International Soil and Water Conservation Research最新文献

{"title":"Effect of tillage layer depth on erosion driven by surface-subsurface runoff coupling under rainfall simulation conditions","authors":"Ziwei Zhang ,&nbsp;Yaojun Liu ,&nbsp;Yichun Ma ,&nbsp;Gang Sun ,&nbsp;Dengchun Wen ,&nbsp;Siyuan Liu ,&nbsp;Jian Duan ,&nbsp;Xiaodong Nie ,&nbsp;Zhongwu Li","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.03.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.03.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The surface tillage layer structure of sloping farmland has a significant impact on rainfall-runoff distribution; however, the relationships between the Tillage Layer Depth (TLD) and surface-subsurface runoff, and the coupling effects of surface-subsurface runoff on soil erosion are still unclear. Thus, a set of laboratory experiments were conducted to reveal impacts of tillage layer depth (10, 20 and 30 cm) on surface-subsurface runoff relationships, eroded sediment processes, and soil erosion pattern evolution under the long-duration (180 min) rainfall simulation tests. A deeper TLD mitigated soil erosion. When the TLD increased from 10 to 30 cm, the average surface runoff decreased by 13 %, subsurface runoff increased by 5 %, and soil loss rate decreased by 19 g m⁻² min⁻¹. The interaction between surface runoff and subsurface runoff, influenced by the tillage layer depth, significantly impacts soil erosion. Both surface runoff and subsurface runoff promoted soil erosion at shallow tillage layer depths (10 and 20 cm). Conversely, at TLD 30, the diversion effect of subsurface runoff on surface runoff was enhanced, which played a role in alleviating soil erosion. With the increase of TLD, the soil erosion pattern changed from rill erosion to sheet or splash erosion. During the interill erosion stage, soil loss primarily occurred in the early stage, wherein the Variation Ratio (VR) of soil loss rate and surface runoff coefficient ranged from 2.16 to 4.99. At the rill erosion stage, the VR was approximately 1.0, and the soil loss rate was 2.7- to 6.3- fold greater than that in the interrill erosion stage. These results increase understanding of the effects of TLD on the coupling relationship of surface-subsurface runoff, which is of great significance for alleviating slope farmland erosion.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 615-626"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144329601","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development of web-based decision support tool for rainfall erosivity estimation using both high-resolution rainfall data and simplified models","authors":"Sinae Kim ,&nbsp;Seung-Oh Hur ,&nbsp;Jihye Kwak ,&nbsp;Jihye Kim ,&nbsp;Moon-Seong Kang","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.03.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.03.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil erosion is a significant global problem that has far-reaching effects on agricultural productivity, environmental health, and ecosystem stability. The rainfall erosivity factor (R-factor) used in the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) is a key parameter for predicting soil erosion. However, its accurate estimation is difficult owing to the complexities of high-resolution rainfall data and limitations of simplified models. This study addressed these challenges by introducing several key innovations. We developed a precise algorithm for calculating the R-factor using minute-interval rainfall data to effectively capture the necessary temporal resolution for assessing the impacts of extreme rainfall events. This advancement allows for accurate R-factor estimation, thereby overcoming the complexities associated with high-resolution data processing. In addition, we established a comprehensive rainfall erosivity database across South Korea based on 24 years of minute-interval rainfall data. We then derived an optimal regression model for estimating monthly rainfall erosivity from daily precipitation data, achieving high accuracy (R² = 0.87) by effectively accounting for extreme rainfall events. These efforts culminated in the development of the Web-based Rainfall Erosivity Calculation (WREC) tool, which integrates a database, a rainfall erosivity calculation algorithm, and a simple estimation model. The user-friendly interface of the WREC tool offers a versatile platform for calculating rainfall erosivity, supporting practical applications, and assessing future climate change impacts. Expanding the WREC tool globally and adapting regression models to local contexts will enhance our ability to manage soil erosion and promote sustainable land and water management practices.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 600-614"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144329600","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Seasonal variation in soil erosion resistance of gullies covered by different plant communities on the Loess Plateau of China","authors":"Rongchang Zeng ,&nbsp;Guanghui Zhang ,&nbsp;Xufei Su","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.03.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.03.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Vegetation growth can effectively alter near soil surface characteristics of plant communities, which is likely to impact the seasonal variation in soil erosion resistance of gullies, particularly in semi-arid and arid regions. However, few studies have been focused on quantifying the temporal variations in soil erosion resistance of gullies restored with different vegetation communities at the seasonal scale. This study investigated the seasonal variation in soil erosion resistance of gullies covered by five different plant communities on the Loess Plateau. The experiment was conducted 7 times from 15 May to October 4, 2023 at an approximately 3-week interval. For each time, 90 natural undisturbed topsoil samples were carefully collected from the bottom, left, and right banks of each gully. The collected samples were subjected to scouring under different hydraulic conditions to measure soil detachment capacity and then to determine soil erosion resistance, reflected by rill erodibility (<em>K</em>_<em>r</em>) and soil critical shear stress (<em>τ</em>_<em>c</em>). Near soil surface characteristics of plant community were also measured at the same sites with an identical frequency. The results showed that soil erosion resistance differed significantly for gullies covered by different plant communities. The mean <em>K</em>_<em>r</em> of grass communities was 0.17 m s⁻¹, which was 47.8 % and 30.6 % to that of shrub and forest communities, respectively. The mean <em>τ</em>_<em>c</em> of grass communities was 1.45 and 1.26 times that of shrub and forest communities. During the vegetation growth season, soil erosion resistance of gullies covered by different plant communities increased gradually. The seasonal variations in soil erosion resistance were dominantly influenced by the temporal changes of soil cohesion (Coh), soil penetration resistance (PR), water stable aggregate (WSA), and root mass density (RMD). <em>K</em>_<em>r</em> decreased exponentially with Coh and WSA, and logarithmically with PR and RMD, while <em>τ</em>_<em>c</em> increased linearly with these four factors. Rill erodibility could be well estimated by Coh, PR, WSA, and RMD (<em>R</em>² = 0.91, <em>NSE</em> = 0.91). The results are conducive to insight into the seasonal variation in erosion of relatively stable gullies covered by vegetation in semi-arid regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 589-599"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144329599","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Soil type classification using Landsat 8: A comparison between the USDA and a local system in Israel","authors":"Nicolas Francos ,&nbsp;Eden Karasik ,&nbsp;Matan Myers ,&nbsp;Eyal Ben-Dor","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.03.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.03.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Digital Soil Mapping (DSM) is an essential tool for understanding the complex relationship between soil and the environment. In this study, we digitized the soil map of Israel created by Ravikovitch in 1969 (that was based on a local classification system) and used Landsat 8 spectral data to predict soil classes across Israel using machine learning. We also made a similar analysis using a global USDA soil orders layer. This work is pioneering, and this is the first attempt to transfer the enormous and important work done by Ravikovitch to the digital level by combining this map with satellite observations of Landsat 8. Our study showed that the spectral-based predictions using Landsat 8 data in combination with the USDA soil orders data and machine learning techniques resulted in very accurate predictions of USDA soil orders in Israel (accuracy = 0.84) and in Cyprus (accuracy = 0.88). We also tested the transferability of the Israeli USDA soil orders model to Cyprus, a nearby country with a similar soil taxonomy, however, poor accuracies were obtained at this stage (accuracy = 0.13). The predictions on the digital map of Ravikovitch were intermediate (accuracy = 0.54) because so many classes were required to predict (24 classes). Our study highlights the importance of digitizing and updating existing soil maps, and demonstrates the potential of combining machine learning with satellite spectral data for accurate soil classification.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 576-588"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144329597","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The effects of freeze-thaw processes on crusting, aggregation and the interaction with erosive level winds in the Mollisol region of Northeast China","authors":"Hui Liu ,&nbsp;Lili Zhou ,&nbsp;Donghao Huang ,&nbsp;Defeng Yang ,&nbsp;Xiaoge Shi ,&nbsp;Qing Bai ,&nbsp;Huimin Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.010","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.010","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Wind erosion is widely recognised as one of the causes of soil degradation, which is exacerbated by the effects of freezing and thawing, and poses a serious threat to the sustainability of agricultural production. The mechanisms of freeze-thaw effects on wind erosion in the Mollisols region have been the subject of considerable investigation from the perspective of what the impact of freeze-thaw processes have on soil aggregates. In contrast, the role of the physical crust in the mechanism of freeze-thaw effects on wind erosion remains uncertain. In this study, for disentangling the changes in environmental conditions (freeze-thaw cycles (FTCs), initial soil moisture (M)) on aggregate size distribution, mean weight diameter (MWD), crust formation and their properties, and the roles played by these changes in influencing the magnitude of wind erosion (W), a wind tunnel simulation experiment was used to measure the wind erosion rate of erodible soil aggregates with four diameter ranges (D). The relationship between the variations in the distribution of aggregate sizes and the properties of the crust, as well as the impact of freezing and thawing on the distribution of aggregate sizes, were examined. The findings indicated that both aggregates and crust were susceptible to damage during the freeze-thaw cycle. The MWD of the aggregates exhibited a notable alteration following the 1st freeze-thaw cycle (p &lt; 0.05). There exists a good exponential correlation between the strength of the crust and the number of freeze-thaw cycles (R&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt; &gt; 0.70). The crust strength demonstrated a decline significantly with an increase in the number of freeze-thaw cycles. The variation tendency of crust strength tended to be flat and towards a minimum crust strength of 4.27 kPa (D&lt;sub&gt;0.5–1&lt;/sub&gt;), 2.87 kPa (D&lt;sub&gt;0.25–0.5&lt;/sub&gt;), and 2.82 kPa (D &lt;sub&gt;&lt;&lt;/sub&gt; &lt;sub&gt;0.25&lt;/sub&gt;) beyond 6th freeze-thaw cycles. The initial moisture content had a significant impact on the variation in aggregate sizes, with higher moisture leading to greater fluctuations in the variation percentage of aggregates breaking or aggregating. The percentage of de-aggregation (disintegration of soil aggregates) varied from 12.68% to 20.64%, while the percentage of re-aggregation (recombination of soil aggregates) varied from 0.84% to 10.78%. When the moisture content of the soil was greater than or equal to 12%, a physical crust formed on the surface of the constructed soil samples, with an approximate thickness of 1 mm. When D ≥ 0.25 mm, the freezing-thawing effect was the primary cause of aggregate breakage, resulting in a reduction in MWD. When D &lt; 0.25 mm, the primary phenomenon was aggregation, which resulted in an increase in MWD. When D &lt; 1 mm, the formation of a physical crust on the constructed soil sample surface was facilitated. De-aggregation of aggregates increased the wind erosion rate by an average of 12.31% (M&lt;sub&gt;4%&lt;/sub&gt;), 12.21% (M&lt;sub&gt;8%&lt;/sub&gt;), 37.15","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 716-732"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144330073","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Long-term effects of tillage practices and future climate scenarios on topsoil organic carbon stocks in Lower Austria – A modelling and long-term experiment study","authors":"Marton Toth ,&nbsp;Jess Davies ,&nbsp;John Quinton ,&nbsp;Jennifer Davies ,&nbsp;Christine Stumpp ,&nbsp;Andreas Klik ,&nbsp;Bano Mehdi-Schulz ,&nbsp;Peter Strauss ,&nbsp;Gunther Liebhard ,&nbsp;Johannes Bartmann ,&nbsp;Stefan Strohmeier","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.011","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Conservation agriculture, with its reduced soil disturbance and enhanced cover, has the potential to increase carbon storage in the topsoil. However, it remains unclear how various tillage practices alter topsoil organic carbon (SOC) storage in the long-term affected by climate change. This study investigates the impacts of three tillage practices, Conventional Tillage (CT), Mulch Tillage (MT), and No-Till (NT) on future SOC stocks in the topsoil (0–15 cm), considering climate change scenarios (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5) and local soil erosion effects. Therefore, we calibrated and applied the integrated terrestrial C-N-P cycle model (N14CP) to a long-term study site with a cereal-maize dominant crop rotation in Lower Austria. Our calibration (1994–1995) resulted in a RMSE of 45.3 g m⁻² and a PBIAS of 9.6%, while validation (2000–2023) resulted in a RMSE of 103.8 g m⁻² and a PBIAS of 3.9%. Long-term simulations indicate that topsoil SOC stocks tend to increase under MT by +309 g m⁻² (baseline), +233 g m⁻² (RCP4.5), and +148 g m⁻² (RCP8.5), under NT by +1145 g m⁻² (baseline), +1059 g m⁻² (RCP4.5), and +961 g m⁻² (RPC8.5), but SOC stocks may decrease under CT by −209 g m⁻² (baseline), −267 g m⁻² (RCP4.5), and −332 g m⁻² (RCP8.5) by 2100. In contrast to conventional management, our tested conservation agriculture practices (MT and NT) may both serve as viable options to mitigate climate change and erosion impacts on topsoil organic carbon in comparable agro-ecological settings.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 2","pages":"Pages 486-499"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143715683","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Influence of post-fire root decay-induced soil macropores on slope stability: A new method for analyzing heterogeneous slope stability","authors":"Zihan Qi ,&nbsp;Yunqi Wang ,&nbsp;Tong Li ,&nbsp;Xiangjun Yan ,&nbsp;Yue Lan ,&nbsp;Xiaoming Zhang ,&nbsp;Peng Li ,&nbsp;Liqun Lyu","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.007","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.007","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil macropores are key factors affecting slope hydrological processes and stability, particularly under heavy rainfall conditions. Although wildfires can lead to the decay and death of plant roots, leaving root channels, few studies have examined temporal variation in the distribution of soil macropores or their impact on slope stability. To address this, we examined the bacterial abundance, root distribution, and macropore characteristics of burnt forest at one week and 6 and 12 months post-fire. Numerical simulation was used to analyze the effects of macropore distribution on slope stability under extreme rainfall conditions (80 mm/d × 4 d) at each time-point. Soil macropores accelerated the propagation of water pressure, potentially triggering shallow-slope instability. In the simulation, following 1 d of rainfall, slope stability was lower, by 3.55% and 8.68%, respectively, at 6 and 12 months than at one week post-fire. Following 4 d of rainfall, slope stability was better at 6 and 12 months than at one week post-fire, by 1.87% and 2.81%, respectively, owing to the drainage effect of the macropores. Even more importantly, this study proposed a method for coupling the spatial heterogeneity of soil macropores with a numerical model of slope stability. These findings help to elucidate the temporal changes in vegetated slope hydrology and stability after a wildfire and provide a reference for the numerical simulation of the stability of heterogeneous slopes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 702-715"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144330072","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Economic comparison of conventional and conservation tillage in a long-term experiment: Is it worth shifting?","authors":"Balázs Madarász ,&nbsp;Éva Zsuzsanna Járási ,&nbsp;Gergely Jakab ,&nbsp;Zoltán Szalai ,&nbsp;Márta Ladányi","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.012","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.012","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>There is considerable knowledge regarding the environmental benefits of conservation agriculture (CA). However, long-term profitability data are limited, despite their potential to drive CA adoption. This study analyses and compares the economic indicators of conservation reduced tillage (CT) widely practiced in Central Europe with those of conventional ploughing tillage (PT). This research investigated the costs and incomes under CT and assessed the impact of CT on crop yields and profitability over a 20-year period (2004–2023). The study covered 83 ha in 10 paired plots (from year 13 onwards, 76 ha in 9 paired plots), including extreme weather conditions and 6 crops. All annual data were adjusted to 2024 price levels to maintain consistency. Piecewise linear regression was applied to the data, revealing four distinct temporal phases. On the basis of profit, periods ‘Transitional’ (years 1–3), ‘Adapted 1’ (years 4–10), ‘Steady’ (years 11–17) and ‘Adapted 2’ (years 18–20) were separated. During the transitional period, profit under CT decreased by an average of 11.9% compared with PT, but subsequent periods indicated positive results. Therefore, the shift from year 7 onwards resulted in a profit increase. Over 20 years, material costs for CT plots were 1.9% higher and operating costs were 9.8% lower compared with PT. In addition, gross income increased by 2.3%, leading to a 13.0% higher profit on CT compared with PT plots, which could encourage wider adoption of CT by farmers.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 501-510"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144329569","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Dealing with sub-pixel landscape elements in distributed rainfall-runoff modelling in agricultural catchments","authors":"Ine Rosier,&nbsp;Jos Van Orshoven,&nbsp;Ben Somers,&nbsp;Jan Diels","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.009","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.009","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Vegetated landscape elements (vLEs) (e.g. hedges and grass buffers) are increasingly recognised for their ability to retain more water longer and mitigate downstream flood risk. To optimise positioning of these –typically small– vLEs, the impact of possible configurations needs quantifying, often requiring numerous hydrological model runs. To limit computational time, models must be run at lower spatial resolution leading to sub-pixel vLEs. The performance of a distributed rainfall-runoff model at 5 m resolution was assessed for 15 historical rainfall events in a 191 ha agricultural watershed in the Belgian loess belt. The model was then upscaled to 20 m resolution using four scaling approaches for saturated hydraulic conductivity (<em>K</em>_<em>s</em>) and Manning's coefficient, and three methods to set the hydro-physical parameters of subpixel vLEs in the upscaled model. The high-resolution model performed best for <em>K</em>_<em>s</em> equaling 0.72 mm h⁻¹. The upscaled model performed best when applying a flow length-based scaling factor for the Manning's coefficient, decreasing the RMSE by 25% and 10% for discharge volume and peak discharge rate respectively. Adjusting <em>K</em>_<em>s</em> and Manning's coefficient of vLE pixels using upslope area-based weighting was most effective for discharge volume, achieving an RMSE of 10.80% and R² of 0.64. Peak discharge rate could not be modelled accurately with sub-pixel vLEs at 20 m resolution. Our research can support scenario analysis in which accounting for the reduction of discharge volume caused by the presence of vLEs and their spatial configurations matters and therefore can support landscape design studies in the context of flood risk mitigation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 536-550"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144329595","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"An experimental study on the responses of spring snowmelt erosion to driving factors in a Chinese Mollisol soil","authors":"Lun Wang ,&nbsp;Fenli Zheng ,&nbsp;Xinyue Yang ,&nbsp;Rui Liang ,&nbsp;Xuesong Wang ,&nbsp;Xihua Yang ,&nbsp;Bin Wang ,&nbsp;Dennis C. Flanagan","doi":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.008","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.02.008","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Snowmelt erosion, a major spring soil degradation process in the Mollisol region of China, is further exacerbated in the context of global warming. The mechanism of snowmelt erosion remains unclear due to the complex erosion process influenced by multiple factors during the melting period. In this laboratory study we examined the effects of three critical factors influencing soil erosion during thawing period: snowmelt flow rates (0.33 × 10⁻⁴, 0.67 × 10⁻⁴, and 1.32 × 10⁻⁴ m² s⁻¹), subsurface hydrologic conditions (seepage and drainage), and soil thaw depths (5 and 10 cm). The results indicated that seepage significantly aggravated sediment yield, with sediment yield increasing by 50% in comparison to the drainage treatments. Sediment yield was positively correlated with snowmelt flow rate, and as the flow rate increased from 0.33 × 10⁻⁴ to 0.67 × 10⁻⁴ m² s⁻¹, the sediment yield increased by more than 4 times, due to the enhanced runoff energy and sediment transport capacity. Path analysis confirmed that snowmelt flow rate and subsurface hydrologic condition were the dominant factors for snowmelt erosion (explaining 0.917 and 0.308 of the path coefficients, respectively) while the effects of soil thaw depth were relatively low (explaining 0.032 of the path coefficients). However, soil thaw depth had a substantial impact on rill morphology evolution; rills tended to erode horizontally toward the sidewalls at shallow thaw depths, and evolved vertically downward at deeper thaw depths. Additionally, runoff energy consumption (Δ<em>E</em>) was a suitable indicator for characterizing soil erosion on partially thawed slopes with a high Coefficient of Determination (R² &gt; 0.70). In general, this study provides a scientific basis for a comprehensive understanding of snowmelt erosion dynamics, allowing development of more strategies for mitigating soil erosion in the spring and sustaining regional productivity in the Mollisol region of China.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48622,"journal":{"name":"International Soil and Water Conservation Research","volume":"13 3","pages":"Pages 526-535"},"PeriodicalIF":7.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144329571","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}