Lecture 4. Soil Erosion

SOIL EROSION BY WATER
-a process by which soil is removed from the

Earth's surface by exogenetic processes
SOIL EROSION such as wind or water flow, and then

transported and deposited in other
locations.
Soil erosion by rain and transportation of It is one of major causes of Country's worst environmental problems
soil particles through rivulets that takes and a serious threat to the agricultural
place in hilly areas causes severe sustainability (Tujan 2000)
landslides and floods.
Reduction of forest vegetation and land Trees hold soil solid with their roots. Drastic increase in pollution and
degradation due to soil erosion by water Without them, erosion can lead to sedimentation resulting in a decline in
landslides & floods. the populaiton of aquatic organisms
MAJOR TYPES OF EROSION
A. GEOLOGICAL EROSION
natural erosion (soil-forming and soil

eroding processes) which maintain the
soil in favorable balance.
B. ACCELERATED EROSION
abnormal erosion as a result of

human activities.
A
removal of surface soil takes place
at much faster rate than it can be
built up by the soil forming
processes
destructive in nature and caused
much land degradation
only accelerated erosion is
considered in conservation
The forces involved:
Attacking forces- remove and B
transport the soil particles
Resisting forces - retard erosion
EROSION PROCESSES
TWO INTERACTIVE
PROCESSES
1. DETACHMENT of soil particles from

the soil surface.
2. TRANSPORT of detached particles.
both processes have to be at work

for considerable soil loss to occur
without the detachment process,
erosion will not even start
without the transport process,
erosion will be much limited
soil detachment and transport could
either be by water, wind or any
mechanical force applied to the soil.
EROSION PROCESSES
EROSION SUB-PROCESSES
1. Detachment by rainfall
2. Transport by rainfall
3. Detachment (scour) by runoff
(overland or channelized flow)
4. Transport by runoff
FACTORS AFFECTING EROSION BY WATER
A. CLIMATE
rainfall amount, intensity and energy

all impact erosion rates
erosion due to raindrop splash and
shallow overland flow varies with the
rainfall intensity
B. SOIL
soil physical properties affect

infiltration capacity
soil detachability increases as the
size of the soil particles increase
soil transportability increases with a
decrease in the particle or aggregate
size.
C. VEGETATION
interception of rainfall ,reducing

surface sealing and runoff
retardation of erosion by resisting
erosive forces
physical restraint of soil movement
improvement of aggregation and
porosity of the soil
increase biological activity in the soil
transpiration - decreases soil water,
increased storage capacity, less
runoff.
D. TOPOGRAPHY
slope length and steepness, shape

and size and shape of the watershed
on steep slopes. soil is more easily
detached and transported
downslope
on longer slopes, an increased
accumulation of overland flow tends
to increase concentrated flow
erosion
concave slopes. with flatter slopes
at the foot of the hill, deliver less
sediment than convex slopes.
E. DISTURBANCES
can be naturals such as prolonged

periods of wet weather
human induced such as construction
or tillage
fires --the greatest natural
disturbances in the ecosystems
agricultural practices may disturb the A
soil
B
TYPES OF EROSION
A. RAINDROP EROSION
also called as splash erosion

soil detachment and transport
resulting from the action of raindrop
the first stage of soil erosion by
water
raindrops increase turbulence,
providing a greater sediment-carrying
capacity
the splashed particles can rise as
high as 0.60 m above the ground and
move up to 1.5 m from the point of
impact
the splashed particles block the
spaces between soil aggregates, so
that the soil forms a crust that
reduces infiltration and increase
runoff
TYPES OF EROSION
B.SHEET EROSION
the removal of soil in thin layers by

raindrop impact and shallow surface
flow
its soil detaching and transporting
capabilities are small
skimming results in loss of the finest
soil particles that contain nutrients
and organic matter in the soil
overgrazed and cultivated soils with
less vegetation are most vulnerable
to sheet erosion
TYPES OF EROSION
C.RILL EROSION
the intermittent process of

transforming to gully erosion
the rills are shallow drainage lines <
30 cm deep and 50 cm wide
common in bare agricultural land,
overgrazed land and freshly tilled soil
where soil structure has been
loosened
the rills can be obliterated by tillage
TYPES OF EROSION
D.GULLY EROSION
the advanced stage of rills

gully is formed when the depth and
width of the rill is > 50 cm
gullies are deeper channels and
cannot be removed by normal
cultivation
flows have high erosive power
gullies produce sediment that may

clog downstream Classification of Gully
Gullies further divided into 4 classes
(G1, G2, G3 and G4) depending upon
the depth and width
TYPES OF EROSION
STAGES OF GULLY DEVELOPMENT
1. FORMATION STAGE
2. DEVELOPMENT STAGE
3. HEALING STAGE
4. STABILIZATION STAGE

PROCESSES OF GULLY FORMATION
1. Waterfall erosion
2. Channel erosion
3. Alternate freezing and melting of
snow
4. Undercutting, landslides, mass
movements of soil
SOIL LOSS ESTIMATION
most of the soil erosion equations were developed in US

basically, splash and sheet erosion estimation
the first equation was proposed by Zingg (1940) who expressed soil loss
from cropped areas as follows:
where,
E = soil loss per unit area from a land slope of unit width;
C = constant reflecting the combined effect of rainfall, soil cover and
cover management practices;
S = slope;
L = horizontal length of slope, and
m1 and m2 = exponents with estimated values of 1.4 and 0.6, respectively
Ellison (1945 and 1947) advocated the development of erosion research on

splash erosion. He suggested that splash erosion is a function of soil and
rainfall properties
where,
SS = soil splash in grams in 30 minutes;

A = soil constant;
I = intensity of rainfall in inches per hour and;
D = drop diameter in mm
at about the same time a committee was formed to integrate the results of
previous studies
they formulated an equation, commonly known as the slope-practice
equation but sometimes referred to as Musgrave equation
where,
E = soil loss in mm per year;

I = inherent erodibility of a soil at 10% slope and 22 m slope length;

R = vegetal cover factor;
S = slope in percent;
L = slope length in m;
P30 = maximum rainfall in mm cover over a 30-miniute period;
m1, m2, and m3 = constant exponents
Smith and Whitt (1947 and 1948) developed an expression for the claypan soils of
Missouri, expressed sheet erosion as
where,
E = average annual sheet erosion loss;
C = average annual rotation soil loss from plots;

S = factors to adjust the plot soil loss C for slope steepness;
L = slope length;
K = soil group and ;
P = conservation practices
the above equations are of empirical nature and were found to be too localized or
regional in applicability
as a result, the erosion research efforts in the US were consolidated starting in 1945
(more erosion data were collected and all available information were compiled)
THE UNIVERSAL SOIL LOSS ESTIMATION
(USLE)
has gained wide acceptance in the United States and has been adapted by soil
conservationists in other countries
its popularity is due to its simplicity and the absence of alternative equations
allowing a wider range of variations of the parameters that are contributing to soil
erosion
the USLE is very simple to use
it estimates sheet erosion as the product of a series of terms for rainfall, soil, slope
gradient, slope length, crop and cover management and conservation factors
this permits the extensive tabulations of individual factors, incorporating vast
amounts of research data
in fact, extensive tables and nomographs recommending the range of values for the
different field conditions for the various parameters in the equation are now available
(including from the Philippines)
the USLE was developed from the standard agricultural plots which has a
recommended dimension of 72.6 feet long and 6 feet wide, with 9% slope, bare and
cultivated fallow, and plowed up and down the slope
THE UNIVERSAL SOIL LOSS ESTIMATION
(USLE)
in areas where the USLE applies, it serves as a useful tool for soil conservationists
it can be used to:
a. predict soil erosion losses
b. guide the selection of agricultural practices such as cropping and management
systems
c. guide in determining the on-site effects of land use and crop management
changes
d. provide baseline data for conservation planning
THE MODIFIED UNIVERSAL SOIL LOSS EQUATION
in the absence of any applicable method for estimating soil erosion rates in tropical
Asia, David (1986), David and Collado (1987) modified the Universal Soil Loss
Equation to suit locally available information and prevailing environmental conditions
where,
E = soil loss rate in tons/ha/year;

R = rainfall erosivity index;

K = soil erodibility value;
S = length-slope factor which may be approximated on the basis of % slope
C =vegetal cover factor;
P = product of conservation or management factors being practiced
RAINFALL EROSIVITY, R
a quantitative measure of erosion potential of rain

allows for spatial estimation of basic erosion risks in different areas
KE of falling raindrop is 0.5mv2
erosive energy of raindrop is reached after 5m fall
maximum energy is reached (any size raindrop) after a 20 m
the higher the rainfall, the higher the erosion hazard
Intensity of RF
30-60 mm/hr intensities ~ 10% of rain is erosive
>100 mm/hr, all the rain is erosive

5% is erosive in temperate; 40% in tropical

Empirical Methods for Calculating Rainfall Erosivity
1. EI30 Index (Wiscmeir et al., 1958)

erosivity factor (R) is determined by computing KE for each equal intensity period of
storm, multiplied by the RF amount for that period; then these are summed and
multiplies by the max. 30-min intensity of the storm

Lecture 4. Soil Erosion

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Lecture 4. Soil Erosion

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Lecture 4. Soil Erosion

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

SOIL EROSION BY WATER

-a process by which soil is removed from the

SOIL EROSION such as wind or water flow, and then

natural erosion (soil-forming and soil

abnormal erosion as a result of

1. DETACHMENT of soil particles from

both processes have to be at work

rainfall amount, intensity and energy

soil physical properties affect

interception of rainfall ,reducing

slope length and steepness, shape

can be naturals such as prolonged

also called as splash erosion

the removal of soil in thin layers by

the intermittent process of

the advanced stage of rills

gullies produce sediment that may

STAGES OF GULLY DEVELOPMENT

PROCESSES OF GULLY FORMATION

most of the soil erosion equations were developed in US

Ellison (1945 and 1947) advocated the development of erosion research on

SS = soil splash in grams in 30 minutes;

I = inherent erodibility of a soil at 10% slope and 22 m slope length;

C = average annual rotation soil loss from plots;

THE MODIFIED UNIVERSAL SOIL LOSS EQUATION

R = rainfall erosivity index;

a quantitative measure of erosion potential of rain

5% is erosive in temperate; 40% in tropical

1. EI30 Index (Wiscmeir et al., 1958)

You might also like