Catena 64 (2005) 61 80

www.elsevier.com/locate/catena

GIS-based sediment assessment tool

Kyoung Jae Lim a,1, Myung Sagong b,2, Bernard A. Engel a,*,
Zhenxu Tang a,3, Joongdae Choi c,4, Ki-Sung Kim c,5
a

Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2093, USA
b
Korea Railroad Research Institute (KRRI), Uiwang, Kyunggi, South Korea
c
Agricultural Engineering, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Kangwon, South Korea
Received 26 February 2004; received in revised form 20 June 2005; accepted 27 June 2005

Abstract
Accelerated soil erosion is a worldwide problem because of its economic and environmental
impacts. To effectively estimate soil erosion and to establish soil erosion management plans, many
computer models have been developed and used. The Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation
(RUSLE) has been used in many countries, and input parameter data for RUSLE have been well
established over the years. However, RUSLE cannot be used to estimate the sediment yield for a
watershed. Thus, the GIS-based Sediment Assessment Tool for Effective Erosion Control (SATEEC)
was developed to estimate soil loss and sediment yield for any location within a watershed using
RUSLE and a spatially distributed sediment delivery ratio. SATEEC was enhanced in this study by
developing new modules to: 1) simulate the effects of sediment retention basins on the receiving
water bodies, 2) estimate the sediment yield from a single storm event, and 3) prepare input
parameters for the Web-based sediment decision support system using a GIS interface. The enhanced
SATEEC system was applied to the study watershed to demonstrate how the enhanced system can be
effectively used for soil erosion control. All the procedures are fully automated with Avenue, CGI,
and database programming; thus the enhanced SATEEC system does not require experienced GIS
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 765 494 1162; fax: +1 765 496 1115.
E-mail addresses: kjlim@ecn.purdue.edu (K.J. Lim), rockcore@krri.re.kr (M. Sagong), engelb@purdue.edu
(B.A. Engel), ztang@purdue.edu (Z. Tang), jdchoi@kangwon.ac.kr (J. Choi), kskim@kangwon.ac.kr
(K.-S. Kim).
1
Tel.: +1 765 494 9772; fax: +1 765 496 1115.
2
Tel.: +82 31 460 5363; fax: +82 31 460 5319.
3
Tel.: +1 765 494 1162; fax: +1 765 496 1115.
4
Tel.: +82 33 250 6464; fax: +82 33 251 3965.
5
Tel.: +82 33 250 6466; fax: +82 33 251 3965.
0341-8162/$ - see front matter D 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.catena.2005.06.013

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K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

users to operate the system. This easy-to-operate SATEEC system can be used to identify areas
vulnerable to soil loss and to develop efficient soil erosion management plans.
D 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Soil erosion; Sediment delivery ratio; Sediment yield; RUSLE; SATEEC GIS

1. Introduction
Accelerated soil erosion is a serious concern worldwide, and it is difficult to assess its
economic and environmental impacts accurately because of its extent, magnitude, rate, and
complex processes associated with it (Lal, 1994). Many human-induced activities, such as
mining, construction, and agricultural activities, disturb land surfaces, resulting in
accelerated erosion. Soil erosion from cultivated areas is typically higher than that from
uncultivated areas (Brown, 1984). The United Nations Environmental Program reported
that crop productivity is reduced and becomes uneconomic on about 20 million ha/year
due to soil erosion and degradation (United Nation Environmental Program, 1991). Soil
erosion can pose a great concern to the environment because cultivated areas can act as a
pathway for transporting nutrients, especially phosphorus attached to sediment particles, to
river systems (Ouyang and Bartholic, 1997). Soil erosion is a natural process and it refers
to processes by which earth materials are entrained and transported across a given surface.
Soil loss is the amount of material that is actually removed from a particular slope. Due to
the possible on-site deposition of soil materials due to changes in topography, vegetation,
and soil characteristics, soil loss is usually less than soil erosion. Thus, sediment yield is
used to refer to the amount of eroded material that is actually transported from a plot, field,
channel, or watershed (Renard et al., 1997).
To estimate soil erosion and to develop optimal soil erosion management plans, many
erosion models, such as Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) (Wischmeier and Smith,
1978), Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) (Flanagan and Nearing, 1995), Soil and
Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) (Arnold et al., 1998), and European Soil Erosion Model
(EUROSEM) (Morgan et al., 1998), have been developed and used over the years. Among
these models, the USLE has remained the most practical method of estimating soil erosion
potential in fields and to estimate the effects of different control management practices on
soil erosion for nearly 40 years (Dennis and Rorke, 1999; Kinnell, 2000) while other
process-based erosion models have intensive data and computation requirements. The new
version of the USLE, called the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), was
developed by modifying the USLE to more accurately estimate R, K, C, P factors, and soil
erosion (Renard et al., 1991). Van Remortel et al. (2004) developed an array-based C++
program to automate the calculation of the LS factor from a digital elevation data because
the ArcInfo Macro Language (AML) program was not efficient and fast. The USLE has
been used/integrated with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to estimate soil erosion
because GIS helps users manipulate and analyze the spatial data easily, and it also helps
users identify the spatial locations vulnerable to soil erosion (Yitayew et al., 1999; Ouyang
and Bartholic, 2001; Lufafa et al., 2002). However, these studies using the USLE did not
consider the sediment delivery ratio to estimate the sediment delivered to the downstream

K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

63

point of interest. Regional variations in sediment yields are very important since sediment
delivery processes vary in space and time.
The WinGrid system by Lin et al. (2002) considered the sediment delivery ratio based
on receiving drainage length ratio to total drainage length to compute soil erosion and
sediment yield using USLE and a sediment delivery ratio. However, this system has
separate component programs rather than being fully integrated with a GIS system. Hence,
it is not readily available to soil erosion decision makers because it was developed for
research purposes.
Thus, a GIS integrated prototype version of the Sediment Assessment Tool for Effective
Erosion Control (SATEEC) (Lim et al., 2003) was developed to provide an easy-to-use GIS
interface to estimate soil erosion and sediment yield without additional input parameter data
other than those for the USLE model. With the USLE input parameter maps, the SATEEC
can estimate soil erosion and the sediment yield at any point within a watershed with a
menu-driven SATEEC GIS interface. However, the prototype version of the SATEEC GIS
system cannot be used to assess the effects of sediment retention basins on the sediment
yield of the receiving water bodies. Also, it cannot be used to estimate the sediment yield
from a single storm event for an effective sediment control management. In addition, the
SATEEC GIS system does not have any sediment and erosion control structure design
capability. In the prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system, three methods are provided
to compute the spatially distributed sediment delivery ratios (SDR), derived from measured
data from hundreds of watersheds. However, users may need to use their watershed-specific
SDR power function for better estimation of sediment yield. Therefore, there is a need to
enhance the functionalities of the prototype SATEEC GIS system.
The objectives of this study were to:
1. Enhance the prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system by developing new modules
to: 1) simulate the impact of sediment retention basins on the sediment yield; 2)
simulate the sediment yield from storm events; and 3) provide a GIS interface to the
Web-based sediment decision support system for sediment retention basin design,
2. Apply the enhanced SATEEC GIS system to a study watershed to demonstrate how the
enhanced SATEEC GIS system can be used as an effective soil erosion and sediment
management tool.

2. Literature review
2.1. Soil erosion and sediment yield
Development of effective erosion control plans requires the identification of areas
vulnerable to soil erosion and quantification of the amounts of soil erosion from various
areas. The empirically based USLE and newly revised RUSLE have been used in many
countries since the late 1960s (Wischmeier and Smith, 1978). It is designed to estimate the
long-term average annual soil loss for fields with specified cropping and management
systems as well as rangeland (Renard et al., 1997). RUSLE estimates annual soil loss per
unit area from rill and interill erosion caused by rainfall splash and overland flow, but not

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K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

from gully and channel erosion. The RUSLE does not consider the runoff process
explicitly, nor soil detachment, transport, and deposition individually (Renard et al., 1994).
Eq. (1) shows how the RUSLE computes the average annual soil loss.
A R K LS C P
1
where
A
R
K
LS
C
P

average annual soil loss (ton/ac/year),

rainfall/runoff erosivity,
soil erodibility,
slope length and steepness,
cover management,
support practice.

The R factor in RUSLE is composed of total storm kinetic energy (E) times the
maximum 30 min intensity (I 30), and the numerical value of R is the average annual value
for storm events for at least 22 years (Wischmeier and Smith, 1978; Renard et al., 1997).
Hence, RUSLE cannot be used to estimate soil erosion and sediment yield for a single
storm event. Thus, the Modified Universal Soil Loss Equation (MUSLE) has been widely
used to estimate the sediment yield from a single storm event (Williams and Berndt, 1977).
Eq. (2) shows how the MUSLE computes sediment yield from a single storm event.

0:56
Y 11:8 QTqp
K C P LS
2
where
Y
Q
qp
K
LS
C
P

sediment yield from a single storm event (ton),

storm runoff volume (m3),
peak runoff rate (m3/s),
soil erodibility,
slope length and steepness,
cover management,
support practice.

RUSLE is a field scale model, thus it cannot be directly used to estimate the amount of
sediment reaching downstream areas because some portion of the eroded soil may be
deposited while traveling to the watershed outlet, or the downstream point of interest. To
account for these processes, the Sediment Delivery Ratio (SDR) for a given watershed
should be used to estimate the total sediment transported to the watershed outlet. The SDR
can be expressed as follows (Eq. (3)).
SDR SY=E
3
where
SDR Sediment Delivery Ratio,
SY Sediment Yield,
E
Gross Erosion for Entire Watershed.

K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

65

As stated before, RUSLE only estimates soil erosion from rill and interrill erosion
processes. However, gross erosion (E) in Eq. (3) includes the erosion from gully and
channel erosion as well as rill and interrill erosion (Ouyang and Bartholic, 1997).
According to the study by Wade and Heady (1976), the soil losses from rill and interrill
erosion in the Great Lakes Basin area are responsible for more than 67% of gross erosion.
Thus, the use of Eq. (3) in SATEEC is valid only if there is no significant erosion
occurring from gully and channel processes. Simanton et al. (1980) applied the USLE for
four watersheds and found USLE estimated soil losses matched reasonably for two
watersheds having no gullies or significant alluvial channels, while USLE results did not
match well for two watersheds with significant gullies and channels. These results indicate
USLE should not be applied to large watersheds, experiencing significant gully and
channel erosion.
Erskine et al. (2002) compared RUSLE estimated soil loss with the measured sediment
yield for 12 subwatersheds in Australia. The coefficient of determination was 0.88 for this
comparison, although it did not consider the sediment delivery ratio in the estimated soil
erosion using RUSLE. This is because the average area for the 12 subwatersheds is around
5 ha, and 3 ha for 10 smallest subwatersheds. Thus, the SDR for these small watersheds is
high; meaning most soil eroded moves to the downstream areas without significant
deposition. The SDR decreases with the size of watersheds, thus, the SDR needs to be
considered when RUSLE is applied for a large watershed.
Significant research has been performed to estimate the SDR, finding that SDR is
related to watershed size. The relationship for SDR and watershed size is known as the
SDR curve (USDA, 1972). The SDR curve based on watershed size is widely used
because of its simplicity. A power function (Eq. (4)) was derived from the data for 300
watersheds to develop a generalized SDR curve (Vanoni, 1975). Boyce (1975) and USDA
(1972) also developed SDR curves (Eqs. (5) and (6), respectively).
SDR 0:4724 A0:125

4
2

where, A = watershed area (km )

SDR 0:3750 A0:2382

5
2

where, A = watershed area (km )

SDR 0:5656 A0:11

where, A = watershed area (km2).

As shown in Eqs. (4)(6), the SDR curves developed by Vanoni (1975) and USDA
(1972) are similar, compared with the SDR curve by Boyce (1975). For the accurate
estimation of the sediment yield for a given watershed, use of a watershed specific SDR
curve is desirable, although it is not easy to obtain watershed specific SDR curves.
The USLE has been linked with GIS because of advantages of using GIS for large
quantities of spatial data. Hession and Shanholtz (1988) used GIS for non-point source
agricultural pollution modeling with USLE for the computation of sediment loading to
streams. Spanner et al. (1983) and Blaszczynski (1992) used RUSLE with GIS to extract
slope length and steepness from Digital Elevation Models (DEM). Yitayew et al. (1999)
developed the Arc/Info RUSLE system to compute the combined slope length and

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K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

steepness factor from DEM using two algorithms, one is with Spanners algorithm (1983)
and the other with Moores algorithm (1992). It was found that the LS factor using
Moores algorithm is nearly double compared with that using Spanners algorithm with the
same source of data (Yitayew et al., 1999). The comparison of the RUSLE GIS estimated
soil erosion with the measured sediment yield data indicates the sediment delivery ratio
depending on watershed size needs to be considered in the comparison as a possible
explanation for the difference in RUSLE GIS estimated erosion and measured sediment
yield (Yitayew et al., 1999). Ouyang and Bartholic (2001) developed a Web-based GIS
interface to the RUSLE model. It provides a soil erosion index map to the client web
browser with the input information provided by the users. However, this system does not
consider the SDR for sediment yield estimation. Lin et al. (2002) developed the WinGrid
system to extract the slope length factor for each cell to estimate the soil loss and sediment
yield from a watershed. In the WinGrid system, the sediment delivery ratio is computed
based on the ratio of receiving drainage length to the total drainage length. The WinGrid
estimated sediment yield at five outlets was somewhat similar to the measured sediment
data (Lin et al., 2002). However, this system was developed for research purposes, thus it
is not readily available to soil erosion decision makers.
2.2. Prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system
The prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system was developed to provide an easyto-use sediment assessment tool for soil erosion decision makers with Avenue
programming within the ArcView GIS software (Lim et al., 2003). Fig. 1 provides an
overview of the prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system. Soil loss is estimated with
RUSLE, and a spatially distributed sediment yield map is generated with RUSLE
estimated soil loss multiplied by the spatially distributed sediment delivery ratio map.
To compute soil loss from rill and interrill erosion, RUSLE was first integrated with the
GIS system. In the prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system, the method developed
by Moore and Burch (1986a,b) was used to calculate the LS factor from the Digital
Elevation Model (DEM). All DEM pre-processing and map algebra were automated with
Avenue programming. According to the RUSLE Users Guide (Foster et al., 1996), the
length of hill slopes in the USLE experimental plots ranged from 10.7 m (35 ft) to 91.4 m
(300 ft). Thus, it was recommended that the use of slope lengths less than 122 m (400 ft)
are desired because overland flow becomes concentrated into the rills in less than 122 m
(400 ft) under natural condition (Foster et al., 1996). Thus, SATEEC computes the LS
factor using the method developed by Moore and Burch (1986a,b) (Eq. (7)) and an upper
bound of slope length is provided by users, such as 122 m (400 ft).

LS

A
22:13

0:4 

sinH 1:3
T
0:0896

where
A
H

is flow accumulation * cell size,

is slope angle in degrees.

K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

67

Rainfall Erosivity (R)

Digital Elevation Model

(DEM)

Derive
Slope

Derive
Flow Dir.

Derive
Flow Acc

Soil Erosivity (K)

Slope Length &

Steepness (LS)

Crop-Management (C)
Generate
Stream Networks

Click of Mouse for

Watershed Delineation

Practice Factor (P)

Annual Average
Soil Loss Map

Spatially Distributed
Sediment Delivery Ratio
Spatially Distributed
Sediment Yield Map
Fig. 1. Overview of prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system (Lim et al., 2003).

The SATEEC GIS system estimates annual average soil loss by multiplying all
USLE input parameter maps (e.g. R, K, LS, C, and P maps). The SATEEC estimated
soil loss can be used to identify spatial locations vulnerable to soil erosion within the
study area. The total soil loss for a given area is not the same as the sediment yield
measured at a point of interest, such as a watershed outlet. To explain the possible
deposition of eroded materials while they travel to the channel networks and eventually
to the watershed outlet, the spatially distributed SDR is computed in the SATEEC GIS
system. The SDR is related with physical characteristics of the watershed, such as size
and shape of watershed, rainfall patterns, direct runoff, peak runoff, land use, cover
crop, slope, particle size, and channel density (Ouyang and Bartholic, 1997). Area
based methods were used to estimate the SDR in the SATEEC GIS system because
watershed area at any point within a watershed can be easily computed from the flow
accumulation map, which is one of the by-product maps from DEM preprocessing to
compute the LS factor. Three area based methods (USDA, 1972; Boyce, 1975; Vanoni,
1975) are used in SATEEC to compute the spatially distributed SDR map. The SDR
curve developed by Vanoni (1975) is a generalized curve because it was derived from
300 watersheds. Thus, it is recommended that the users select the default SDR curve
by Vanoni if they are not familiar with different SDR curves. The SDR values for a
very small watershed using the power functions by Vanoni (1975), Boyce (1975), and
USDA (1972) exceed 1.0. SATEEC computes the SDR value for every cell within the
watershed. Thus, the SDR value for a single cell watershed, usually a cell at the

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K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

watershed boundary, can exceed 1.0. The SATEEC users can set the upper limit of
allowable SDR value when generating a sediment delivery ratio map. The input data
for the SATEEC GIS system are R, K, DEM, C, and P maps, which are the basic
input maps to RUSLE. Thus, one of advantages of using the SATEEC GIS system is
that no additional input data, other than those for RUSLE, are needed to operate the
SATEEC GIS system. Also, all of the functions shown in Fig. 1 are fully integrated
and automated within the ArcView GIS system. Thus, with several clicks of the mouse
button with SATEEC menus, users can estimate the sediment yield for every cell
within a watershed (Lim et al., 2003).
A sediment retention basin is a pond to hold storm water and filter out the
sediment. It can remove the majority of the sediment within the storm water by
settling out the sediment. Sediment basins are often 7080% effective in filtering out
sediment, 5055% effective for phosphorus filtering, 4555% effective for nitrogen
filtering, 7580% effective for trace metal filtering (Schueler, 1987). With the
prototype version of SATEEC, users could not simulate the impact of sediment
retention basins on the sediment yield of downstream areas. It would be helpful to
include this function in the SATEEC GIS system for effective soil erosion and
sediment management.
2.3. Web-based decision support system for erosion control design planning
A WWW-based decision support system, Sediment and Erosion Control Planning,
Design and SPECification Information and Guidance Tool (SEDSPEC), was
developed for the estimation of peak runoff from small-scale watersheds, and for
designing hydrologic, sediment, and erosion control structures (Tang et al., 2004).
The Web-based SEDSPEC is available at http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~sedspec. It
can simulate the short-term peak runoff from watersheds using hydrologic soil
group, land use data, and design storm data in the SEDSPEC relational database.
Also, it calculates dimensions and costs of hydrologic, sediment and erosion control
structures based on users specifications while planning conservation in a watershed
(Tang et al., 2004). Widely used hydrologic models are used in the SEDSPEC for
peak runoff estimation. One is the Rational Method (Chow et al., 1988), and the
other is TR-55 (NRCS, 1986). The Rational Method is good for small watersheds
up to 2.59 km2, while the TR-55 is good for watersheds up to 51.8 km2 (NRCS,
1986). Although these two models have inherent limitations, these models were
employed in SEDSPEC because the input data for these models are readily
available, and these are widely used methods in storm sewer system design
(Pilgrim, 1986). SEDSPEC can be used to design seven possible engineering
practices: channels, culverts, sediment basins, level terraces, storm water detention
basins, runoff diversions, and lower water crossing. SEDSPEC also provides design,
cost, and maintenance information for hydrologic and erosion control structures
depending on site characteristics and users responses about the location, size, slope,
land use, vegetation, and erosion level of the site (Tang et al., 2004). The Web
GIS interface for SEDSPEC was developed to automate input data preparation for
the Rational Method. More details can be found at the studies by Tang et al.

K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

69

(2004). SEDSPEC is an easy to use, interactive web tool to help prevent runoff
and erosion problems and eventually achieve sustainable development of the
environment.

3. Enhancement of the SATEEC GIS system

As stated previously, the prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system is an easy-to-use
sediment assessment tool. However, there is a need to enhance the SATEEC GIS system
and to add new modules to the prototype to facilitate creation of better soil erosion
management plans. The enhancements include such capabilities as assessment of the effects
on the receiving water bodies of sediment retention basins within the watershed, estimation
of the sediment yield from a single storm event, and development of a GIS interface for the
Web-based sediment decision support system for sediment retention basin design.
3.1. Assessment of effects of sediment retention basin on downstream water bodies
A new module to assess the effects of sediment retention basins on downstream
sediment yield was developed and added to the SATEEC GIS system with Avenue
programming. Fig. 2 shows how the enhanced SATEEC system estimates the effects of
sediment retention basins on downstream water bodies. First the SATEEC system
estimates soil loss by multiplying R, K, LS that was calculated from the DEM, C, and P
factor maps together (Map 1 in Fig. 2). The SATEEC estimated soil loss map shows the
soil loss potentials in kg/ha/year. SATEEC provides a bGenerate Stream with User
Specified Threshold ValueQ option to allow users to generate stream maps within the
study area (Map 2 in Fig. 2). This stream map, as well as the soil loss map generated in
previous step, can complement the selection of potential locations for the sediment
retention basin within the study area to estimate the effects of sediment retention basins
on downstream water bodies. Once users select the potential location for a sediment
retention basin, the SATEEC system requests the sediment reduction ratio for the
retention basin. Then, the SATEEC system delineates the subwatershed for the retention
basin to quantify the sediment load contribution (Map 3 in Fig. 2). With the sediment
reduction ratio value, the SATEEC GIS system computes the sediment reduction with the
retention basin for the subwatershed (Map 4 in Fig. 2). SATEEC also estimates soil loss
for the entire study area (Map 5 in Fig. 2). SATEEC then combines maps generated in
steps 4 and 5 (Maps 4 and 5 in Fig. 2) and runs the SDR module to compute the spatially
distributed sediment yield map (Map 6 in Fig. 2). The Map 6 in Fig. 2 shows the
sediment yield map for the entire study area after installing a sediment retention basin.
The difference in the sediment yields before the sediment retention basin (Map 2 in Fig.
2) and after the sediment retention basin (Map 6 in Fig. 2) is computed to provide the
spatial impacts of the sediment retention basin on downstream water bodies (Map 7 in
Fig. 2). It is worth noting that there is no difference in the sediment yield of the tributaries
(white cells on the tributaries, Map 7 in Fig. 2). Thus, the module developed in this study
is useful as a screening tool to locate potential sediment retention basins and estimate
their impacts on downstream water bodies.

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K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

Fig. 2. How SATEEC estimates the effects of sediment retention basins on downstream water bodies.

3.2. Estimation of the sediment yield from a single storm event

In the prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system (Lim et al., 2003), the longterm annual average soil loss is estimated using the USLE. Thus, it cannot be used to
compute the sediment yield from a single storm event. In this study, a new module
was developed to compute the sediment yield for a given rainfall event using the
MUSLE equation. The MUSLE equation estimates the sediment yield with runoff
volume, peak rate of runoff, and the USLE K, LS, C, and P factors (Eq. (2)). The
land use, hydrologic soil group, and Curve Number (CN) lookup table are used to compute
the CN values for all land use and hydrologic soil group combinations within a GIS
(Engel, 1997), and the runoff volume for each CN value is computed for a given rainfall
event. The peak runoff rate is computed using the Rational Method. The runoff coefficient
is estimated by the ratio of the estimated runoff depth to the rainfall depth within a GIS.
The cell value in the runoff coefficient map represents the runoff coefficient for a

K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

71

watershed having that cell as a watershed outlet. The new module first delineates the
subwatershed boundary at a user identified point, and computes sediment yield using the
runoff volume map and peak runoff rate map with K, LS, C, and P factor maps for the
subwatershed.
3.3. Development of GIS interface to the web-based SEDSPEC system
The Web-based SEDSPEC system (http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~sedspec; Tang et al.,
2004) can be used to design hydrologic and erosion control structures. Thus, the GIS
interface to the Web-based SEDSPEC system was developed and integrated with the
SATEEC GIS system to facilitate the input data preparation for sediment retention basin
design with Avenue, Perl CGI, and SQL programming and spatial GIS datasets. This
module allows the user to define the point of interest as a watershed outlet, and it computes
input parameter values for the SEDSPEC system, such as flow length and average slope of
the watershed, unique combination of land use and hydrologic soil group, and area for
each combination for the design of sediment retention basins. Then, it builds the Uniform
Resource Locator (URL) to transfer the input parameter values for the sediment retention
basin to the Web-based SEDSPEC system from the SATEEC GIS system. The input
parameter values from the URL are parsed, and are used to construct the input data for the
Web-based SEDSPEC retention basin module. The SEDSPEC module customized for the
Web based SEDSPEC
Retention Basin
Ba
Module

SATEEC ArcView GIS System

Locate Wate
Watershed
hed O
Outlet

Parse URL from SATEEC G

GIS
http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~sedspec/SATEEC

Delineate Watershed
Water hed
Query SEDSPEC
Relational Database Systems
Compute Flow Length /
Average Slope of the Water
Watershed
hed

Clip Land Use and Soil Data

with Watershed Boundary

Build URL to transfer input parameter

to the Web based SEDSPEC System

Connect to
Web based
SEDSPEC
System

Construct In
Inputt Parameter File
for SEDSPEC Retention Basin

Run SEDSPEC
Retention Basin Module

Retention Basin Dimensions / Cost

/ Maintenance
Mainte
/ Technical Information

[ CLIENT ]

[ SERVER ]

Fig. 3. Interface to the Web-based SEDSPEC from the SATEEC GIS system.

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K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

SATEEC (http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~sedspec/SATEEC) computes all possible sediment retention basin dimensions, and displays adequate storage of runoff and sediment,
cost, maintenance, and technical information in the output interface. Fig. 3 shows how the
SATEEC GIS system can be used to design the sediment retention basin using the Webbased SEDSPEC system.

4. Results
4.1. Enhanced SATEEC GIS system
The SATEEC GIS system was enhanced with additional functions incorporated in the
SATEEC menus to simulate the effects of sediment retention basins in the watershed,
estimate the sediment yield from a single storm event, and provide a GIS interface to the
Web-based SEDSPEC retention basin module. With the enhanced SATEEC GIS system,
users are able to use a watershed specific SDR power function for improved sediment
estimation. The SATEEC ArcView GIS interface is shown in Fig. 4. All functionalities
described in Section 3 were fully automated with ArcView Avenue, Perl CGI, and Oracle
SQL programming. SATEEC Version 1.5 is available in the ArcView GIS project file

Fig. 4. Enhanced SATEEC ArcView GIS interface.

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73

format; however, efforts are underway to create an ArcView Extension to facilitate

installation on desktop computers.
4.2. Application of the enhanced SATEEC GIS system
The enhanced SATEEC GIS system was not compared with measured data for
validation purposes in this study because the USLE has been widely used and validated in
many countries (Lal, 1990; Mati et al., 2000; Moehansyah et al., 2004). Also, the sediment
delivery ratio equation incorporated in the SATEEC system was derived from measured
data from hundreds of watersheds (USDA, 1972; Boyce, 1975; Vanoni, 1975). Instead, the
enhanced SATEEC GIS system was applied to the Sudong watershed, located in
Chuncheon, Korea (Fig. 5), to demonstrate how the new module in SATEEC can be easily
used for effective soil erosion management. The area of the Sudong watershed is 11.2 km2
and the primary land uses are forest, pasture, agricultural land, and residential areas.
Additional details on the watershed are provided by Koo (2002). First, SATEEC is applied
to the study watershed to estimate the effects of a sediment retention basin on the receiving
water bodies. Second, the sediment yield from a single storm event is estimated using the
newly developed module. Third, the enhanced SATEEC GIS system and the Web-based
SEDSPEC system are used to design a sediment basin.
4.2.1. Estimation of soil loss and sediment yield and effects of sediment retention basin on
the receiving water bodies
The SATEEC GIS system was used to calculate the LS factor from the DEM using
the method by Moore and Burch (1986a,b) (Eq. (7)) with the upper bound of slope

Fig. 5. Location of Sudong Watershed, Chuncheon, Korea.

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length provided by users. The value of 464 for Chuncheon is used as a representative R
factor for this area (Koo, 2002). The K factor for each soil type was computed based on the
ratio of sand, silt, and clay content using MUSLE. The C and P factors for the Sudong
watershed were prepared based on land use classifications (Koo, 2002). Detailed
information about these input parameters is discussed in the study by Koo (2002). The
sediment yield maps using three area-based SDR estimation methods (Eqs. (4)(6)) were
computed for subwatersheds in the study watershed (Fig. 6). The SDR values for the
subwatersheds range from 0.24 to 0.45, and the total sediment yields at the outlet of the
watershed range from 7713 ton/year to 14740 ton/year as shown in Fig. 6. The sediment
yield using the USDA SDR method is almost double the amount obtained using the Boyce
SDR method with the same USLE input parameter data sets. As shown here, it is highly
recommended that SATEEC users use the watershed specific SDR method when
comparing the estimated sediment yield with the measured sediment data. The cell values
in the sediment yield map (Fig. 6) represent the total amount of sediment delivered to each
cell. Thus, the SATEEC estimated sediment yield map can be used to find the most
vulnerable reach to sediment loading. Based on the sediment yield map, erosion control

Fig. 6. SATEEC estimated spatially distributed sediment delivery ratio and sediment yield maps (cell values
represent the SDR and sediment yield for watershed having that cell as an outlet).

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75

decision makers can prioritize the most vulnerable upstream areas for effective erosion
control management.
To demonstrate how the sediment retention basin module in the enhanced SATEEC GIS
system can be used to assess the effects of a sediment retention basin installed in an
upstream area of the Sudong watershed, a hypothetical location (marked dBT in Fig. 7) for
the sediment retention basin was selected. A sediment reduction ratio of 50%, indicating
that half of the sediment loading contributed from the upper areas are deposited in the
sediment retention basin and the rest of the sediment leaves the sediment retention basin to
downstream areas, was used for demonstration purposes. The SATEEC estimated
sediment yield with the sediment retention basin is 11,069 ton/year; representing a 906
ton/year decrease in the sediment yield at the outlet (marked dAT in Fig. 7). As shown in
this example, the SATEEC sediment retention module can be used as a screening tool to
estimate the effects of sediment retention basins on receiving water bodies with only a few
clicks of the mouse, because all the procedures, including location of the sediment
retention basin and sediment reduction ratio, are fully automated in the SATEEC GIS
system. Soil, other auxiliary spatial data, and relational data can be used to assist users in
locating sediment retention basins.
4.2.2. Estimation of sediment yield from a single storm event
To demonstrate how the newly developed SATEEC module can be used to estimate
the sediment yield from a single storm event, one subwatershed within the Sudong
watershed was delineated and its area is 1.14 km2. It was assumed that 127 mm (5 in) of
torrential rainfall lasted for an hour. The spatially distributed runoff coefficient map was
computed from the runoff depth generated using a GIS-based CN method (Engel, 1997)
and rainfall depth. The peak runoff map was computed using the Rational Method, and
the sediment yield map was computed using the new module in the SATEEC GIS

Fig. 7. Effect on downstream water bodies of the sediment retention basin.

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system. Instead of using a lumped runoff coefficient for the Rational Method, the
spatially distributed runoff coefficient was computed (Fig. 8). The spatial variations in
the runoff coefficient map are due to the differences in the land uses and hydrologic soil
group. The cell values in the sediment yield map represent the sediment yield for a
watershed having each cell as an outlet. The sediment yield map from the single storm
event can be used to design the dimensions of the sediment retention basin and to
establish sediment management plans.
4.2.3. Design of sediment retention basin using web based SEDSPEC system
To demonstrate how the enhanced SATEEC GIS system can be used to derive the input
parameter data for the Web-based SEDSPEC system, one hypothetical watershed, 0.49
km2 in size, was chosen. The new module determines the total number and area of unique
land use and soil combinations. It also computes the flow length and average slope for a
watershed of interest. The enhanced SATEEC GIS system estimated flow length is 855 m
and the average slope is 49.19% for this watershed. There are two unique land use and soil
combinations in this watershed. In this example, a 10 year return period is selected as
suggested by the SEDSPEC system (Tang et al., 2004). With these data, the SATEEC
module in the SEDSPEC system (http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~sedspec/SATEEC)
computes retention basin dimension as shown in Fig. 9. With several clicks of the mouse
button using the enhanced SATEEC GIS system, users can design the width, length, and
depth of a sediment retention basin, and spillway barrel and riser size.

5. Summary and conclusions

The prototype version of the SATEEC GIS system was enhanced in this study by
adding three new modules. New modules were developed to: 1) simulate the effects of

Fig. 8. Spatially distributed sediment yield from a single storm event (cell values in each map represent the runoff
coefficient, peak rate of runoff and sediment yield for a watershed having that cell as an outlet).

K.J. Lim et al. / Catena 64 (2005) 6180

77

Fig. 9. Retention basin design using SEDSPEC sediment decision support system.

sediment retention basins on the downstream sediment loading, 2) estimate the sediment
yield from a single storm event, and 3) provide a GIS interface to the Web-based
SEDSPEC system for the design of sediment retention basins. These three modules are
fully automated through ArcView Avenue, Perl CGI, Java Script, and SQL programming.
Thus, the SATEEC GIS system does not require experienced GIS users to operate the
system. Soil erosion management plans need to be targeted to the major problem areas

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rather than to the entire region of interest. Thus, this easy-to-use SATEEC GIS system can
be used by soil erosion decision makers to estimate soil loss and sediment yield, to identify
areas vulnerable to soil loss, and to establish efficient erosion control plans with a fully
automated menu driven system.
Although the enhanced SATEEC is an efficient tool for soil erosion management,
SATEEC does not estimate soil loss from gully and channel erosion processes. Thus, it
should not be used for large watersheds if the soil loss from gullies and channels is
dominant. Also only area-based SDR estimation methods are utilized in the enhanced
SATEEC GIS system. Thus, other SDR estimation methods, considering watershed shape,
rainfall pattern, direct runoff, peak runoff, land use, cover crop, particle size, and channel
density, need to be incorporated into the SATEEC GIS system.

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