the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Spatial and temporal evaluation of erosion with RUSLE: a case study in an olive orchard microcatchment in Spain
E. V. Taguas
P. Cuadrado
J. L. Ayuso
Y. Yuan
R. Pérez
Abstract. Soil loss is commonly estimated using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE). Since RUSLE is an empirically based soil-loss model derived from surveys on plots, the high spatial and temporal variability of erosion in Mediterranean environments and scale effects mean that it is necessary to evaluate the model in other spatial units such as the microcatchment. In this study, a series of topographic and soil surveys was carried out on a microcatchment of 6.7 ha in a mountainous area under no-tillage farming with bare soil in order to examine spatial and temporal results produced by RUSLE. GPS measurements of the microrelief height differences were used in a control area in the microcatchment to compare observed erosion and deposition with RUSLE predictions. Erosion points located in certain areas correlate very closely with RUSLE predictions, while the distribution of deposition points showed no correlations with RUSLE predictions. Secondly, a time series of daily rainfall data was used to calculate annual erosivity values, which were fitted to an appropriate distribution function. It was determined that the rainfall distribution best fitted the Pearson type III distribution function. Next, efforts were made to quantify the long term erosion and to check the suitability of the land-use and management under different thresholds of tolerance. It was found that values of erosivity in the study area with a return period of 10 years generate a mean annual erosion of 5 t ha−1 yr−1. On the study scale, RUSLE allowed us to locate the most erosive areas and to combine the suitability of the soil land-use and the management with the frequency of the annual erosivity. In addition, an annual sediment delivery ratio of approximately 47% was estimated for the period 2005–2006.
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E. V. Taguas et al.


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RC C104: 'Referee Comments', Anonymous Referee #1, 09 Oct 2010
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AC C112: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 1', Encarnación Taguas, 24 Oct 2010
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AC C112: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 1', Encarnación Taguas, 24 Oct 2010
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RC C126: 'Good', Anonymous Referee #2, 03 Nov 2010
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AC C130: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 2', Encarnación V. Taguas, 11 Nov 2010
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AC C130: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 2', Encarnación V. Taguas, 11 Nov 2010
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RC C138: 'Interactive comment on "Spatial and temporal evaluation of erosion with RUSLE: a case study in an olive orchard microcatchment in Spain" by E. V. Taguas et al.', Anonymous Referee #3, 18 Nov 2010
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AC C141: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 3', Encarnación V. Taguas, 23 Nov 2010
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AC C141: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 3', Encarnación V. Taguas, 23 Nov 2010


-
RC C104: 'Referee Comments', Anonymous Referee #1, 09 Oct 2010
-
AC C112: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 1', Encarnación Taguas, 24 Oct 2010
-
AC C112: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 1', Encarnación Taguas, 24 Oct 2010
-
RC C126: 'Good', Anonymous Referee #2, 03 Nov 2010
-
AC C130: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 2', Encarnación V. Taguas, 11 Nov 2010
-
AC C130: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 2', Encarnación V. Taguas, 11 Nov 2010
-
RC C138: 'Interactive comment on "Spatial and temporal evaluation of erosion with RUSLE: a case study in an olive orchard microcatchment in Spain" by E. V. Taguas et al.', Anonymous Referee #3, 18 Nov 2010
-
AC C141: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 3', Encarnación V. Taguas, 23 Nov 2010
-
AC C141: 'ANSWERS TO REVIEWER 3', Encarnación V. Taguas, 23 Nov 2010
E. V. Taguas et al.
E. V. Taguas et al.
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Cited
3 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Applications of Erosion Hotspots for Watershed Investigation in the Appalachian Hills of the United States T. Chang et al. 10.1061/(ASCE)IR.1943-4774.0000974
- Case Study of the Integrated Model for Estimation of Sediment Load in Artificial River Channel H. Zhou & T. Chang 10.1061/(ASCE)HE.1943-5584.0001642
- Quantifying the effects of erosion on archaeological sites with low-altitude aerial photography, structure from motion, and GIS: A case study from southern Jordan M. Howland et al. 10.1016/j.jas.2017.12.008