Estimates of soil movement in a study area in Gonghe Basin, north-east of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

摘要

Accurate data on soil erosion rates by wind and patterns of soil movement are essential for guiding control planning in Gonghe Basin, north-east of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. This study was conducted to estimate soil erosion rates and assess patterns of soil movement by wind erosion in a 600 ha area during a 37-year period using the ~(137)Cs tracer technique. Two hundred and ' fifty-five soil samples were collected from 125 ~(137)Cs sampling points on a modified grid pattern and analysed for ~(137)Cs activity. Using ordinary point kriging, soil movement rates were interpolated at 7350 points in the sample grid. The kriged mean net soil movement rates were -3·496, -5·026 and 1·77kgm~(-2) year~(-1) on uncultivated grassland, cultivated grassland (farmland) and semi-shifting sand land, respectively. Soil movement by wind erosion in semi-arid steppe area is closely related to land use and soil landscape.