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Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State,

Nigeria

Article · January 2018

DOI: 10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

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DOI: 10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

& GIS Journal of Remote Sensing & GIS

ISSN: 2469-4134

Research Article Open Access

Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State,

Nigeria
Thlakma SR1*, Iguisi EO 2, Odunze AC3 and Jeb DN4
1Department of Geography, Federal University Kashere, Gombe State, Nigeria
2Department of Geography, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria
3Department of Soil Science, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria
4National Center of Remote Sensing Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria
*Corresponding author: Thlakma SR, Department of Geography, Federal University Kashere, Gombe State, Nigeria, Tel: +234-7039271682; E-mail:
profsrthlakma@gmail.com
Rec date: January 05, 2018; Acc date: January 29, 2018; Pub date: January 30, 2018
Copyright: © 2018 Thlakma SR, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits
unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Abstract

The study aims to estimation soil erosion risk in Mubi South watershed with the aid of RUSLE model and
Geospatial techniques. RUSLE model parameters such as rainfall, soil map, topography map, cover management
and conservation practice factor map were derived. The method employed includes the use of RUSLE model and
Geospatial techniques using ArcGIS 10.3 Software, for analysis and presentation of result. It was found that sandy
soil are the dominant soil of the watershed which covered about 65%, 18% silt and 17% clay. The land use
landcover has about 29% of area covered by agricultural activities, 19% were covered by forest and 25% were not
cultivated and covered by bare land. The study area has about 0.58 to -0.07 normalized difference vegetation index
(NDVI) with majority of the area within the lower topography of 570 m above sea level. The Soil cover management
factor ranges from the higher value of 0.5 to the lower value of 0.01 in the watershed, 15.8 mm to 15.7 mm
occurrences of daily rainfall and 492.34 mm rainfall and runoff covered when rainfall per-day is greater than 15 mm
rainfall. The results of the study also show that average rate of soil detachment is 1 t ha-1 yr-1. The average transport
capacity of overland flow is 1.5 t ha-1 yr-1. Average soil per detachability by raindrop is 69.6 t ha-1 yr-1 total soil
particle detachments is 69.66 t ha-1 yr-1 and average estimated soil erosion of 3.52 t ha-1 yr-1. It is recommended
that other soil erosion model to be applied in the study area for further comparative analysis of soil erosion risk.

Keywords: Soil erosion; Risk; Watershed area; RUSLE; Geospatial negatively impacts on ecology and can lead to reduced crop
techniques productivity, worsened water quality, lower effective reservoir of water
levels, flooding and habitat destruction [9]. In both the past and
Introduction present day, soil erosion is one major and most widespread
environmental threat. Risk assessment of soil erosion caused by water
Soil erosion is a natural process of soil material removal and is indispensable to the creation of effective policies and measures on
transportation through the action of erosive agents such as water, water and soil resource conservation.
wind, gravity, and human disturbance [1-4]. However, if soil erosion is
occurring faster than necessary due to human disturbance, it will cause In Nigeria, World Bank [10] estimated that soil erosion affects over
negative impacts on the environment and e economy [5]. 50 million people and account for loss of resources that amount to US
3000 million dollars per year. For decades, soil erosion has been a
Soil erosion potential risk is determined by all-natural phenomena, major environmental problem in Nigeria [11]. Erosion is the most
which could cause erosion damages [6]. Soil erosion actual risk is the serious natural hazard in Nigeria, affecting several parts of the country.
potential risk plus human induced intensification of the potential risk. It has killed people, destroyed roads, destroyed homes, schools and
The actual erosion and soil erosion risk is determined by all natural farmlands and displaced poor people [12].
and human caused phenomena, which lead to soil erosion [6].
To analyse soil erosion and suggest appropriate management plans,
Soil erosion by water is estimated as the most extensive erosion type Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) Models was selected for
and results from excess surface runoff. The scope of water erosion is this research. Also, RUSLE was chosen in this research over other
influenced by type of soil, slope and land cover [7]. Through the model such as; Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), European
removal of surface soil (including organic matter and nutrients) from Soil Erosion Model (EUROSEM), and Annualized Agricultural Non-
soil mass, effective soil functioning is affected. About one-third of land Point Source (AnnAGNPS) because these models applied worldwide to
used for agriculture at global level has been affected by soil soil loss estimation and their convenience in application and
degradation. Most of this damage was caused by water and wind compatibility with GIS [13-15]. RUSLE models was selected and
erosion [8]. applied in this research because of their simplicity and flexibility in use
In twenty-first century, soil erosion by water has become a as compared to other models and needs less data than most of the
worldwide issue because of progressive decrease in the ratio between other erosion estimation models. Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation
natural resources and population and to climate change. Soil erosion Models is easy in integration with GIS and their performance at a

J Remote Sensing & GIS, an open access journal Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000226
ISSN: 2469-4134
Citation: Thlakma SR, Iguisi EO, Odunze AC, Jeb DN (2018) Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
J Remote Sensing & GIS 7: 226. doi:10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

Page 2 of 10

watershed/catchment level in Mubi South is not yet known to the best measurements, are readily available [17]. Mapping through
of the researcher’s knowledge; hence, need to apply two models in this conventional methods demand intensive data collection, which is often
study in order to estimate soil erosion in Mubi South Local difficult to practice in complex terrains [17]. The Geographic
Government Area of Adamawa State, Nigeria with the aid of geospatial Information System (GIS) techniques can provide easy and time
technology. effective tools to map and analyze erosion input data of hydrophysical
parameters [17].
Statement of Research Problems
Aim and Objectives
Soil erosion and related degradation of land resources are highly
significant spatio-temporal phenomena in many countries [14]. Soil The aim of this study is to estimate soil erosion risk in Mubi South
problems have become a threat to sustainable agricultural production watershed area with the aid of RUSLE models and Geospatial
and water quality. In many regions, unchecked soil erosion and techniques.
associated land degradation have made vast areas economically
unproductive. Often, a quantitative assessment is needed to infer The Scope of the Study
extent and magnitude of soil erosion risk so that effective management
strategies can be resorted to. The complexities of variables make On the basis of spatial extent, the research was carried out in Mubi
precise estimation or prediction of soil erosion difficult. south watershed area, Adamawa State and focused on analysis of soil
erosion risk using Revised MMF and RUSLE model with GIS
Soil erosion of various types and extent are also found in various techniques. The watershed area consists of the following fourteen (14)
parts of Adamawa state but most especially where man’s activities have villages and Local Government Headquarters, namely: Sebbore, Gude,
stripped off vegetation that normally holds and protects the soil. In Gudere, Wafa, Chaba, Masuwa, Lunguwa, Gyakwar, Wuro Babbowa,
Adamawa state, researches have shown that the different causes of soil Gavayi, Gella 2DH, Gella, Giranburum and Uro Gella which is the
erosion sprang from human activities for various purposes such as; Local Government Headquarters of Mubi South. On content, 80 soil
intensive cultivation, over grazing, bush burning and deforestation. samples were collected in July 2016 and coordinates of the sample
These are the principal determinants of variation in types and intensity points were derived using grid system in GIS software environment.
of soil erosion and Mubi Local Government Area is not exceptional The parameters used as input data were collected from different
like any other part of Adamawa State [16]. sources such parameters such as rainfall, soil map, topography map,
Previous studies have been conducted within and outside the study cover management and conservation practice factor map were derived.
area. Tekwa et al. [16] conducted a research titled “estimation of The research covered soil erosion data as at July 2016.
monthly soil loss from ephemeral gully erosion features in some parts
of Mubi North and Mubi South, LGA of Adamawa State, Northeastern The Study Area
Nigeria”. They found that soil aggregate particles in the study area were
mainly sandy; with silt content range of 18-25% and clay contents in Location and description of the study area
the range of 19-26% that did not differ significantly among selected
sites. Organic matter content was low. The monthly area of soil loss Mubi south Local Government Area is located in Northeast Nigeria
ranges from 1.5 to 143 m2, and volume of soil loss was 0.4 to 131 m3, between latitudes 10°4′30”N-10°15′0”N, and Longitudes
that were significantly higher in the months of August and September 13°20′E0”-13°27′0”E of the Greenwich Meridian. The study catchment
than in the months of June, July and October. Ephemeral gully erosion area covered about 148.43 km2 (sq km).
rates for Muvur and Digil sites were greater than at other sites. The
monthly rates of ephemeral gully erosion ranged from 35 to 132 m3,
and 15 to 79 m3 in terms of surface area and volume of soil loss
respectively. The soil loss rates thereafter decreased from 18 m2 to 5 m2
and 11 m2 to 2 m2 in terms of surface area and volume of soil loss
respectively. The researcher recommended that future researches
should consider developing empirical soil loss predictor model (s) for
Mubi and environs. The researches concentrated on only gully erosion
for selected sites and concentrated mainly on their chemical properties.
Also, the authors took soil samples only in gully areas and did not
employ GIS techniques to estimate and predict spatial distribution of
soil erosion risk.
Interest in soil erosion risk was triggered by a growing awareness of
off-site impacts of soil erosion. These impacts are predominantly
associated with movement of eroded soil, sediment particles and
changes in water flows (both through and across the soil). The off-site
problems are often more evident and include loading and
sedimentation of water courses and reservoirs, increases in stream Figure 1: Map of the Study Area. Source: Modified from the
turbidity; all of which can disturb aquatic ecosystems and upset the Administrative Map of Adamawa State and field Survey (2015).
geomorphological functioning of river systems.
To reduce such limitations; geostatistic techniques that interpolate
data for an entire catchment from appropriately sampled point

J Remote Sensing & GIS, an open access journal Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000226
ISSN: 2469-4134
Citation: Thlakma SR, Iguisi EO, Odunze AC, Jeb DN (2018) Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
J Remote Sensing & GIS 7: 226. doi:10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

Page 3 of 10

The study area is bordered by Lamurde from North-East, Gella The dominant land uses in the study area are; agricultural land,
Local Government Area to the East, Wuro Bobbowa and Girgi in the forestry/vegetation, water body, built up area and bare land. Moreover,
South-West. The map and location of study area is show on Figure 1. the town has become center of learning with numerous tertiary and
secondary institutions established in the metropolis.
The climate of the study area is typical of the West African Savanna
climate. Temperature in this climatic region is high because of the The study area has a total projected population of 126,378 people
radiation income, which is relatively evenly distributed. However, there (National Population Census) in 2015. The growth of Mubi town is
is usually a seasonal change in the temperature. There is gradual traced to agricultural, administrative, and commercial functions it
increase in temperature from January to April. There is also a distinct performs.
drop in temperature at the onset of rains due to the effect of cloudiness.
A slight increase after the cessation of rain (October to November) is Methodology
common before the onset of harmattan in December the temperature
in Yola reach 40°C particularly in April and while minimum
Reconnaissance survey
temperature can be as low as 18°C in the south to 27.8°C in the
northeastern part in December [18]. Rainfall Erosivity ranges between Reconnaissance survey was carried out by the researcher to get
481 m to 192 m with about 15.5 mm to 15.8 mm rainfall per day and acquainted with the study area in terms of selections of coordinate
4.5 m to 4.6 m rate of potential evapotranspiration. location points, choice for major land use classes, ground thruthing
and major crop types selected for the study.
The area is characterized by a typical tropical wet (April-October)
and dry (November-March) climate with a mean annual rainfall
ranging from 700 mm to 1,050 mm [19]. The vegetation is a typical Type and sources of data used
Sudan savanna with short grasses interspersed with shrubs and few The types and sources of data used for this research are summarized
trees [19,20]. in Table 1.
The study area is usually characterized by orchard-type vegetation
S.No Types of Data Sources of Uses
due to its limitation in inherent fertility [21]. The major vegetation Data
formations in the State are the Southern Guinea Savannah, Northern
Guinea Savannah, and the Sudan Savannah. Within each formation is 1 Landsat thematic mapper of Download from Input Parameter for
an interspersion of thickets, tress savannah, Open grass savannah and 2016 with 30 m resolution GLCF web the Model as land
use type
fringing forest in the river valleys. It is however necessary to note that
large scale deforestation resulting from indiscrimination extraction of 2 ASTER Image (DEM) Download from Input Parameter for
wood for fuel and expansion of agricultural land areas have left large (Advanced Spaceborne GLCF web RUSLE Model
Thermal Emission and
area within each vegetation type with few indigenous woody plant
Reflection Radiometer)
species. Most areas especially those close to settlements are covered
with exotic species such as the neem and eucalyptus trees. 3 Rainfall data Geography Input Parameter for
department the RUSLE Model
Soils of the study area belong to the order lithosols [19,20]. Lithosols ADSU Mubi
constitute one of the upper categories of FAO/UNESCO soil
classification system [22]. They refer to soils with rock-basements 4 Soil texture (Particle size Laboratory Input Parameter for
distribution) determination the RMMF Model
within shallow depths from the soil surface and this implies
shallowness and stoniness of the surface soil depths. Arenosols and 5 Crop types cover Field survey Input Parameter for
Regosols: There are relatively young soils or soils with very little or no RUSLE Model
profile developments, or very homogenous sands, are grouped
6 Vegetation cover Landsat imagery vegetation cover
together. These are found on mountain sites within the 213 and 232 of 2015 in conditions for
units. On these types of soils, weathering is slight and involves no ArcGIS 10.3 RUSLE
accumulation of the products of weathering. The B horizon may not be
7 Slope steepness From ASTER Input Parameter for
very clear and reddish in colour, while the original carbon content is image RUSLE Model
most of the time leached out. The study area has soil moisture 0.072%,
bulk density of 1.63 Mgm-3, 2.33 gkg-1 soil particle densities, 6.66 gkg-1
organic carbon, 0.68 mm of soil porosity and 11.46 gkg-1 organic Table 1: Types, Sources and Used of Data. Source: Adopted from Iguisi.
matter.
Input parameters for the RUSLE model
Geology of the area consists of Precambrian Basement rocks, while
parent material of the soil is undifferentiated Basement Complex, The Input Parameters used for the RUSLE Model were presented on
represented by migmatite-gneisses, schists, quartzites aplite, medium Table 2.
and coarse-grained granites, pegmatite, diorite, and amphibolites [19].

Factor Parameter Definition and remarks

Rainfall R Rainfall-runoff erosivity factor (MJ.mm/ ha.hr.year) [24].

Soil K Soil texture/ erodibility in ton.ha.hr/ (MJ.mm.ha) [25].

J Remote Sensing & GIS, an open access journal Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000226
ISSN: 2469-4134
Citation: Thlakma SR, Iguisi EO, Odunze AC, Jeb DN (2018) Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
J Remote Sensing & GIS 7: 226. doi:10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

Page 4 of 10

Topographic LS Slope length and slope steepness (m) [26,27].

Cover management C Ratio of soil loss from land cropped under specific conditions to the corresponding loss from clean-tilled,
continuous fallow conditions [30].

Conservation practice P Soil conservation operations or other measures that control the erosion. The values of P-factor ranges from
0 to 1 [33].

Table 2: Inputs Parameters for RUSLE. Source: Compiled by the Author.

Deriving Inputs of RUSLE Model: The RUSLE Model equation is a slope steepness was computed from the DEM using ArcGIS Spatial
function of five input factors in raster data format: rainfall erosivity, analyst.
soil erodability, slope length and steepness, cover management and
support practice. These factors vary over space and time and depend ���� ���� 0.4 ��� ����� 1.3
�� = ���� ������������ × 22.13
× 0.0896
(3)
on other input variables. Therefore, soil erosion within each pixel was
estimated with the RUSLE. The RUSLE method is expressed as: Where flow accumulation denotes the accumulated upslope
contributing area for a given cell, LS=combined slope length and slope
� = � × � × �� × � × � (1) steepness factor, cell size=size of grid cell (for this study 30 m) and sin
where A is the computed spatial average of soil loss over a period slope=slope degree value in sin.
selected for R, usually on yearly basis (t ha−1 y-1); R is the rainfall-
Cover management factor (C): The C-factor represents effect of soil-
runoff erosivity factor (MJ mm t ha−1 y−1); K is the soil erodability
Cover management factor (C). The C-factor represents effect of soil-
factor (t ha−1 y−1MJ−1 mm−1); LS is the slope length steepness factor
disturbing activities, plants, crop sequence and productivity level, soil
(dimensionless); C is the cover management factor (dimensionless,
cover and subsurface bio-mass on soil erosion. Due to the variety of
ranging between 0 and 1.5); and P is the erosion control (conservation
land cover patterns with spatial and temporal variations, satellite
support) practices factor (dimensionless, ranging between 0 and 1).
remote sensing data sets were used for the assessment of C-factor
Rainfall erosivity (R): The rainfall factor, an index unit, is a measure [28,29]. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), an
of the erosive force of a specific rainfall. This was determined as a indicator of the vegetation vigor and health was used along with the
function of the volume, intensity and duration of rainfall and can be following formula (eq. 4) to generate C-factor value image for the
computed from a single storm, or a series of storms to include study area [13,30].
cumulative erosivity from any time period. Raindrop/splash erosion is
����
the dominant type of erosion in barren soil surfaces. Rainfall data of 11 � = exp −� (� − ����) (4)
years (2004 to 2015) collected from Department of Geography
Meteorological unit Adamawa State University Mubi was used for Where a and b are unitless parameters that determine shape of the
calculating R-factor using the following relationship developed by curve relating to NDVI and the C-factor. VanderKnijff et al. found that
Wischmeier and Smith [23] and modified by Arnoldus [24]: this scaling approach gave better results than assuming a linear
relationship and values of 2 and 1 were selected for parameters a and b,
�2 respectively. This equation was applied for assessing C-factor of areas
�
1.5log10
�
− 0.08188 with similar terrain and climatic conditions [31,32].
�= ∑12
� = 1 1.735 × 10 (2) Conservation practice factor (P): The support practice factor (P-
factor) is the soil-loss ratio with a specific support practice to the
Soil Erodability Factor (K): Different soil types are naturally corresponding soil loss with up and down slope tillage [33]. In this
resistant and susceptible to more erosion than other soils and is a study, the P-factor map was derived from the land use/land cover and
function of grain size, drainage potential, structural integrity, organic support factors. The values of P-factor ranges from 0 to 1, in which the
matter content and cohesiveness. Erodability of soil is its resistance to highest value is assigned to areas with no conservation practices
both detachment and transport. Soil texture map of the study area was (deciduous forest); the minimum values correspond to built-up-land
used for the preparation of K factor map and soil types were grouped and plantation area with strip and contour cropping. The lower the P
into major textural classes. The corresponding K values for soil types value, the more effective the conservation practices.
were identified from soil erodability nomograph [25] by considering
particle size, organic matter and permeability class.
Image processing
Slope length and steepness factor (LS): Length and steepness of a
The Satellite image of the study area was corrected geometrically to
slope affects total sediment yield from the site and is accounted by the
remove distortions and subsequently enhanced to improve visual
LS-factor in RUSLE model. In addition to steepness and length, other
interpretation. This followed by classification into different land use
factors; such as compaction, consolidation and disturbance of the soil
types. Supervised classification was employed because of its high
were also being considered while generating LS-factor. Erosion
accuracy and the researcher’s knowledge of the training areas. Ten
increases with slope steepness but, in contrast to L-factor representing
coordinates location for each land use class were collected with the aid
effects of slope length. The combined LS-factor was computed for the
of GPS during ground thruthing. This was done to aid supervised
watershed by means of ArcGIS Spatial analyst extension using DEM, as
classification. This is to identify sets of pixels that accurately represent
proposed by Moore and Burch [26,27]. The flow accumulation and
spectral variation present within each information region. The datasets
was classified into classes of water body, vegetation, dare land, built-up

J Remote Sensing & GIS, an open access journal Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000226
ISSN: 2469-4134
Citation: Thlakma SR, Iguisi EO, Odunze AC, Jeb DN (2018) Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
J Remote Sensing & GIS 7: 226. doi:10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

Page 5 of 10

area and Agriculture. These are adopted from Anderson, Hardy, Roach, soil erosion of an area. The spatial distribution of land use of Mubi
and Witner [34], to suit the study area. South watershed is show in Figure 2 and Table 3 shows the land
covered.
Techniques of data analysis Land uses land cover within the watershed: Figure 2 shown that
The stated objectives were achieved through the following: Mubi South watershed is dominantly covered by Agricultural activities
with agricultural land constituting about 28% of the area, followed by
Estimate soil loss in the catchment area: This was done using spatial bare land with about 25% of the land covered. Figure 2 show that built
distribution of the rate of soil detachment by rain drop (F) and spatial up area covered about 10% of land use whereas water bodies covered
data layers such as unchanneled and channeled flows (erosion) were 17% of the land in the study area. Also, forest covered about 19% of the
input to RUSLE model in ArcGIS 10.3 software environment and study area. On the basis of the analysis, it can be inferred that Mubi
predicted annual pixel level soil loss using Equation 1. South is a dominant agricultural area with most of the forest cleared
� = � × � × �� × � × � (1) and cultivated as on agrarian land (Figure 2). Also, it was observed that
there was a higher rainfall in the study area.
Average annual soil loss of various land use/land cover types was
estimated and analyzed to understand causes of erosion in the
Landuse, landcover in the watershed
watershed in context to spatial distribution of erosion factors together
with RUSLE Model. Table 3 presents result of land use land cover of the study area. The
land uses were categorized based on five Major land uses in the study
Results and Discussion area, which were: Agricultural land, forestry, water body, built up and
bare land.
Spatial distribution of land morphological factors As shown in Table 3, about 29% of the watershed was covered by
agricultural activities, 19% was covered by forest, and 25% was not
S.No Land use type Area Sqkm Percentage% cultivated and covered by bare land while 17% was covered by built up
areas and 10% by water bodies. From the result it was inferred that
1 Agriculture 42.32 28.60%
major land use of the watershed was agricultural activities. However,
2 Forestry/Vegetation 28.05 19.00% most to be area was also covered by bare land where no agricultural
activities are taking place neither covered by forest.
3 Water body 14.72 10.00%
The Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI): The
4 Built up Area 25.3 17.10% Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is an indicator of
5 Bareland 37.33 25.30%
vegetation vigor and health used in determining cover management
factor (c), which represents effect of soil disturbing activities, plants,
Total 147.72 100 crop sequence and productivity level, soil cover and subsurface
biomass on soil erosion risk. Figure 3 shows spatial distribution of
Table 3: Landuse Landcover of the study area. Source: Author’s NDVI in the study area.
Analysis.

Figure 3: NDVI within the Watershed. Source: Author’s Analysis.

Figure 2: Land Used with the Watershed. Source: Author’s Analysis.

It reveals that majority of the watershed area was covered by higher

Land morphological factors are those features which are considered NDVI, which was about 0.58 with a lower value of -0.07. These show
to be important determinant factors in soil development and also affect that the target area being observed contains live green vegetation at the

J Remote Sensing & GIS, an open access journal Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000226
ISSN: 2469-4134
Citation: Thlakma SR, Iguisi EO, Odunze AC, Jeb DN (2018) Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
J Remote Sensing & GIS 7: 226. doi:10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

Page 6 of 10

ground cover. Yellow colour on Figure 4 represents bare soil which Luvisols, Regosols and Arenosols. Luvisols constitute about 30%
reflects moderately in both the red and infrared portion of the Regosols 35% and Aresonols 35% respectively.
electromagnetic spectrum as supported by Holme et al. [35].
The Luvisol was in pediplain of the watershed, which has about 570
This study noted that the study area has dense vegetation because m above sea level as shown in Figure 5, along sabbore, Gyakwa, Wuro
the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) takes value Babbwa, Gavayi and some part of Gude town of the study area.
between -1 and 1, with values 0.5 indicating dense vegetation and value Lowland and low vegetation in the study area resulted to the presence
less than 0 indicating no vegetation as shown in Figure 3. Symeonakis of Luvisols in the watershed. Also, Regosol and Arenosol were located
and Drake [36], and Tateishi et al. [37] studies were compared using between mixed vegetation in the study area and also agricultural areas.
satellite imagery to produce maps of vegetation-related variables for
The movement of soil detachability from highland area contributed
soil erosion and found out that the normalized difference vegetation
to the presence of Regosol and Arenoso, because nature of topography,
index (NDVI) was the most useful in estimating soil erosion.
time climate and vegetation types plays a major role on soil formation
Digital elevation model: The digital elevation model contains and Mubi south watershed area is not exception from the factors.
information derived from long-track, 15 m ASTER optical data Dominant soil groups of the study area are shown in Appendix III as
acquired in near infrared bands 3N and 3B. The topographic data used well as their sequence, dominant soil, association and inclusion
to derive slope and slope aspect are basic to all aspect of land surface. supported by FAO [39]. The soil group of study area is further divided
The DEM of Mubi South watershed is shown on Figure 4. into soil types.
From Figure 4, it was inferred that spatial distribution of DEM in
the study area ranges from higher value of about 1261 m lower value of
about 570 m respectively. Figure 4 shows that majority of the study
area has was within the lower topography of 570 m above sea level and
also all settlements of the study area were located within the lower
topography with the exception of Giranburum town which is located
in higher elevation area. The evidence of higher elevation of about
1261 m is the Mandara Mountain which serves as a border between
Nigeria and Cameroon.

Figure 5: Soil within the Watershed. Source: Author’s Analysis.

Spatial distribution of factors used in assessing Revise

Universal Soil Lost Model (RUSLE)
In order to assess spatial distribution of RUSLE, five factors were
chosen based on the model which served as input in the equation for
assessment of soil loss in the watershed area.
Amongst factors used are: cover management factor (factor), soil
erodibility factor (k-factor), slope length and steepness factor (Ls-
Figure 4: DEM within the Watershed. Source: Author’s Analysis. factor), conservation practice factor (p-factor) and Rainfall erosivity
(R-factor). All the factors were derived from land morphological
factors; except rainfall factor. That asserts the need for assessment of
The area covered by high elevation or mountainous area has mixed morphological factors for watershed of the study area for proper
up vegetation as shown in Figure 2 and this attributted agricultural analysis and assessment of soil erosion risk in the study area. The factor
activities taking place in the area and people from the communities maps result obtained from analysis is presented in Figures 6-10.
engaged on deforestation in the area for domestic fuel and selling them
to solve their financial problems as it were. Cover management factor: The result of cover management factor
(c-factor) is presented in Figure 6 to show spatial distribution of cover
Soil of mubi south: Soil of the Mubi South watershed is shown in management factor that range from higher value of 0.5 to lower value
Figure 5. The soil map was produced for the soil sample collected from of 0.01 in the watershed.
the study area during field work. Laboratory analysis was conducted,
and the result obtained from the laboratory was used as basis for
producing soil map of the study area and compared with FAO [38]
global soil data result. From Figure 5, it was observed that there are
three dominant soil classes in the study area which comprised of

J Remote Sensing & GIS, an open access journal Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000226
ISSN: 2469-4134
Citation: Thlakma SR, Iguisi EO, Odunze AC, Jeb DN (2018) Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
J Remote Sensing & GIS 7: 226. doi:10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

Page 7 of 10

The findings of soil erodibility factor range in value from 0.02 to

0.69 and support Goldman et al. [40] and Mitchell and Bubenzer. This
result shows that there was lower permeability in Southeast;
moderately in Southwest and higher at the Northern part of the
watershed. This was as result of soil type, land use and hill shed of the
area which show vidence of resistance of soil to detachment by rainfall
impact and surface flow. Research Toy et al. [41] shows that soil with
larger sand and silt properties are more vulnerable to water erosion
due to lack of stability of the soil particle. Soil texture with large
particles are resistant to transport because of the greater force required
to entrain them and fine particles are resistant to detachment because
of their cohesiveness. The least resistant particles are silts and fine
sands. Thus, soils with silt content above 40 percent are highly erodible
[42].
Slope length and steepness (Ls-factor): Slope length and steepness
factor represent effect of slope length on soil erosion. The slope length
Figure 6: Cover Management Factor (C-Factor). Source: Author’s is the ratio of soil loss from field slope length and soil loss increase
Analysis. more rapidly with slope steepness than it does with slope length. The
Ls-factor result of the area is presented on Figure 8.

Result of Figure 6 was due to land use covered within watershed

which shows that most of the vegetation and agricultural activities
were around the river. There is an intersection of low and high cover
management practices in the study area. High cover management
factor was observed around mountainous area of the watershed. This
finding shows that land use slope and hill shade plays vital role in
determining cover management practices in an area.
Soil erodibility factor: Result of soil erodibility of the watershed is
shown in Figure 7. The soil erodibility factor (k-factor) measures
susceptibility of soil particle to detachment and transport by rain or
runoff [40].

Figure 8: Slope Length and Steepness (LS-Factor). Source: Author’s

Analysis.

From Figure 8, the result of Ls-factor shows even distribution of

slope steepness along each watershed. Research by Tay et al. [43] shows
susceptibility of soil to water erosion depends on soil length and is
more prevalent in sloping area [44]. Also, the result of these studies
suggests a curvilinear relationship between soil loss and slope
steepness, with erosion initially increasing rapidly as slope increases
from gentle to moderate, reaching a maximum on slopes of about 7°
Figure 7: Soil Erodibility Factor (K-Factor). Source: Author’s and then decreasing with further increases in slope. Such a relationship
Analysis. would apply only to erosion by rainsplash/sheet and surface runoff. It
would not apply to landslides, piping or gully erosion by pipe collapse.
From Figure 7, it was inferred that soil erodibility factor reveals that Again, studies of Toy et al. [41] show that slope length has effect on
different soils erode at different rates. For example, comparing this soil loss for steep slope. Also reported that greater sensitive of slope
result with soil map on Figure 5, it was observed rate of soil erodability had effects on soil loss due to differences in rainfall. Areas having
in heigher (0.69) around areas having Arenosol. Also, Arenosol had about 7.39 m length of cell slope length and steepness in the watershed
highest clay content and lower silt content in the study area. Luvisol as show on Figure 8, will have greater soil loss as supported by Toy et
had moderate (0.4) erodibility factor and characterized with al. [41], than those areas having 3 m and 0 m length of cell slope length
moderately clay and silt content and sandy soil deposit. respectively.

J Remote Sensing & GIS, an open access journal Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000226
ISSN: 2469-4134
Citation: Thlakma SR, Iguisi EO, Odunze AC, Jeb DN (2018) Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
J Remote Sensing & GIS 7: 226. doi:10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

Page 8 of 10

Conservation practice factor (P-factor) within the watershed: factors supported in the watershed was contouring and contourstrip
Conservation practice (p-factor) is the support practice factor. Reflect cropping with the value ranges between (0.350-0.600).
effect of practices that will reduced amount and rate of water runoff;
Rainfall erosivity (R-factor): Rainfall erosivity is a measure of the
hence reduce the amount of erosion [33].
erosive force of a specific rainfall. Rainfall is the main climatic
characteristics that influence soil erosion; given the extraordinary
importance of soil detachment process due to drop impact and runoff
shear [23]. Rainfall erosivity map of the watershed is shown on Figure
10.
As shown in Figure 10, spatial distribution of rainfall map of the
watershed indicates that it ranges between 481 m to 192 m. It also
shows that the rainfall is higher towards northwest of the watershed
and the area of higher rainfall were in the mountainous area of the
watershed along Masuma and Lumgura which shares boundary with
the Republic of Cameroon.
The spatial distribution of five factors map produced were used as
input for derivating GIS-based RUSLE and also served as input for
some of the RMMF model. These analyses explored the importance of
GIS and remote sensing in integrating both spatial and non-spatial
data/information; hence the needs for the technique in assessing and
analyzing spatial distribution of soil erosion data. Results obtained
were used as input in estimating rate of soil erosion in objective four of
this study.
Figure 9: Conservation Practice Factor (P-factor). Source: Author’s
Analysis. Estimated spatial distribution of soil loss risk in the
watershed area
The result of the estimated spatial distribution of soil loss in the
The p-factor represents ratio of soil loss by a support practice to that
study area is presented in Figure 11.
of straight-row farming up to down the slope. The result of the p-factor
for the watershed is presented in Figure 9. Figure 11 indicates that soil erosion loss in the watershed area was
3.5 t h-1 yr-1 as at the time of this research. It was observed that higher
As shown in Figure 9, areas which shows the spatial distribution
soil loss was obtained were crop cover management is high; with about
value of 1 from the legend show no conservation practice (deciduous
4.5 rate of potential evapotranspiration and between 0.08 to 0.24 high
forest) while the minimum value of 0.55 corresponds to built-up with
soil moisture. It was also observed that soil loss was high between 15.8
strip and contour cropping as supported by Renard et al. [33]. The
mm to 15.7 mm high to medium occurrences of daily rainfall.
lower the p-value (0.55) as in the watershed, the more effective is
conservation practice in the study area.

Figure 11: Estimated Soil Erosion Using RUSLE. Source: Author’s

Figure 10: R-Factor. Source: Author’s Analysis. Analysis.

Also, result of the practice correspond to nature and land use Also, it was noticed that area with high soil loss was observed within
landcover map of the watershed. The result also proves that practice low soil porosity area, except around Sebbore which was located in an

J Remote Sensing & GIS, an open access journal Volume 7 • Issue 1 • 1000226
ISSN: 2469-4134
Citation: Thlakma SR, Iguisi EO, Odunze AC, Jeb DN (2018) Estimation of Soil Erosion Risk in Mubi South Watershed, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
J Remote Sensing & GIS 7: 226. doi:10.4172/2469-4134.1000226

Page 9 of 10

area of high porosity with lower slope steepness length mostly having 7. Verheijen F, Jones R, Rickson R, Smith C (2009) Tolerable versus actual
low to moderate silt content (52.8 to 223.9) with 1.4 Mgm-3 to 1.6 soil erosion rates in Europe. Earth Science Review 94: 23-38.
Mgm-3 bulk density. 8. Braimoh A, Vlek P (2008) Land use and soil resources. Springer Verlag,
Netherlands, pp: 1-7.
9. Park S, Oh C, Jeon S, Jung H, Choi C (2011) Soil erosion risk in Korean
Contributions to Knowledge watersheds, assessed using the revised universal soil loss equation.
The outcome of this research provides blueprint showing that Journal of Hydrology 399: 263-273.
estimated spatial distribution of soil loss in Mubi South indicated high 10. World Bank (1990) Towards the Development of An Environmental
Action Plan for Nigeria. West Africa Department.
soil erosion loss of 3.5 t h-1 yr-1 in the watershed.
11. Olofin EA (1994) The application of SLEMSA in Estimating Soil Erosion
Results of this study serve as a document that can help town and issues of Productivity in the drylands of Nigeria. Paper presented at
planners, road construction planners, engineers and site constructors the 37th Annual Conference of the NGA, Ikere Ekiti.
to design urban land use plan that are less vulnerable to erosion. 12. Federal Republic of Nigeria (2007) Population Census 2006 Official
Gazette. Abuja, Nigeria.
Conclusion 13. Kouli M, Soupios P, Vallianatos F (2009) Soil erosion prediction using the
Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in a GIS framework,
Studies had shown that recent global land degradation caused by Chania, Northwestern Crete, Greece. Environmental Geology 57:
increase in soil erosion risk lead to land degradation and in Mubi 483-497.
South Watershed and Nigeria are not exceptions of degradation. 14. Pandey A, Mathur A, Mishra SK, Mal BC (2009) Soil erosion modeling of
a Himalayan watershed using RS and GIS. Environmental Earth Sciences
Remote sensing data and GIS successfully enabled rapid, as well as
59: 399-410.
detailed assessment of estimating soil erosion and show spatial
distributions of soil erosion related factors and features. 15. Bonilla CA, Reyes JL, Magri A (2010) Water erosion prediction using the
Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) in a GIS framework,
central Chile. Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research 70: 159-169.
Recommendations 16. Tekwa IJ, Laflen JM, Yusuf Z (2014) Estimation of Monthly Soil Loss from
Ephemeral Gully Erosion Features in Mubi, Semi-arid Northeastern
Reduced on-site impacts of soil erosion: Vegetative buffers (trees, Nigeria. Agricultural Science Research Journal 4: 51-58.
understory, and ground cover) combat soil erosion as they protect the 17. Tesfahunegn GB, Tamene L, Vlek PLG (2011) Catchment scale spatial
soil from erosion processes, allow greater infiltration of water and trap variability of soil properties and implications on site-specific soil
sediment entering from cultivated areas. Appropriately designed management in northern Ethiopia. Soil and Tillage Research 117:
windbreaks can also significantly reduce soil loss from fields by 124-139.
reducing wind velocity as recommended by Salah et al. [45]. 18. Adebayo AA, Tukur AL (1999) Adamawa State in Maps. 1st edn.
Paraclete Publishers, Yola, Nigeria, p: 8.
Recommendation for Further Research 19. Adebayo AA (2004) Mubi Region: A geographical synthesis. 1st edn,
Paraclete Publishers, Yola, Nigeria, pp: 32-38.
• This present research did not measure the area coverage of 20. Tekwa IJ, Usman BH (2006) Estimation of soil loss by gully erosion in
individual soil erosion types; hence, the need for further research Mubi Adamawa State, Nigeria. Journal of the Environment 1: 35-43
to measure the magnitude of all forms of soil erosion. 21. Nwaka GC, Alhassan AB, Kunduri AM (1999) A study of soils derived
• It is also recommended for research like this to be conducted in from Basalt in North Eastern, Nigeria 11. Physico-chemical
characteristics and fertility status. Journal of Arid Agriculture 9: 89-98.
Mubi North Local Government because it was confirmed during
field work that the area is also experiencing soil erosion and there 22. Aduayi EA, Chude VO, Adebusuyi BA, Olayiwola SO (2002) Fertilizer use
and Management Practices for Crops in Nigeria. 3rd edn, Federal
are the needs to know the areas vulnerable to soil erosion risk for Ferti1izer Department, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
proper conservation practices, planning and management. Development, Garko International Limited, Abuja, Nigeria.
23. Wischmeier WH, Smith DD (1978) Predicting Rainfall Erosion Losses: A
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