Evaluating the impact of land use/land cover and rainfall changes on regional soil erosion

Nigussie, W; Al-Najjar, H; Kalantar, B; Nega, W; Bizelk, T; Suryabhagavan, KV; Adane, N

Evaluating the impact of land use/land cover and rainfall changes on regional soil erosion

Nigussie, W Al-Najjar, H

Kalantar, B Nega, W Bizelk, T Suryabhagavan, KV Adane, N

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Publisher:: TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Geomatics Natural Hazards and Risk, 2025, 16, (1)
Issue Date:: 2025-01-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Nigussie, W
dc.contributor.author	Al-Najjar, H https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9493-5517
dc.contributor.author	Kalantar, B
dc.contributor.author	Nega, W
dc.contributor.author	Bizelk, T
dc.contributor.author	Suryabhagavan, KV
dc.contributor.author	Adane, N
dc.date.accessioned	2025-08-06T04:31:08Z
dc.date.available	2025-08-06T04:31:08Z
dc.date.issued	2025-01-01
dc.identifier.citation	Geomatics Natural Hazards and Risk, 2025, 16, (1)
dc.identifier.issn	1947-5705
dc.identifier.issn	1947-5713
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/189262
dc.description.abstract	Climate change (CC), along with changes in land use and land cover (LULC), is among the primary forces driving soil erosion. Deforestation and anthropogenic activities have led to excessive soil erosion in the Ketar watershed. This study aimed to map the consequences of climate and LULC changes on soil erosion using soil loss equation factors integrated with Landsat imagery and geographic information systems. A maximum likelihood classifier was employed to categorize LULC classes, namely agricultural land, bareland, shrubland, forest, grassland, settlement, wetland, and waterbody. Rainfall data were derived from the Climate Hazards Group Infrared Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) dataset, and rainfall erosivity (R factor) was calculated for 1990–2020. The R factor, linked to rainfall intensity and amount, influences runoff and soil detachment. Cover management (C) and conservation practice (P) factors were derived from LULC and slope. LULC change significantly altered these factors. Results showed that between 2000 and 2020, cultivated land increased by 7.92%, while forest and wetland declined by 4.61%. The findings indicate that very high soil loss of 382.48 t ha<sup>−1</sup>yr<sup>−1</sup>, 368.8 t ha<sup>−1</sup>yr<sup>−1</sup>, and 412 t ha<sup>−1</sup>yr<sup>−1</sup> occurred in 2000, 2010, and 2020, respectively. These findings support evidence-based watershed management, guiding sustainable land use planning and conservation interventions to protect livelihoods.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD
dc.relation.ispartof	Geomatics Natural Hazards and Risk
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1080/19475705.2025.2520374
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	0406 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
dc.subject.classification	3705 Geology
dc.subject.classification	3709 Physical geography and environmental geoscience
dc.subject.classification	4013 Geomatic engineering
dc.title	Evaluating the impact of land use/land cover and rainfall changes on regional soil erosion
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	16
utslib.for	0406 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Computer Science
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/UTS Groups
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/UTS Groups/The Trustworthy Digital Society
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2025-08-06T04:31:01Z
pubs.issue	1
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	16
utslib.citation.issue	1

Abstract:

Climate change (CC), along with changes in land use and land cover (LULC), is among the primary forces driving soil erosion. Deforestation and anthropogenic activities have led to excessive soil erosion in the Ketar watershed. This study aimed to map the consequences of climate and LULC changes on soil erosion using soil loss equation factors integrated with Landsat imagery and geographic information systems. A maximum likelihood classifier was employed to categorize LULC classes, namely agricultural land, bareland, shrubland, forest, grassland, settlement, wetland, and waterbody. Rainfall data were derived from the Climate Hazards Group Infrared Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) dataset, and rainfall erosivity (R factor) was calculated for 1990–2020. The R factor, linked to rainfall intensity and amount, influences runoff and soil detachment. Cover management (C) and conservation practice (P) factors were derived from LULC and slope. LULC change significantly altered these factors. Results showed that between 2000 and 2020, cultivated land increased by 7.92%, while forest and wetland declined by 4.61%. The findings indicate that very high soil loss of 382.48 t ha⁻¹yr⁻¹, 368.8 t ha⁻¹yr⁻¹, and 412 t ha⁻¹yr⁻¹ occurred in 2000, 2010, and 2020, respectively. These findings support evidence-based watershed management, guiding sustainable land use planning and conservation interventions to protect livelihoods.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/189262