Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk Using the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) and Geo-Information Technology in Oued El Makhazine Watershed, Morocco

Abstract

Soil erosion by water is one of the major threats to soils in the north of Morocco; soil erosion not only decreases agricultural productivity, but also reduces the water availability. In the current study, Oued El Makhazine watershed is selected to estimate annual soil loss using the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE), remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS). GIS data layers including, rainfall erosivity (R), soil erodibility (K), slope length and steepness (LS), cover management (C) and conservation practice (P) factors are computed to determine their effects on average annual soil loss in the area. The resultant map of annual soil erosion shows a maximum soil loss of 735 t∙h−1∙y−1, about 65.25% (1575 km2), of the watershed ranges between 0 and 95 t∙h−1∙y−1. Higher soil losses are observed at higher LS factor area.