Soil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal

Soil erosion is one of the gravest environmental threats to the mountainous ecosystems of Nepal. Here, we combined a Geographic Information System (GIS) with the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) to estimate average annual soil loss, map erosion factors, compare soil erosion risks among d...

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Autores principales:	Durga Bahadur Tiruwa, Babu Ram Khanal, Sushil Lamichhane, Bharat Sharma Acharya
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	IWA Publishing 2021
Materias:	dem erosion gis rusle siwalik hills Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Environmental sciences GE1-350
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/dd3855b43b874bbbabba8b22697a1696
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:dd3855b43b874bbbabba8b22697a16962021-11-05T19:02:14ZSoil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal2040-22442408-935410.2166/wcc.2021.198https://doaj.org/article/dd3855b43b874bbbabba8b22697a16962021-08-01T00:00:00Zhttp://jwcc.iwaponline.com/content/12/5/1958https://doaj.org/toc/2040-2244https://doaj.org/toc/2408-9354Soil erosion is one of the gravest environmental threats to the mountainous ecosystems of Nepal. Here, we combined a Geographic Information System (GIS) with the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) to estimate average annual soil loss, map erosion factors, compare soil erosion risks among different land use types, and identify erosion hotspots and recommend land use management in the Girwari river watershed of the Siwalik Hills. The annual soil loss was estimated using RUSLE factors: rainfall erosivity (R), soil erodibility (K), slope length and steepness (LS), cover crops (C), and conservation practices (P), and erosion factors maps were generated using GIS. Results indicate highest total erosion occurring in hill forests (13,374.3 t yr–1) and lowest total erosion occurring in grasslands (2.9 t yr–1). Hill forests showed high to very severe erosion due to steepness of hills, open forest types, and minimal use of conservation practices. Also, erosion hotspots (>15 t ha–1 yr–1) occurred in only 4.2% of the watershed, primarily in steep slopes. Overall, these results provide important guidelines to formulate management plans and informed decisions on soil conservation at local to regional levels. While the study is the first effort to assess soil erosion dynamics in the Girwari river watershed, potential for application in other basins largely exists. HIGHLIGHTS We combined GIS with the RUSLE model to estimate soil erosion in the Girwari river watershed.; Land use & land cover & soil erosion severity categorized in six classes.; Maximum erosion rate ranged from < 2 t ha−1 yr−1 to 190 t ha−1 yr−1 and total erosion ranged from 2.9 t yr−1 to 13,374 t yr−1.; Steep slopes and minimal conservation practices exacerbated soil erosion.; Erosion hotspots observed in 4.2% of watershed.;Durga Bahadur TiruwaBabu Ram KhanalSushil LamichhaneBharat Sharma AcharyaIWA Publishingarticledemerosiongisruslesiwalik hillsEnvironmental technology. Sanitary engineeringTD1-1066Environmental sciencesGE1-350ENJournal of Water and Climate Change, Vol 12, Iss 5, Pp 1958-1974 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	dem erosion gis rusle siwalik hills Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Environmental sciences GE1-350
spellingShingle	dem erosion gis rusle siwalik hills Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Durga Bahadur Tiruwa Babu Ram Khanal Sushil Lamichhane Bharat Sharma Acharya Soil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal
description	Soil erosion is one of the gravest environmental threats to the mountainous ecosystems of Nepal. Here, we combined a Geographic Information System (GIS) with the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) to estimate average annual soil loss, map erosion factors, compare soil erosion risks among different land use types, and identify erosion hotspots and recommend land use management in the Girwari river watershed of the Siwalik Hills. The annual soil loss was estimated using RUSLE factors: rainfall erosivity (R), soil erodibility (K), slope length and steepness (LS), cover crops (C), and conservation practices (P), and erosion factors maps were generated using GIS. Results indicate highest total erosion occurring in hill forests (13,374.3 t yr–1) and lowest total erosion occurring in grasslands (2.9 t yr–1). Hill forests showed high to very severe erosion due to steepness of hills, open forest types, and minimal use of conservation practices. Also, erosion hotspots (>15 t ha–1 yr–1) occurred in only 4.2% of the watershed, primarily in steep slopes. Overall, these results provide important guidelines to formulate management plans and informed decisions on soil conservation at local to regional levels. While the study is the first effort to assess soil erosion dynamics in the Girwari river watershed, potential for application in other basins largely exists. HIGHLIGHTS We combined GIS with the RUSLE model to estimate soil erosion in the Girwari river watershed.; Land use & land cover & soil erosion severity categorized in six classes.; Maximum erosion rate ranged from < 2 t ha−1 yr−1 to 190 t ha−1 yr−1 and total erosion ranged from 2.9 t yr−1 to 13,374 t yr−1.; Steep slopes and minimal conservation practices exacerbated soil erosion.; Erosion hotspots observed in 4.2% of watershed.;
format	article
author	Durga Bahadur Tiruwa Babu Ram Khanal Sushil Lamichhane Bharat Sharma Acharya
author_facet	Durga Bahadur Tiruwa Babu Ram Khanal Sushil Lamichhane Bharat Sharma Acharya
author_sort	Durga Bahadur Tiruwa
title	Soil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal
title_short	Soil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal
title_full	Soil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal
title_fullStr	Soil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal
title_full_unstemmed	Soil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal
title_sort	soil erosion estimation using geographic information system (gis) and revised universal soil loss equation (rusle) in the siwalik hills of nawalparasi, nepal
publisher	IWA Publishing
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/dd3855b43b874bbbabba8b22697a1696
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Soil erosion estimation using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in the Siwalik Hills of Nawalparasi, Nepal

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