Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
FORESTIST, cilt.1, sa.1, ss.1, 2024 (ESCI)
Soil erosion presents a global challenge, leading to severe repercussions such as soil degradation, compromised water
quality, reduced agricultural output, and ecological harm, endangering life's sustainability on Earth. To preserve soil fertility and water quality within a watershed, it is crucial to compute soil loss quantities, sediment delivery ratios (SDRs), and
nutrient concentrations within suspended sediments (SS). The Değirmendere watershed in Turkey's Trabzon province was
selected for research area. The study employed the RUSLE method in coupled with Geographical Information Systems
to quantify soil loss and SDR. Direct measurement techniques were used to calculate the annual SS, as well as carbon (C)
and total nitrogen (TN) content within the SS. Over a span of twelve months spanning January to December 2019, water
samples were collected. The outcomes revealed that the watershed experiences annual amount of soil erosion is 592,140
tons year−1 with an average rate of 5.61 tons ha−1 year−1. The sediment delivery ratio (SDR) was calculated to be 0.38. Other
analysis indicated that the annual estimated sediment load and the directly measured annual quantities are 225 013 and
97 660, respectively. Both directly measured and predicted suspended sediment contain 0.15% TN and 1.13% C. The estimated sediment load is nearly two and a half times greater than the direct stream measurement (y = 2.304x). The outcomes
of this research carry important implications for upcoming studies focused on the preservation of soil and water, a crucial
measure in reducing soil erosion and improving water quality. The study provides guidance for future investigations concerning soil and water conservation