Modelagem da perda superficial de solo para cenários de agricultura e pastagem na região metropolitana de Goiânia

Abstract

The determination of surface loss of soils represents an important information in territorial planning. The process of laminar erosion comes from natural agents, such as topography, rainfall and soil typology, intensified by anthropic action. In the metropolitan region of Goiânia (RMG), these processes are exacerbated by the withdrawal of native vegetation cover for urban expansion and the implantation of pastures and agricultural crops. The Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE), applied in Geographical Information Systems (GIS), allows estimating erosion in a variety of land use scenarios and conditions. In this article,we aimed to determine and spatialize the erosive susceptibility to the current land use and to different scenarios of anthropic occupation, aiming to predict how much the conversion of this environmental asset can contribute to the occurrence of erosion, and in which intensities. Considering the whole area of the metropolitan region of Goiânia, the following scenarios were simulated: Current (all classes of use), Pasture and Agriculture. Erosive susceptibility to Pasture increased by 51%and by 110% for Agriculture, compared to the Current scenario. The results obtained also reinforce that the conversion of the environmental liabilities results in a significant increase of the erosive susceptibility in the RMG.