Faculty Publications

Integration Of Modified Universal Soil Loss Equation (MUSLE) Into A GIS Framework To Assess Soil Erosion Risk

Document Type

Article

Keywords

GIS, MUSLE, Soft erosion, Watershed

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Land Degradation and Development

Volume

20

Issue

1

First Page

84

Last Page

91

Abstract

Soil erosion is an important economic and environmental concern throughout the world. In order to assess soil erosion risk and conserve water and soil resources, soil erosion modeling at the watershed scale is urgently needed. This study integrated the Modified Universal Soil Loss Equation (MUSLE) in a Geographic Information System (GIS) framework in the form of a tool called ArcMUSLE, an extension of ArcGIS® software, to assist soil and water conservation agencies in soil erosion risk assessment and prioritization of critical areas for soil erosion control practices. With widely available spatial data, this tool can be applied to determine curve numbers, to estimate runoff, peak flow, and soil loss for a rainfall event within a watershed. An application example for a watershed in Black Hawk County, Iowa, USA, is presented. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Department

Department of Geography

Original Publication Date

8-19-2009

DOI of published version

10.1002/ldr.893

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