A New Attempt to Estimate Underground Soil Leakage through High-Density, Fixed-Point Monitoring in a Typical Karst Rocky Desertification Region

Dayun Zhu (), Qian Yang, Hua Xiao and Yingshan Zhao
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Dayun Zhu: School of Karst Science, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550001, China
Qian Yang: School of Karst Science, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550001, China
Hua Xiao: School of Karst Science, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550001, China
Yingshan Zhao: School of Karst Science, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550001, China

Agriculture, 2024, vol. 14, issue 5, 1-12

Abstract: Understanding soil loss pathways in karst regions is crucial for erosion control. Combining high-density measurements of grid points with runoff plot monitoring, we attempt to use a new indirect method to study the characteristics of soil loss in karst rocky desertification areas of Salaxi Town, Guizhou province. One cycle year monitoring data of 12640 grid points were applied in the soil loss analysis. This study identifies underground leakage as the primary pathway of soil loss, with an mean soil leakage of 21.51 kg in potential areas, accounting for 83.12%, and an average leakage of 22.69 kg in in mild karst rocky desertification areas accounting for 81.48%. Mixed vegetation types (forest, shrub, and grass) were better at preventing surface soil loss but increased underground leakage compared to single vegetation types. The rainy season significantly influences soil erosion, accounting for 67.88% of total loss, with slight variations among different karst rocky desertification grades and vegetation types. Mean underground leakage rates during the rainy and dry seasons are 63.34% and 36.66%, respectively. Although this method still has certain limitations, it plays a positive role in revealing the mechanism of soil erosion processes in karst regions.

Keywords: soil underground leakage; contribution rate; fixed-point measurement; different vegetation combinations; karst rocky desertification (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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