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Environmental drivers of dynamic soil erosion change in a Mediterranean fluvial landscape
- Source :
- PLoS ONE, PLoS ONE, Vol 17, Iss 1 (2022), PLoS ONE, Vol 17, Iss 1, p e0262132 (2022)
- Publication Year :
- 2022
- Publisher :
- Public Library of Science, 2022.
-
Abstract
- Background Rainfall and other climatic agents are the main triggers of soil erosion in the Mediterranean region, where they have the potential to increase discharge and sediment transport and cause long-term changes in the river system. For the Magra River Basin (MRB), located in the upper Tyrrhenian coast of Italy, we estimated changes in net erosion as a function of the geographical characteristics of the basin, the seasonal distribution of precipitation, and the vegetation cover. Methods and findings Based on rainfall erosivity and surface flow and transport sub-models, we developed a simplified model to assess basin-wide sediment yields on a monthly basis by upscaling the point rainfall input. Our calibration dataset of monthly data (Mg km-2 month-1, available for the years 1961 and 1963–1969) revealed that our model satisfactorily reproduces the net soil erosion in the study area (R2 = 0.81). For the period 1950–2020, the reconstruction of an annually aggregated time-series of monthly net erosion data (297 Mg km-2 yr-1 on average) indicated a moderate decline in sediment yield after 1999. This is part of a long-term downward trend, which highlights the role played by land-use changes and reforestation of the mountainous areas of the basin. Conclusion This study shows the environmental history and dynamics of the basin, and thus the varying sensitivity of hydrological processes and their perturbations. Relying on a few climatic variables as reported from a single representative basin location, it provides an interpretation of empirically determined factors that shape active erosional landscapes. In particular, we showed that the most recent extreme storms associated with sediment yield have been characterised by lower cumulative rainfall, indicating a greater propensity for the basin to produce sediment more discontinuously over time.
- Subjects :
- Atmospheric Science
Topography
Time Factors
Science
Rain
Climate Change
Marine and Aquatic Sciences
Meteorology
Rivers
Flooding
Humans
Petrology
Soil Erosion
Sedimentary Geology
Landforms
Multidisciplinary
Ecology and Environmental Sciences
Aquatic Environments
Geomorphology
Geology
Bodies of Water
History, 20th Century
Italy
Erosion
Earth Sciences
Medicine
Sediment
Seasons
Hydrology
Research Article
Freshwater Environments
Valleys
Environmental Monitoring
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 19326203
- Volume :
- 17
- Issue :
- 1
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- PLoS ONE
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....0475e05ded4a4232f0ea92210eaa4eab