Soil erosion and sediment mapping in Aidoghmoush watershed appling MPSIAC model and GIS and RS technologies

Soil erosion is one of the important and worldwide environmental and economic issues. High amount of sediments accumulations behind the different structures such as dams requires several attempts to minimize their potential risks. Therefore, some quantified data will be needed in order to recognize those critical areas which requires urgent conservation. Since conventional procedures are time consuming and costly and usually provide some point-based data, there is a necessity for applying remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS) for quantifying soil erosion at large scales. In this regard, the current research was carried out in Aidoghmoush watershed to map soil erosion and sediment using MPSIAC model and RS and GIS technologies. Therefore, several information layers including geology, lithology, topography, soil, land cover, and land-use maps beside some data acquired from field assessments, prior investigations, and satellite images were applied in ArcGIS to map soil erosion in study area using MPSIAC model. The results showed that 251 million Kg soil per year is washed out form watershed by water erosion. In the other word, 475 tons soil per square kilometers per year got eroded. The results also revealed that slope and land covers were the most important controlling factors for sedimentation in the watershed. HU1 and HU4 hydrological units (sub-watersheds) showing the higher sediment per area were the most critical areas of the watershed. Contrary, HU3 had the lowest sediment per area.