr^-1, and the total amount of actual soil loss amounts to 1.891×10⁸ t yr^-1. According to the Chinese standard classification and gradation of soil erosion, zones experiencing slight, low, medium, high, very high and extreme erosion potential, respectively, constitute 38.70%, 29.48%, 12.77%, 7.49%, 7.14% and 4.42% of surveyed area. About 76.75% of the total soil loss is concentrated in 19.05% of the total area, which represents zones of high to extreme erosion potential. The most severe erosion risk typically occurs in critical regions such as ridges and steep slopes. Consequently, there is an urgent need for intervention strategies in order to effectively reduce soil erosion in these specific areas.

Keywords:

Soil erosion, RUSLE, remote sensing, GIS, China, Three Gorges Reservoir Area

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Journal: Journal of Food, Agriculture and Environment
Year: 2011
Volume: 9
Issue: 2
Category: Environment
Pages: 728-734

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