Soil Erosion Evaluation in a Small Basin Through the Use of super(137)Cs Technique

Soil erosion is a major problem on productive arable land in the Pampa Ondulada region of Argentina. The cesium-137 method was applied to quantify soil loss rates and patterns in a 300 ha area of this region, to develop control strategies. super(137)Cs inventories taken along multiple transects were compared with a local reference super(137)Cs profile. Estimated mean soil erosion rates matched the low and moderate erosion classes as designated by FAO, and exceeded the admitted tolerance. Sedimentation at lower landscape positions likely was due to changes from convex to concave slopes. In such regions as this where the topographic gradient is low, slope length is important in predicting spatial erosion patterns.