Use of cesium(-137) methodology in the evaluation of superficial erosive processes

摘要

Superficial erosion is one of the main soil degradation agents and erosion rates estimations for different edaphicclimate conditions for the conventional models, as USLE and RUSLE, are expensive and time-consuming. The use of cesium(-137) antrophogenic radionuclide is a new methodology that has been much studied and its application in the erosion soil evaluation has grown in countries as USA, UK, Australia and others. A brief narration of this methodology is being presented, as the development of the equations utilized for the erosion rates quantification through the cesium(-137) measurements. Two watersheds studied in Brazil have shown that the cesium(-137) methodology was practicable and coherent with the survey in field for applications in erosion studies. [References: 28]