Remote sensing quantitative monitoring of soil erosion in Three Gorges Reservoir area:a GIS/RUSLE-based research

Based on geographic information system(GIS),remote sensing(RS),field information gathering and revised universal soil loss equation(RUSLE),the mean annual soil erosion amount in whole Three Gorges Reservoir area was estimated,the spatial distribution characteristics of soil erosion was analyzed,the soil conservation capacity of diffevent land use types was calculated and the soil erosion prevention and control forecast was carried out for the reservoir area.The results show that the mean soil erosion amount and the soil erosion modulus were 18476.27×104 t/a and 3316.53 t/(km2·a),respectively.The annual soil conservation amount was 48427633×104 t/a.Among the land use types,the soil conservation capacity of paddy field is the strongest,and that of dry land is the smallest.The area to be controlled and controlled rapidly in 2005 occupied 25.67% of the Three Gorges Reservoir area.The integrated approach presented in this study allows relatively easy,fast and cost-effective estimation of spatially distributed soil erosion.It thus provides a useful and efficient tool for predicting long-term soil erosion potential and assessing erosion impacts on soil conservation practice.