Soil erosion prediction and sediment yield estimation: the Taiwan experience

Estimating watershed erosion using geographic information systems coupled with the universal soil loss equation (USLE) or agricultural non-point source pollution model (AGNPS) has become a recent trend. However, errors in over-estimation often occur due to the misapplication of parameters in the equation and/or model. Because of poor slope length calculation definitions for entire watersheds, the slope length factor is the parameter most commonly misused in watershed soil loss estimation. This paper develops a WinGrid system that can be used to calculate the slope length factor from each cell for reasonable watershed soil loss and sediment yield estimation. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.