Critical Value of the Relief Factor and the Erosion Hazard of the Agrolandscapes in the Belgorod Region

Author(s):  A.V. Malyshev, Belgorod National Research University, Belgorod, Russia

P.V. Goleusov, Dr., associate Professor, Belgorod National Research University, Belgorod, Russia, goleusov@bsu.edu.ru

Issue:  Volume 43, № 1

Rubric:  Earth sciences

Annotation:  In the Belgorod region, slope land and eroded soils occupy a large share of the territory, which is facilitated by many factors. That is why the development and application of emergency measures for the lands of the region to are necessary created conditions for expanded soil reproduction and slowing the loss of agricultural soils with a likely increase in yield. The cardinal solution is to remove part of the erosion-hazardous and already degraded arable land from intensive use through conservation. This study is devoted to the identification of land that immediately needs the use of the most advanced agricultural technologies soil-restoring, or complete conservation with natural soil reproduction. A relief function (LS) analysis was carried out to carry out these tasks. The objects of research are slope arable lands of the Belgorod region subject to water erosion, geographically coinciding with the areas of distribution of critical values of the relief function. The research methods are based on the spatial estimation of the critical value distribution of the relief function on the arable lands of the Belgorod region by means of GIS. As a critical level, the value of the relief function of Morgan in the range from 4.3 to 6.1, causing a sharp increase in soil erosion losses is proposed. The necessity of application of methods of extended soil reproduction for slope and eroded arable lands of the Belgorod region, geographically coinciding with the areas of exceeding the critical value of the relief function.

Keywords:  erosion, soil degradation, slope lands, relief function, preservation, soil restoration.

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