Vegetation in Drylands: Effects on Wind Flow and Aeolian Sediment Transport

Jerome R. Mayaud and Nicholas P. Webb
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Jerome R. Mayaud: School of Geography and the Environment, Oxford University Centre for the Environment, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QY, UK
Nicholas P. Webb: USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, Las Cruces, NM 88003, USA

Land, 2017, vol. 6, issue 3, 1-24

Abstract: Drylands are characterised by patchy vegetation, erodible surfaces and erosive aeolian processes. Empirical and modelling studies have shown that vegetation elements provide drag on the overlying airflow, thus affecting wind velocity profiles and altering erosive dynamics on desert surfaces. However, these dynamics are significantly complicated by a variety of factors, including turbulence, and vegetation porosity and pliability effects. This has resulted in some uncertainty about the effect of vegetation on sediment transport in drylands. Here, we review recent progress in our understanding of the effects of dryland vegetation on wind flow and aeolian sediment transport processes. In particular, wind transport models have played a key role in simplifying aeolian processes in partly vegetated landscapes, but a number of key uncertainties and challenges remain. We identify potential future avenues for research that would help to elucidate the roles of vegetation distribution, geometry and scale in shaping the entrainment, transport and redistribution of wind-blown material at multiple scales. Gaps in our collective knowledge must be addressed through a combination of rigorous field, wind tunnel and modelling experiments.

Keywords: drylands; wind erosion modelling; drag partition; aerodynamic roughness; remote sensing; computational fluid dynamics; cellular automata (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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