Adaptation and application of the erosion potential method for tropical soils

Natanael Rodolfo Ribeiro Sakuno,Velibor Spalevic,Ronaldo Luiz Mincato,Junior Cesar Avanzi,Marx Leandro Naves Silva,Augusto Cesar Ferreira Guiçardi

doi:10.5935/1806-6690.20200004

Abstract

The water erosion process has a considerable negative effect on tropical soils, causes soil losses from arable land and reduces the capacity to support surrounding ecosystems. Estimating soil losses caused by water erosion is fundamental for evaluating the impacts of various production systems. Therefore, improving soil loss estimates via the adaptation of models for different edaphoclimatic environments is necessary for estimating local geographic and climatic differences. This study aimed to adapt, apply and evaluate the potentialities of the Potential Erosion Method for Latosols of the Hydrographic Subbasin of Cacus Stream, southern Minas Gerais State. Geological, topographic, pedological, climatic and land use and occupation data were processed via Geographic Information Systems and compared with those obtained by the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation. The erosion intensity coefficient, Z, was 0.28, indicating weak erosion intensity, and the estimated average soil losses were 31 Mg ha-1 year-1 by the Potential Erosion Method and 36 Mg ha-1 year-1 by the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation, which were both above the soil loss tolerance. The model results and comparisons indicated that the Potential Erosion Method has excellent performance and can be applied to estimate sediment production via water erosion in tropical soils.

Highlights

Water erosion is considered the primary cause of soil degradation, especially in tropical regions
This study aimed to adapt the Erosion Potential Method (EPM) to estimate soil losses due to water erosion in tropical soils and apply the method in the Hydrographic Subbasin of Caçús Stream, which is located in the municipality of Alfenas, southern Minas Gerais State
Regarding the permeability of the rocky substrate, 78% of the subbasin area was classified as medium permeability and 22% was classified as low permeability

Summary

Introduction

Water erosion is considered the primary cause of soil degradation, especially in tropical regions. Dechen et al (2015) estimated that the soil losses of temporary or annual crops in Brazil have reached 616.5 million Mg ha-1 year-1, which is equivalent to a cost of US $1.3 billion. Prediction models are essential for assessing environmental impacts, especially in the face of a growing world population and the associated increases in food, water, and energy consumption. Studies on water erosion guide the adoption of mitigation measures and support soil and water conservation, as well as the restoration and repair of environmental impacts (SANTOS et al, 2017). The T value corresponds to the soil formation rate. Sustainability is only possible if the losses are equal to the soil formation rate. Obtaining the T boundary is still controversial due to the difficulties of accurately quantifying the factors and processes involved in soil formation

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion