Predicting Soil Erosion Rate at Transboundary Sub-Watersheds in Ali Al-Gharbi, Southern Iraq, Using RUSLE-Based GIS Model

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Dear authors,

The RUSLE model is widely used throughout the world. So, the work is not unique. However, for the particular study area, it may be useful. The detailed comments are given for your consideration. I hope that the comments will help you in improving the quality of the manuscript. Kindly find the attachment.

Thank You, 

Sandeep Panchal

 

Comments for author File: Comments.pdf

Author Response

Manuscript ID: sustainability-2062846

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to submit a revised draft of the manuscript “Predicting soil erosion rate at transboundary sub-watersheds in Ali Al-Gharbi, southern Iraq using RUSLE based GIS-model” for publication in the Journal of Sustainability. We appreciate the time and effort that you and the reviewers dedicated to providing feedback on our manuscript and are grateful for the insightful comments on and valuable improvements to our paper. We have incorporated most of the suggestions made by the reviewers. Those changes are highlighted within the manuscript. Please see below, in blue, for a point-by-point response to the reviewers’ comments and concerns.

1- The sentence seems little inappropriate. It can be reframed.
Authors’ response: We thank the reviewer for pointing out this, the sentences in this paragraph have been rewritten to be more appropriate.

2- Check the sentence: allocation of resources.
Authors’ response: Thanks for caching this error, the sentence has been corrected.

3- affects is the right word.
Authors’ response: Authors agree, this mistake has been corrected.

4- The sentence seems complex. It can be broken into simpler sentences for better understanding.
Authors’ response: Thank you for this suggestion. This sentence was changed as suggested to improve clarity.

5- Which technique?
Authors’ response: This sentence has been edited for better understanding.

6- as a guide
Authors’ response: Thanks for caching this mistake. It has been changed in text.

7- State the datum or reference. Is this elevation from mean sea level or anything else?
Authors’ response: This elevation from mean sea level based on digital elevation model (DEM) results.

8- It's sub-watershed not sbu watershed.
Authors’ response: Thank you for pointing out this mistake. It has been corrected.

9- Provide reference for this data.
Authors’ response: The reference for this data has already been given in the Table 1.

10- Discuss the vertical and horizontal accuracy of the DEM used in the study.
Authors’ response: The vertical and horizontal accuracy of the DEM used in the study has been added.

11- The details of data sources given in this table is appreciable. Thank you for providing the source of data in such manner.
Authors’ response: The authors thank the reviewer for his kind words.

12- Detached
Authors’ response: Thanks for caching this mistake. It has been corrected.

13- Provide equation number properly.
Authors’ response: The equation number has been provided properly.

14- should be in small letters
Authors’ response: Thanks for caching this mistake. It has been corrected.

15- Fig. 1 (better figure can be provided in better resolution if available)
Authors’ response: Thank you much. Please, the resolution of all maps (raster) produced in this analysis is 3030 m, the same as the digital elevation model. Most of the maps are derived from more coarse resolution and resample to be agree with 3030 m. Accordingly, we would appreciate the respectable reviewer accepting our figures since we did our best with the available data.

16- Fig. 2 (No need to provide boundary on legend as it is colliding in the figure)
Authors’ response: Thank you. We believe that the boundary of a legend is necessary to separate the other parts of the map from the main figure.

17- Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 (this map is not buffered properly in ArcGIS it can be improved at the edges for better appearance.
Authors’ response: Many thanks for the respect reviewer; both figures were redrawn to meet the reviewer comment. Please, see these figures in the revised version of the manuscript.

 

Reviewer 2 Report

This paper deals with the prediction of soil loss rate in a transboundary watershed in Iraq, coupling the RUSLE model and GIS.

Add remote sensing as keyword.

Watersheds are globally facing significant environmental challenge. Replace the word watershed with landscape. The watershed is a hydrological term and do not face challenges, The management of watershed is a challenging task. Please correct it is no easy to follow in the current form.

Erosion has a negative influence on the sustainability and productivity of agricultural areas…as well as biodiversity (https://doi.org/10.3390/su14052738, https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12782

For instance, soil erosion models such as….also include the widely applied Gavrilovic model (EPM) https://scibulcom.net/en/article/RudumPyvp1Dc9aCFph69 . To that end, automated workflows have been developed in GIS environment.

A better description of the data source must be given. What’s the difference between the C factor and the LULC? Why both data used. Moreover, what about the P-factor of RUSLE model.

The spatial distribution of the meteorological station within the study area must be given.

Also, a detailed estimation of the K factor can be performed using the SoilGrids (https://soilgrids.org/) data based on the original formulas rather than simplified methods. Why the authors used this approach, please justify.

Therefore, in this study, the Global Rainfall Erosivity Da-
tabase (GloREDa). So the esdac database must be added to the table 1 (instead of meteorological data).

Which is the reference year for the Global Rainfall Erosivity Database? All the staton operates for a common period so as to have homogenized results?

Figure 3. Increase the fonts of the legend.

In general the approach is interesting and the subject important for the journal’s readers. However, the literature about the importance of soil loss and the existing models must be enlarged. Also, the selection of the databases must be justified and a better description is considered necessary. After all, I suggest major revision before publishing.

 

 

 

 

Author Response

Manuscript ID: sustainability-2062846

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to submit a revised draft of the manuscript “Predicting soil erosion rate at transboundary sub-watersheds in Ali Al-Gharbi, southern Iraq using RUSLE based GIS-model” for publication in the Journal of Sustainability. We appreciate the time and effort that you and the reviewers dedicated to providing feedback on our manuscript and are grateful for the insightful comments on and valuable improvements to our paper. We have incorporated most of the suggestions made by the reviewers. Those changes are highlighted within the manuscript. Please see below, in blue, for a point-by-point response to the reviewers’ comments and concerns.

Response to Reviewers

1- Add remote sensing as keyword.
Authors’ response: Thank you for this suggestion. These words were added as keyword.

2- Watersheds are globally facing significant environmental challenge. Replace the word watershed with landscape. The watershed is a hydrological term and do not face challenges, The management of watershed is a challenging task. Please correct it is no easy to follow in the current form.

Authors’ response: Thank you much. As suggested by the reviewer, the word ‘’ landscape’’ used instead of ‘’watershed’’

3- Erosion has a negative influence on the sustainability and productivity of agricultural areas…as well as biodiversity (https://doi.org/10.3390/su14052738, https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12782
Authors’ response: we agreed there is another impact of soil erosion on biodiversity.

4- For instance, soil erosion models such as….also include the widely applied Gavrilovic model (EPM) https://scibulcom.net/en/article/RudumPyvp1Dc9aCFph69 . To that end, automated workflows have been developed in GIS environment.
Authors’ response: Thank you so much, we totally agree with your opinion there are many models have been applied to predict soil erosion, in the current study we mentioned some of them as examples.

5- A better description of the data source must be given. What’s the difference between the C factor and the LULC? Why both data used. Moreover, what about the P-factor of RUSLE model.
Authors’ response: Thank you so much; Table (1) is enhanced to better description of the data source, please, see Table (1) for more details.
Soil crop management refers to the practices that are carried out in order to maintain and improve the health and productivity of the soil in which crops are grown. These practices may include activities such as fertilization, irrigation, soil erosion control, and pest management. Land use refers to the way in which land is used or exploited by humans. Land use can include activities such as agriculture, forestry, urban development, and recreation. Land cover refers to the physical material that covers the land surface, such as vegetation, water bodies, and built structures. Land cover can be affected by land use, as land use activities can change the natural land cover.
From the above definitions, there is a clear difference between these terms as the soil crop management (C) factor is a number that can be easily assigned in the RUSLE equation and
indicates how the conservation plan will contribute to soil loss and how that soil loss might be distributed over time.
(Moreover, what about the P-factor of RUSLE model)
Kindly please, there is a single paragraph in the manuscript (section 3.5) about how we assigned this factor. Please, see page 8 in the revised manuscript for more details.

6- The spatial distribution of the meteorological station within the study area must be given.
Authors’ response: We thank the reviewer for pointing out this, the meteorological station has been added as shown in Figure 1.

7- Also, a detailed estimation of the K factor can be performed using the SoilGrids (https://soilgrids.org/) data based on the original formulas rather than simplified methods. Why the authors used this approach, please justify.
Authors’ response: Kindly please, FAO's global soil map uses the same empirical equations to estimate K factor and does not use simplified methods. Therefore, our calculations were based on these data.

8- Therefore, in this study, the Global Rainfall Erosivity Database (GloREDa). So the esdac database must be added to the table 1 (instead of meteorological data).
Authors’ response: Thank you so much for this valuable comment. The reference was corrected in the Table (1) in the revised manuscript.

9- Which is the reference year for the Global Rainfall Erosivity Database? All the station operates for a common period so as to have homogenized results?
Authors’ response: The year of this map is 2017 and it is added to the manuscript in the section 3.1 (in red color).

10- Figure 3. Increase the fonts of the legend.
Authors’ response: Many thanks for the respect reviewer; the figure was redrawn to meet the reviewer comment. Please, see this figure in the revised version of the manuscript.

11- In general the approach is interesting and the subject important for the journal’s readers. However, the literature about the importance of soil loss and the existing models must be enlarged. Also, the selection of the databases must be justified and a better description is considered necessary. After all, I suggest major revision before publishing.
Authors’ response: Thank you for your comments and suggestions. We appreciate the time you spent reviewing our manuscript and the insight you provide in helping us strengthen the presentation of our work.

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

In general, the article has improved according to the reviewer suggestions. However, in two points despite the fact that the authors agree with the comments they not include the appropriate references in the maintext.

3- Erosion has a negative influence on the sustainability and productivity of agricultural areas…as well as biodiversity (https://doi.org/10.3390/su14052738, https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12782
Authors’ response: we agreed there is another impact of soil erosion on biodiversity.

4- For instance, soil erosion models such as….also include the widely applied Gavrilovic model (EPM) https://scibulcom.net/en/article/RudumPyvp1Dc9aCFph69 . To that end, automated workflows have been developed in GIS environment.
Authors’ response: Thank you so much, we totally agree with your opinion there are many models have been applied to predict soil erosion, in the current study we mentioned some of them as examples.

Author Response

We are pleased to submit another revision of our manuscript. Thank you for your helpful comments. We have revised our paper accordingly and feel that your comments helped clarify and improve our paper. We have incorporated most of the suggestions made by the reviewers. Those changes are added within the manuscript. Please find our response (in blue) to reviewer’s specific comments (in black) below.

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

3- In general, the article has improved according to the reviewer suggestions. However, in two points despite the fact that the authors agree with the comments they not include the appropriate references in the maintext.

Response to Reviewer 

Erosion has a negative influence on the sustainability and productivity of agricultural areas…as well as biodiversity (https://doi.org/10.3390/su14052738, https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12782

Authors’ response: This the appropriate reference was added in the maintext and list of references as suggested.

4- For instance, soil erosion models such as….also include the widely applied Gavrilovic model (EPM) https://scibulcom.net/en/article/RudumPyvp1Dc9aCFph69 . To that end, automated workflows have been developed in GIS environment.

Authors’ response: Thank you so much, we totally agree with your opinion there are many models have been applied to predict soil erosion. The suggested model and paragraph are better and has been added in the maintext, in addition to the appropriate references as well.