Spatial estimation of soil erosion risk using RUSLE model in District Swat, Eastern Hindu Kush, Pakistan

Soil erosion is a natural geomorphic process with the potential to damage fertile land. In this study, soil erosion risk is spatially estimated in District Swat by applying Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE). The RUSLE parameters that trigger soil erosion including rainfall erosivity, soil erodibility, topography, cover management, and support practices were derived from monthly rainfall data obtained from Pakistan Metrology Department, soil texture map from Soil Survey of Pakistan and Digital Soil Map of the World database, land use land cover extracted from SPOT 5 satellite image, whereas slope and digital terrain extracted from Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) Digital Elevation Model (DEM). It was found from the analysis that out of the total reported area, 34.5% falls in the area affected by very high soil erosion. The results of spatial pattern and erosion proneness of the study region have been further classified into very low (45%), low (8.5%), moderate (7%), high (5.2%), and very high zones (34.5%). The results show that the study area requires effective mitigation strategies to curtail the precious soil. This study has the potential to assist the decision makers and planners for soil loss risk reduction.