Assessment The Impact of Land use Changes on Soil Erosion using GIS and Remote Sensing Based on The RUSLE Model (Case Study: Behbahan County)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 M.Sc. of Watershed Engineering, Department of Rangeland and Watershed Management, Faculty of Natural Resources, Khatam Al-Anbia University of Technology Behbahan, Behbahan, Iran

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Rangeland and Watershed Management, Faculty of Natural Resources, Behbahan Khatam Alanbia University of Technology, Behbahan, Iran

3 Ph.D., Watershed Management Science and Engineering, Department of Watershed Management Engineering, Faculty of Natural Resources, Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Sari, Iran

10.29252/aridbiom.2023.19670.1924

Abstract

Soil erosion is a natural and global threat to water and soil resources. One of the most important effective factors in increasing soil erosion is changes in land use due to human activities. In this study, the impact of land use change on soil erosion in the town of Behbahan was studied using the RUSLE model in the Geographic Information System (GIS). In order to extract the final soil erosion map, the parameters of the RUSLE model consisting of R, K, L, S, C and P were first prepared for the years 2000 and 2021. These parameters were then converted into GRID format and the soil erosion map was obtained at the pixel level in the area by several of the parameters. Results from the erosion map in 2000 and 2021 indicated that the extent of soil erosion has increased over time. In 2021, the highest amount of erosion using the RUSLE model prediction is more exclusive to streams and rivers, although there is erosion across the region in different forms. The largest area in the region is classified as low erosion risk, which should be considered in planning. Among the effective erosion factors, the rain-induced erosion factor was high in the northern parts of the upstream region. Land use maps also show reduced vegetation at the soil surface. It causes a change in the number of efficient parameters in the model and thereby affects the amount of erosion in the region. Vegetation cover decreased from 2000 to 2021. The area of residential and agricultural land has increased, resulting in a reduction in natural land surface cover, and as a consequence, soil erosion conditions due to the impact of raindrops are increasing.

Keywords

References

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Journal of Arid Biome
Volume 12, Issue 1
April 2022
Pages 77-92

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