Assessing the Effect of Spatial Variation in Soils on Sediment Loads in Yazoo River Watershed

Abstract

Sediment deposition in river channels from various topographic conditions has been one of the major contributors to water quality impairment through non-point sources. Soil is one of the key components in sediment loadings, during runoff. Yazoo River Watershed (YRW) is the largest watershed in Mississippi. Topography in the watershed has been classified into two types based on land-use and slope conditions: Delta region with a slope ranging from 0% to 3% and Bluff hills with a slope exceeding 10%. YRW spans over 50,000 km2; the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was used to estimate soil-specific sediment loss in the watershed. Soil predominance was based on spatial coverage; a total of 14 soil types were identified, and the sediment contributed by those soils was quantified. The SWAT model was calibrated and validated for streamflow, sediment, Total Nitrogen (TN), Total Phosphorus (TP), and Crop yield for soybeans. Model performance was evaluated using the Coefficient of determination (R2), Nash and Sutcliffe Efficiency index (NSE), and Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE). The performance was good for streamflow, ranging between 0.34 and 0.83, and 0.33 and 0.81, for both R2 and NSE, respectively. Model performance for sediment and nutrient was low-satisfactory as R2 and NSE ranged between 0.14 and 0.40, and 0.14 and 0.35, respectively. In the case of crop yield, model performance was satisfactory during calibration and good for validation with an R2 of 0.56 and 0.76 and with a MAPE of 11.21% and 10.79%, respectively. Throughout YRW, soil type Smithdale predicted the highest sediment loads with 115.45 tons/ha/year. Sediment loss in agricultural fields with a soybean crop was also analyzed, where soil type Alligator predicted the highest with 8.37 tons/ha/year. Results from this study demonstrate a novel addition to the scientific community in understanding sediment loads based on soil types, which can help stakeholders in decision-making toward soil conservation and improving the environment.