The Relationship of Debris Flow Hazards and Rainfall Erosivity in the Bailong River Basin of Southern Gansu Province, China

Abstract:

Rainfall is one of the main factors that drive soil erosion, leading to environmental problems such as increased frequency and severity of debris flows, and ecosystem damage. Rainfall erosivity represents the potential of rainfall to cause soil erosion, and is determined by a combination of rainfall intensity. The spatial and temporal distribution of rainfall erosivity was analyzed to get its relationship with the debris flows in the Bailong River Basin in China's Gansu Province. The mean annual amount of erosive rainfall accounts for 36.0-47.1% of annual precipitation. The annual mean rainfall erosivity amounts to 798.8 MJ mm ha^-1 h^-1 yr^-1 in the Bailong River Basin. A positive correlation between annual precipitation and annual rainfall erosivity was demonstrated at all 18 rainfall stations. However, further research is required to reveal the key factors that explain soil erosion and debris flows.

• Periodical: Advanced Materials Research (Volumes 1073-1076)
• Pages: 1614-1619
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.1073-1076.1614
• Online since: December 2014
• Authors: Peng Zhang, He Ping Shu, Jin Zhu Ma*, Gang Wang, Li Ming Tian
• Keywords: Bailong River Basin, Debris Flow, Intensity, Rainfall Erosivity

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