Spatiotemporal characteristics of soil erosion in a typical watershed consisting of different landscape: A case study of the Qin River Basin

Abstract

Soil erosion has a severe impact on habitat and productivity. It is considered to be a major environmental threat prevalent in ecosystems. However, few researchers have studied the spatial distribution of soil erosion intensity among different geographic environmental factors. The Qin River Basin is a geographical unit consisting of mountains, hills, and plains with significant regional characteristics, and it has a basin area of 14,810.91 km2. This study uses the Geographical Information Systems, Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation model to analyze the spatiotemporal changes in the soil-erosion intensity in the Qin River Basin from 1990 to 2018. Different environmental factors of land use, slope and altitude on erosion intensities of 19 secondary land types were analyzed. It can better reflect the soil erosion under different environmental factors and different land use types. Results show that the soil erosion modulus of Qin River Basin were 10.25 t hm−2 a−1, and it belong to slight erosion from 1990 to 2018. Soil erosion intensity is greater in grassland and woodland than in cropland. The strongest soil erosion occurred in the sparse forestland, and the lowest was in beach land. Soil erosion was the highest for a slope of 15~25° and an altitude of 1200~1500 m. Rainfall and slope are important factors lead to soil erosion, indicating weak water and soil conservation implemented in these areas. Therefore, priority should be given to these geomorphic units to formulate and implement soil-erosion control and ecological restoration policies in the Qin River Basin. This study provides a good reference for preventing and controlling soil erosion in river basins.

Assessing the Spatiotemporal Variations in the Hydrological Response of the Qin River Basin in Loess Plateau, China

“…This directly led to the intensification of soil erosion and flood disasters in the region. Therefore, since the 1970s, large-scale soil and water conservation construction projects have been carried out in the basin [11,35].…”

“…In the latter 30 years of the 20th century, many soil and water conservation measures were implemented in the basin while agricultural land and urban expansion developed. These 30 years represent a period of rapid changes within the environment of this basin [11,35]. The Qin River basin represents the overall characteristics of the Loess Plateau to a certain extent in that it has a complex terrain and is subject to strong human interference [11].…”