Modelling and mapping rainfall erosivity in New South Wales, Australia

Abstract

Considerable seasonal and inter-annual changes exist in rainfall amount and intensity in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. These changes are expected to have significant effect on rainfall erosivity and soil erosion by water, but the magnitude of the impact is not well quantified because of the non-linear and dynamic nature of the relationship between rainfall amount and rainfall erosivity. The primary aim of this study was to model spatial and temporal variations in rainfall erosivity and impacts on hillslope erosion across NSW. We developed a daily rainfall erosivity model for NSW to calculate monthly and annual rainfall erosivity values by using gridded daily rainfall data for a continuous 53-year period including a baseline period (1961–90) and a recent period (2000–12). Model parameters were improved based on their geographic locations and elevations to be truly geo-referenced and representative of the regional relationships. Monthly and annual hillslope erosion risk for the same periods was estimated with the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation. We produced finer scale (100-m) maps of rainfall erosivity and hillslope erosion through spatial interpolation techniques, and implemented the calculation of rainfall erosivity and hillslope erosion in a geographic information system by using automated scripts so that it is fast, repeatable and portable. The modelled rainfall erosivity values were compared with pluviograph calculations and previous studies, and the Nash–Sutcliffe coefficient of efficiency is >0.90. Outcomes from this study provide not only baseline information but also continuous estimates of rainfall erosivity and hillslope erosions allowing better monitoring and mitigation of hillslope erosion risk in NSW.