Allowable soil erosion rates in Georgia

Abstract

A procedure was proposed for the determination of the maximum allowable soil disturbance in Georgia in order to develop a strategy of soil conservation and restoration. The allowable soil losses were calculated within the risk limits of 0.01 < r < 0.1. The lower and upper limits of the allowable soil loss were determined for the soils of different thicknesses. To compare the rates of the soil erosion, one uses the erosion index: the ratio between the actual erosion rate and its maximum allowable value. The actual erosion rate is determined from erosion equations, in which the integrated parameters of the soil loss tolerance include the permissible flow velocity and data on the climatic and soil conditions. From the estimated allowable soil erosion rates, criteria of decision making can be formulated for substantiating the strategy of soil conservation or restoration.