SOIL EROSION RATES IN SOUTH AFRICA COMPARED WITH COSMOGENIC 3HE-BASED RATES OF SOIL PRODUCTION

Abstract

Research Article| December 01, 2011 SOIL EROSION RATES IN SOUTH AFRICA COMPARED WITH COSMOGENIC 3HE-BASED RATES OF SOIL PRODUCTION J.E. DECKER; J.E. DECKER AEON and Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7700, South Africa, e-mail: geojedenator@gmail.com, Present address: Petroleum Agency SA, 7 Mispel Road, Tygerpoort Building, Bellville 7789, South Africa e-mail: deckerj@petroleumagencysa.com Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar S. NIEDERMANN; S. NIEDERMANN Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam – Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum GFZ, Telegrafenberg, 14473 Potsdam, Germany, e-mail: nied@gfz-potsdam.de Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar M.J. DE WIT M.J. DE WIT AEON and Faculty of Science, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Univeristy, Port Elizabeth, 6031, South Africa, e-mail: Maarten.DeWit@nmmu.ac.za Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information J.E. DECKER AEON and Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7700, South Africa, e-mail: geojedenator@gmail.com, Present address: Petroleum Agency SA, 7 Mispel Road, Tygerpoort Building, Bellville 7789, South Africa e-mail: deckerj@petroleumagencysa.com S. NIEDERMANN Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam – Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum GFZ, Telegrafenberg, 14473 Potsdam, Germany, e-mail: nied@gfz-potsdam.de M.J. DE WIT AEON and Faculty of Science, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Univeristy, Port Elizabeth, 6031, South Africa, e-mail: Maarten.DeWit@nmmu.ac.za Publisher: Geological Society of South Africa First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1996-8590 Print ISSN: 1012-0750 © 2011 Geological Society of South Africa South African Journal of Geology (2011) 114 (3-4): 475–488. https://doi.org/10.2113/gssajg.114.3-4.475 Article history First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation J.E. DECKER, S. NIEDERMANN, M.J. DE WIT; SOIL EROSION RATES IN SOUTH AFRICA COMPARED WITH COSMOGENIC 3HE-BASED RATES OF SOIL PRODUCTION. South African Journal of Geology 2011;; 114 (3-4): 475–488. doi: https://doi.org/10.2113/gssajg.114.3-4.475 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietySouth African Journal of Geology Search Advanced Search Abstract Soil erosion has been considered a major problem in South Africa since the early 20th Century, yet the degree to which rates of soil erosion may exceed rates of soil production has not been well constrained by previous studies. Here we present 22 cosmogenic 3He-based maximum denudation rates of Karoo dolerite bedrock surfaces, and interpret these values as local rates of soil production. These generally low soil production rates (<4 m/Myr measured over a 105 yr timescale) are in all instances lower than various literature estimates for the corresponding rates of soil erosion in the same catchments, by up to two orders of magnitude. This significant contrast between long term rates of soil production and short term rates of soil erosion suggests that current agricultural practices are unsustainable under prevailing geological conditions. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.