『Abstract
This research was conducted in the Afzar sub-catchment area of
Ghara-Aghaj River, a semi-arid region in SW Iran, using a Geographic
Information System (GIS) to compare the Erosion Potential Method
(EPM) and Pacific Southwest Inter agency Committee (PSIAC) models
in erosion-potential mapping and sediment-yield assessment. Data
layers used in this study were generated from topographic maps,
Landsat ETM+ imagery, aerial photographs, field surveys
and barometric and pluviometric data; factor-class evaluation
was used to determine EPM and PSIAC parameters. A raster-based
Geographic Information System (GIS) was applied to generate the
erosion-severity and sediment-yield maps. Output data was verified
by field observation and by comparison with a Global Assessment
of Soil Degradation (GLASOD) map. Comparison of the EPM and PSIAC
results with field observations and the GLASOD map showed that
although the results of the two erosion potential maps correspond
in most areas, the results of EPM model were not as reliable as
the PSIAC in identifying areas with very high erosion potential.
It is suggested the EPM model should be used for rapid mapping
of erosion-potential in regions with limited data layers, but
field verifications indicated that PSIAC results were the more
reliable.
Keywords: Iran; Arid region; GLASOD map; Potential mapping; Ghara-Aghaj
river』
1. Introduction
2. Study area
3. Spatial data generation
3.1. Surface geology and soil type
3.2. Slope
3.3. Land use and land cover
3.4. Erosion processes
3.5. Climate
3.6. Channel erosion
3.7. Runoff
4. EPM and PSIAC models
5. Results and discussion
6. Conclusions
Acknowledgements
References