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Based on GIS technology and AnnAGNPS model, the outputs of runoff and soil erosion in different periods of seven typical agroforestry watersheds in Funiu Mountains were studied. The results showed that after the implementation of the project of returning farmland to forests and ecological industrialization in the study watersheds in the Funiu Mountains, the function of soil and water conservation has been continuously enhanced. Compared with 2000, in 2020, the average surface runoff of the seven watersheds decreased by 40.7 mm, and the soil erosion amount decreased by 5.41 t/hm²; the watershed runoff had a significant positive correlation with slope (P < 0.05), a significant negative correlation with forest land area ratio (P < 0.05), but no significant correlation with agricultural land ratio; soil erosion was negatively correlated with forest land (P < 0.05), but positively correlated with farmland (P < 0.05); and the average spatial variation coefficient of soil erosion was 160%, which was 4.35 times that of runoff, and the uncertainty of factors affecting soil erosion was much higher than that of runoff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Urbanization can increase sheet, rill, gully, and channel erosion. We quantified the sediment budget of the Los Laureles Canyon watershed (LLCW), which is a mixed rural-urbanizing catchment in Northwestern Mexico, using the AnnAGNPS model and field measurements of channel geometry. The model was calibrated with five years of observed runoff and sediment loads and used to evaluate sediment reduction under a mitigation scenario involving paving roads in hotspots of erosion. Calibrated runoff and sediment load had a mean-percent-bias of 28.4 and − 8.1, and root-mean-square errors of 85% and 41% of the mean, respectively. Suspended sediment concentration (SSC) collected at different locations during one storm-event correlated with modeled SSC at those locations, which suggests that the model represented spatial variation in sediment production. Simulated gully erosion represents 16%–37% of hillslope sediment production, and 50% of the hillslope sediment load is produced by only 23% of the watershed area. The model identifies priority locations for sediment control measures, and can be used to identify tradeoffs between sediment control and runoff production. Paving roads in priority areas would reduce total sediment yield by 30%, but may increase peak discharge moderately (1.6%–21%) at the outlet.

The Annualized Agricultural Non-point Source (AnnAGNPS) pollution model has been widely used to assess and predict runoff, soil erosion, sediment and nutrient loading with a geographic information system. This article presents a case study of the effect of land-use changes on nonpoint source (NPS) pollution using the AnnAGNPS model in the Xizhi River watershed, eastern Pearl River Delta of Guangdong province, China. The land-use changes in the Xizhi River watershed between 1998 and 2003 were examined using the multitemporal remote sensing data. The runoff, soil erosion, sediment transport and nutrient loading 1998 and 2003 were assessed using AnnAGNPS. The effects of land-use changes on NPS were studied by comparing the simulation results of each year. Our results showed that (i) the NPS loadings increased when forest and grass land converted into paddy, orchard and farmland land, and population size and gross domestic product size as well as the usage amounts of fertilizer and pesticide in the entire watershed were firmly correlated with the NPS loadings; (ii) the land-use change during fast urbanization in particular when other land types were converted into the development land and buildup land led to increasing of NPS pollution; and (iii) urban land expansion showed more important effects on total organic carbon (TOC) loading compared with nitrogen and phosphorus loadings. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to evaluate prediction models of runoff and sediment yield in a Mediterranean environment, the distributed parameter, physically based, continuous simulation, daily time step AnnAGNPS model was applied to an experimental watershed of mainly pasture in Sicily. Results from AnnAGNPS simulations were evaluated using 7-year data monitored at this watershed. The model showed satisfactory capability in simulating surface runoff at event, monthly, and annual scales after calibration. Peak flow predictions were generally good for low flow events and poorer for higher flow rates. A high model efficiency was achieved for the 24 suspended sediment yield events recorded during the entire period of observation after reducing the roughness coefficients for both rangeland and cropland areas. The overall results confirmed the applicability of the AnnAGNPS model to the experimental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The modelling package Annualized Agricultural Nonpoint Source Model (AnnAGNPS) was applied to the prediction of export of nitrogen and phosphorus from Currency Creek, a small experimental catchment within the Hawkesbury–Nepean drainage basin of the Sydney Region. The catchment is 255 ha in area and has experienced extensive soil erosion and losses of nutrients from intensive vegetable cultivation, irrigated dairy pasture and poultry farms. Simulations of nitrogen and phosphorus loads in the Currency Creek catchment were performed at various temporal scales and the degree of calibration was quantified by comparing the simulated data with the monitoring results. In addition, the model independent, nonlinear parameter estimation code PEST, was applied for sensitivity testing to determine and assess the relative importance of the key parameters of the model. Event flows were simulated satisfactorily with AnnAGNPS but only moderate accuracy was achieved for prediction of event-based nitrogen and phosphorus exports. The biggest deviations from the measured data were observed for daily simulations but trends in the generated nutrients matched observed data. Despite achieving good resemblance between measured and predicted phosphorus loads the model showed high level of sensitivity to assigned pH values for topsoil. Increase in pH by one unit resulted in up to 34% increase in model generated particulate phosphorus load. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Urbanization can increase sheet, rill, gully, and channel erosion. We quantified the sediment budget of the Los Laureles Canyon watershed (LLCW), which is a mixed rural-urbanizing catchment in Northwestern Mexico, using the AnnAGNPS model and field measurements of channel geometry. The model was calibrated with five years of observed runoff and sediment loads and used to evaluate sediment reduction under a mitigation scenario involving paving roads in hotspots of erosion. Calibrated runoff and sediment load had a mean-percent-bias of 28.4 and − 8.1, and root-mean-square errors of 85% and 41% of the mean, respectively. Suspended sediment concentration (SSC) collected at different locations during one storm-event correlated with modeled SSC at those locations, which suggests that the model represented spatial variation in sediment production. Simulated gully erosion represents 16%–37% of hillslope sediment production, and 50% of the hillslope sediment load is produced by only 23% of the watershed area. The model identifies priority locations for sediment control measures, and can be used to identify tradeoffs between sediment control and runoff production. Paving roads in priority areas would reduce total sediment yield by 30%, but may increase peak discharge moderately (1.6%–21%) at the outlet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modelling gully erosion in urban areas is challenging due to difficulties with equifinality and parameter identification, which complicates quantification of management impacts on runoff and sediment production. We calibrated a model (AnnAGNPS) of an ephemeral gully network that formed on unpaved roads following a storm event in an urban watershed (0.2 km2) in Tijuana, Mexico. Latin hypercube sampling was used to create 500 parameter ensembles. Modelled sediment load was most sensitive to the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) curve number, tillage depth (TD), and critical shear stress (τc). Twenty-one parameter ensembles gave acceptable error (behavioural models), though changes in parameters governing runoff generation (SCS curve number, Manning’s n) were compensated by changes in parameters describing soil properties (TD, τc), resulting in uncertainty in the optimal parameter values. The most suitable parameter combinations or “behavioural models” were used to evaluate uncertainty under management scenarios. Paving the roads increased runoff by 146–227%, increased peak discharge by 178–575%, and decreased sediment load by 90–94% depending on the ensemble. The method can be used in other watersheds to simulate runoff and gully erosion, to quantify the uncertainty of model-estimated impacts of management activities on runoff and erosion, and to suggest critical field measurements to reduce uncertainties in complex urban environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]