Applying a soil water erosion model at forest intervention unit scale using a Geographic Information System

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to develop a map production methodology to assess soil water erosion for operational use in the forestry management context, through the use of a Geographic Information System (GIS). A model based on the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) principles of Wischmeier e Smith (1965; 1978) was developed and applied to a forestry area, close to Azambuja town, in the Lisbon district, Portugal. For qualitative validation of the modeling results, a cartographic survey of observed erosion in the same area was produced. The model output and the cartographic survey fairly agreed.