The soil erodibility factor (K factor) of the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) refers to the natural soil susceptibility to erosion and represents the quantity of lost soil per rain erosivity unit (R factor), a factor, which is of great importance in conservation management. Using data of soil loss, measured under natural rainfall conditions in collector ponds of superficial runoff, and of natural rainfall erosivity (EI30) in the period from 1989 to 1998 in Lages (SC), the soil erodibility factor […]

Water/Hydro-erosion comes as a result of rain erosivity and soil erodibility. Knowledge on erosivity is therefore useful as a guide for recommendations on management practices and soil conservation which have the aim to reduce hydro- erosion. Objectives of this study were the factor identification and quantification of natural rain erosivity in Lages, Santa Catarina, as well as knowledge on its temporary distribution. The study was carried out in 2000, using data on rainfall and soil loss of the period from […]

A cartographic simulation in a Geographical Information System (GIS) was used to evaluate the environmental impacts of different forest management strategies on a watershed scale. The project was conducted in a small (2 km2) watershed located at northern coast of the State of Espírito Santo, Brazil, which is inserted in an area of eucalypt-clone plantation comprised by the agro-industrial complex Aracruz Celulose S.A. Potential impacts were assessed by applying the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) in a GIS, where different […]

The assessment of the soil erodibility (K-factor) is essential for using the universal soil loss equation. The objective of this paper was to verify the adequacy of different indirect methods to estimate the K-factors of soils with argillic horizon from diverse geographic regions of Brazil. Superficial samples of 22 soils bearing argillic horizon were collected. The K-factors measured directly in the field of all these soils are already known. Several chemical and physical analyses were performed in order to calculate […]