California Agriculture Online
California Agriculture Home  >   Volume 66   >   Number 3  >   Viewing Expanded Abstract

peer-reviewed research article

Standards vary in studies using rainfall simulators to evaluate erosion

authors

Mark E. Grismer, UC Davis

publication information

California Agriculture 66(3):102-107. DOI: 10.3733/ca.v066n03p102. July-September 2012.

NALT Keywords

environmental science, hydrology, natural resource management, soil science

abstract

Rainfall simulators are often employed to measure erosion rates, in order to estimate stream loading of sediment and nutrients in California foothill watersheds. The rainfall simulator enables the precise application of artificial rain with controlled drop sizes, intensity and duration. In addition to rain factors such as drop energy and intensity, several soil- and cover-related factors affect erosion rates. While computational models have evolved to quantify erosion based on field measurements taken by rainfall simulators, there has not been a consensus on the methodology to be deployed, especially in forested and remote landscapes. In addition, it is challenging to apply study results from small plots to entire watersheds. To guide future fieldwork on sediment loading to water bodies, we review key concerns related to rainfall simulator studies.

author affiliations

M. Grismer is Professor of Hydrology, Departments of Land, Air and Water Resources, and Biological and Agricultural Engineering, UC Davis.

author notes

Co-workers at Integrated Environmental Restoration Services of Tahoe City supported the rainfall simulator fieldwork, and Marta Ruiz-Coleme, Ph.D. Student, University of Madrid, Spain, provided valuable library research.

References

Agassi M. Bradford JM. Methodologies for inter-rill soil erosion studies. Soil Till Res. 1999. 49:277-87. DOI: 10.1016/S0167-1987(98)00182-2 [CrossRef]

Bagarello V. Ferro V. Calibrating storage tanks for soil erosion measurement from plots. Earth Surf Proc Land. 1998. 23:1151-70. DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1096-9837(199812)23:13<replacecodegt1.0.CO;2-F [CrossRef]

Bagarello V. Ferro V. Plot-scale measurement of soil erosion at the experimental area of Sparacia (southern Italy). Hydrol Process. 2004. 18:141-57. DOI: 10.1002/hyp.v18:1 [CrossRef]

Bagarello V. Ferro V. Analysis of soil loss data from plots of differing length for the Sparacia experimental area, Sicily, Italy. Biosyst Eng. 2010. 105:411-22. DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystemseng.2009.12.015 [CrossRef]

Battany MC. Grismer ME. Development of a portable field rainfall simulator for use in hillside vineyard runoff and erosion studies. Hydrol Process. 2000. 14(6):1119-29. DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-1085(20000430)14:6<replacecodegt1.0.CO;2-4 [CrossRef]

Bhardwaj A. Singh R. Development of a portable rainfall simulator infiltrometer for infiltration runoff and erosion studies. Ag Water Manage. 1992. 22(3):235-48. DOI: 10.1016/0378-3774(92)90028-U [CrossRef]

Bisal F. The effect of raindrop size and impact velocity on sand splash. Can J Soil Sci. 1960. 40:242-5. DOI: 10.4141/cjss60-030 [CrossRef]

Boix-Fayos C, et al. Martinez-Mena M, et al. Calvo-Cases A, et al. Measuring soil erosion by field plots: Understanding the sources of variation. Earth-Science Rev. 2006. 78:267-85. DOI: 10.1016/j.earscirev.2006.05.005 [CrossRef]

Cerdà A, Rickson RJ. The response of abandoned terraces to simulated rain. Conserving Soil Resources: European Perspectives. 1997. Oxford, UK: CAB Int. p. 44-55.

Dunkerley D. Rain event properties in nature and in rainfall simulation experiments: A comparative review with recommendations for increasingly systematic study and reporting. Hydrol Process. 2008. 22:4415-35. DOI: 10.1002/hyp.7045 [CrossRef]

Ellison WD. Soil erosion studies, Part I. Agr Eng. 1947. 28:145-6.

Foltz RB. Elliot WJ. Wagenbrenner NS. Soil erosion model predictions using parent material/soil texturebased parameters compared to using site-specific parameters. T ASABE. 2012. 54(4):1347-56.

Fristensky A. Grismer ME. Evaluation of ultrasonic aggregate stability and rainfall erosion resistance of disturbed and amended soils in the Lake Tahoe Basin, USA. Catena. 2009. 79:93-102. DOI: 10.1016/j.catena.2009.06.003 [CrossRef]

García-Ruiz JM, et al. Lana-Renault N, et al. Beguería S, et al. From plot to regional scales: Interactions of slope and catchment hydrological and geomorphic processes in the Spanish Pyrenees. Geomorphology. 2010. 120:248-57. DOI: 10.1016/j.geomorph.2010.03.038 [CrossRef]

Gómez JA. Nearing MA. Giráldez JV. Alberts EE. Analysis of sources of variability of runoff volume in a 40-plot experiment using a numerical model. J Hydrol. 2001. 248:183-97. DOI: 10.1016/S0022-1694(01)00402-4 [CrossRef]

Grismer ME. Soil restoration and erosion control: Quantitative assessment in rangeland and forested areas. T ASABE. 2007. 50(5):1619-26.

Grismer ME. Erosion modeling for land management in the Tahoe Basin, USA: Scaling from plots to small forest catchments. Hydrol Sci J. 2012. 57(5):1-20. DOI: 10.1080/02626667.2012.685170 [CrossRef]

Grismer ME. Hogan MP. Simulated rainfall evaluation of revegetation/mulch erosion control in the Lake Tahoe Basin: 1. Method assessment. Land Degrad Dev. 2004. 15(6):573-88. DOI: 10.1002/ldr.640 [CrossRef]

Grismer ME. Hogan MP. Simulated rainfall evaluation of revegetation/mulch erosion control in the Lake Tahoe Basin: 2. Bare soil assessment. Land Degrad Dev. 2005a. 16(4):397-404. DOI: 10.1002/ldr.689 [CrossRef]

Grismer ME. Hogan MP. Simulated rainfall evaluation of revegetation/mulch erosion control in the Lake Tahoe Basin: 3. Soil treatment effects. Land Degrad Dev. 2005b. 16(5):489-501. DOI: 10.1002/ldr.679 [CrossRef]

Grismer ME. Shnurrenberger C. Arst R. Hogan MP. Integrated monitoring and assessment of soil restoration treatments in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Env Monit Assess. 2009. 150:365-83. [PubMed] DOI: 10.1007/s10661-008-0236-3 [CrossRef]

Hamed Y. Albergel J. Pépin YJ. Comparison between rainfall simulator erosion and observed reservoir sedimentation in an erosion-sensitive semi-arid catchment. Catena. 2002. 50:1-16. DOI: 10.1016/S0341-8162(02)00089-9 [CrossRef]

Kinnell PIA. Raindrop-impact-induced erosion process and prediction: A review. Hydrol Process. 2005. 19:2815-44. DOI: 10.1002/hyp.5788 [CrossRef]

Kinnell PIA. Simulations demonstrating interaction between coarse and fine sediment loads in rainimpacted flow. Earth Surf Proc Land. 2006. 31:355-67. DOI: 10.1002/esp.1249 [CrossRef]

Lal R., Lal R. Erodibility and erosivity. Soil Erosion Research Methods. 1988. Ankeny, IA: Soil and Water Conservation Society. p. 141-60.

Le Bissonnais Y, et al. Benkhadra H, et al. Chaplot V, et al. Crusting, runoff and sheet erosion on silty loamy soils at various scales and upscaling from m2 to small catchments. Soil Till Res. 1998. 46:69-80.

Madden LV. Wilson L. Ntahimpera N. Calibration and evaluation of an electronic sensor for rainfall kinetic energy. Phytopathology. 1998. 88(9):950-9. [PubMed] DOI: 10.1094/PHYTO.1998.88.9.950 [CrossRef]

Meyer LD, Lal R. Rainfall simulators for soil conservation research. Soil Erosion Research Methods. 1988. Ankeny, IA: Soil and Water Conservation Society. p. 75-96.

Moore ID. Hirschi MC. Barfield BJ. Kentucky rainfall simulator. Trans ASAE. 1983. 26:1085-9.

Nearing MA. Deer-Ascough L. Laflen JM. Sensitivity analysis of the WEPP hill-slope profile erosion model. T ASAE. 1990. 33(3):839-49.

Nearing MA. Govers G. Darrell Norton L. Variability in soil erosion data from replicated plots. Soil Sci Soc Am J. 1999. 63:1829-35. DOI: 10.2136/sssaj1999.6361829x [CrossRef]

Owoputi LO. Stolte WJ. Soil detachment in the physically based soil erosion process: A review. T ASAE. 1995. 38:1099-110.

Paige GB. Stone JJ. Smith JR. Kennedy JR. The Walnut Gulch rainfall simulator: A computer-controlled variable intensity rainfall simulator. Appl Eng Agric. 2003. 20(1):25-31.

Parsons AJ. Lascelles B. Rainfall simulation in geomorphology. Earth Surf Proc Land. 2006. 25:679- DOI: 10.1002/1096-9837(200007)25:7<679::AID-ESP123replacecodegt3.0.CO;2-P [CrossRef]

Poesen JW. Hooke JM. Erosion, flooding and channel management in Mediterranean environments of southern Europe. Prog Phys Geog. 1997. 21(2):157-99. DOI: 10.1177/030913339702100201 [CrossRef]

Rice EC. Grismer ME. Dry-season soil-water repellency affects Tahoe Basin infiltration rates. Calif Agr. 2010. 64(3):141-8. DOI: 10.3733/ca.v064n03p141 [CrossRef]

Rüttimann M. Schaub D. Prasuhn V. Rüegg W. Measurement of runoff and soil erosion on regularly cultivated fields in Switzerland — some critical considerations. Catena. 1995. 25:127-39. DOI: 10.1016/0341-8162(95)00005-D [CrossRef]

Sutherland RA. Rolled erosion control systems for hillslope surface protection: A critical review, synthesis and analysis of available data. I. Background and formative years. Land Degrad Dev. 1998a. 9:465-86. DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-145X(199811/12)9:6<465::AID-LDR311replacecodegt3.0.CO;2-4 [CrossRef]

Sutherland RA. Rolled erosion control systems for hillslope surface protection: A critical review, synthesis and analysis of available data. II. The post-1990 period. Land Degrad Dev. 1998b. 9:487-511. DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-145X(199811/12)9:6<replacecodegt1.0.CO;2-3 [CrossRef]

Van Dijk AJM. Bruijnzeel LA. Rosewell CJ. Rainfall intensity — kinetic energy relationships: A critical literature appraisal. J Hydrol. 2002. 261:1-23. DOI: 10.1016/S0022-1694(02)00020-3 [CrossRef]

Wischmeier WH. Smith DD. Predicting Rainfall Erosion Losses: A Guide to Conservation Planning. Agriculture Handbook, No. 537. 1978. Washington, DC: USDA/Science and Education Administration. 58p.

Zhang GH, et al. Liu BY, et al. Liu GB, et al. Detachment of undisturbed soil by shallow flow. Soil Sci Soc Am J. 2003. 67:713-9. DOI: 10.2136/sssaj2003.0713 [CrossRef]

Zöbisch MA. Klingspor P. Oduor AR. The accuracy of manual runoff and sediment sampling from erosion plots. J Soil Water Conserv. 1996. 51(3):231-3.


  • Search Article Text 1946 to Present
Advanced Search