Exploring the Relationship between Cover Crop Adoption and Soil Erosion Severity: A Case Study from the Simcoe Watershed, Ontario, Canada
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Methods
2.1. Study Site
2.2. Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE)
2.2.1. Rainfall Erosivity Factor (R)
2.2.2. Soil Erodibility Factor (K)
2.2.3. Slope Gradient Factor (LS)
2.2.4. Cover Management Factor (C)
2.2.5. Support Practice Factor (P)
2.2.6. Application: Esri ArcMap
2.3. Cover Crop Frequency Analysis
3. Results
3.1. USLE Analysis
3.2. USLE and Agriculture Analysis
3.3. USLE and Cover Crop Analysis
3.4. Relationship between Average Soil Loss and Cover Crop Frequency
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Soil Erosion Severity Class | Uxbridge Brook (0) | Beaver River (1) | Maskinonge River (2) | Pefferlaw River (3) | Black River (4) | Whole Watershed | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total Area | Ag. Area | Total Area | Ag. Area | Total Area | Ag. Area | Total Area | Ag. Area | Total Area | Ag. Area | Total Area | Ag. Area | |
Very Low (0–6.7) tonnes/ha/year | 83.1 | 79.5 | 87.3 | 73.7 | 83.9 | 81.5 | 87.3 | 81.1 | 87.2 | 80.1 | 86.6 | 79.2 |
Low (6.7–11.2) tonnes/ha/year | 7.9 | 9.9 | 6.5 | 14.1 | 8.1 | 9.3 | 5.6 | 8.6 | 5.9 | 9.2 | 6.4 | 10.2 |
Moderate (11.2–22.4) tonnes/ha/year | 6.5 | 7.9 | 4.6 | 9.5 | 6.2 | 7.2 | 4.8 | 7.5 | 4.8 | 7.3 | 5.0 | 7.9 |
High (22.4–33.6) tonnes/ha/year | 1.6 | 1.8 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 1.4 | 2.1 | 1.2 | 1.7 | 1.2 | 1.8 |
Severe (>33.6) tonnes/ha/year | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.8 |
Cover Crop Frequency | Total Area (Ha) | Average Rate of Soil Loss (Tonnes/Ha/Year) | Total Soil Loss (Tonnes/Year) | Potential Soil Loss With a 3:6 Cover Crop Frequency (Tonnes/Year) | Diff. (Tonnes/Year) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1:6 | 9788 | 4 | 37,880 | 21,436 | 16,444 |
2:6 | 786 | 3 | 2343 | 1722 | 621 |
3:6 | 61 | 2 | 135 | 135 | 0 |
Total | 10,636 | N/A | 40,358 | 23,293 | 17,065 |
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Shirriff, K.; KC, K.B.; Berg, A. Exploring the Relationship between Cover Crop Adoption and Soil Erosion Severity: A Case Study from the Simcoe Watershed, Ontario, Canada. Land 2022, 11, 988. https://doi.org/10.3390/land11070988
Shirriff K, KC KB, Berg A. Exploring the Relationship between Cover Crop Adoption and Soil Erosion Severity: A Case Study from the Simcoe Watershed, Ontario, Canada. Land. 2022; 11(7):988. https://doi.org/10.3390/land11070988
Chicago/Turabian StyleShirriff, Katherine, Krishna Bahadur KC, and Aaron Berg. 2022. "Exploring the Relationship between Cover Crop Adoption and Soil Erosion Severity: A Case Study from the Simcoe Watershed, Ontario, Canada" Land 11, no. 7: 988. https://doi.org/10.3390/land11070988
APA StyleShirriff, K., KC, K. B., & Berg, A. (2022). Exploring the Relationship between Cover Crop Adoption and Soil Erosion Severity: A Case Study from the Simcoe Watershed, Ontario, Canada. Land, 11(7), 988. https://doi.org/10.3390/land11070988