Assessment of soil erosion and sediment yield changes using erosion potential model - case study: Republic of Srpska (BiH)

Abstract

Soil erosion is one of the most significant forms of land degradation in the Republic of Srpska which is greatly influenced by land use. Since the period when mapping of erosion processes in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1980-1985) was performed, some significant changes have occurred in this area due to demographic changes. The main aim of this paper is to explain the demographic and land use changes due to war processes and the impact of these changes on intensity of soil erosion and sediment yield. The amount of eroded material on the territory of the Republic of Srpska has decreased in the last decades. For the purposes of quantifying the erosion intensity changes, overlapping of the territory has been done with the soil erosion maps from 1985 and recent state of erosion in 2011. The erosion potential model (EPM) was used for the calculation of gross annual erosion and sediment yield. With digitalization of the area affected by different categories of erosion of these two maps, it was made possible to determine those changes in the last 30 years. Specific annual gross erosion on the Republic of Srpska's territory was 298.21 m(3)/km(2)/year in 1985 while ill 2011 it was 239.91 m(3)/km(2)/year. Therefore, due to changes in intensity of erosion processes the specific annual gross erosion in catchment areas was decreased by 58.30 m(3)/km(2)/ year. According to 1985 map of soil erosion, specific sediment yield in the Republic of Srpska was 182.03 m(3)/km(2)/year, while in 2011 was 146.44 m(3)/km(2)/year. These results are basis for all integral water management projects, soil protection, forest ecosystems and environmental protection, spatial planning, agriculture and other human activities.