Erosion Hazard Mapping in the Runde Catchment: Implications for Water Resources Management

摘要

Soil erosion not only makes agricultural lands unproductive, it also contributes to sedimentation of water bodies leading to the eventual filling up of these water bodies. The control of sedimentation in reservoirs requires that the potentially significant sources of sediments be known and characterised. Knowledge of the spatial variations in the erosion hazard of a catchment is a good starting point. Using the Soil Loss Estimation Model for Southern Africa (SLEMSA) within a Geographic Information System (GIS), we characterized the spatial variations in erosion hazard in the Runde catchment in Zimbabwe. Results from this study show that the greater part of the catchment (around 64%) is in the moderate to negligible erosion hazard classes. Around 17% of the total catchment is in the moderately high to extremely high categories. We concluded that under the current land cover and land use regimes, water bodies in the Runde catchment are not at risk from abnormal rates of sedimentation.