Quantitative remote sensing study on regional soil erosion

Based on Chinese soil loss equation (CSLE) model, this paper utilized technical advantages of RS and geographic information system (GIS) on data access and erosion factors database building to study prediction methods of regional soil erosion. The spatial analysis module of ARCGIS platform was applied to study the spatial distribution of erosion and the inter-relations of the factors influencing regional soil erosion in the research area. As a result, the mean soil erosion modulus of Bin County is 3 555.42 t/(km 2 ·a), which suggests moderate degree erosion. The mean soil erosion modulus of clayey meadow soil is higher than those of dark brown soil and black soil. Vegetation factor values are between 0.1–0.2. The mean slope gradient and slope length values are respectively 1.335 and 6.061 which shows slope length is a dominant factor. And soil type, vegetation coverage and topographic factors have remarkable relevance to each other. Therefore, RS, GIS and CSLE are applicable in regional scale to disclose spatial distribution characteristics of soil erosion and to analyze the characteristics of dominant soil erosion factor quantitatively.