A. Chappell et al., SOIL FLUX (LOSS AND GAIN) IN SOUTHWESTERN NIGER AND ITS AGRICULTURAL IMPACT, Land degradation & development, 9(4), 1998, pp. 295-310
It is widely believed that wind and water erosion are widespread in th
e Sahel, but there is little evidence either for the rate of soil loss
or for its agricultural impact. In the present study the radionuclide
caesium-137 (Cs-137) was used to make net time-integrated (30-year) m
easurements of soil flux (loss and gain) at a site in southwestern Nig
er. Accelerating soil gains occurred where the surface is protected by
woody vegetation. The source of this material may be secondary entrai
nment of Harmattan dust following the removal of vegetation elsewhere.
The accumulation rate at these sites for the last 30 years was +3.5 /- 0.2 t ha(-1) yr(-1). This compares well with data from monitoring t
he dust in the region over the last 8 years (Drees, et al., 1993). How
ever, the net soil flux for the study area was -48.5 t ha(-1) yr(-1),
which is four times as large as Lal's (1993) estimate for this region.
Point samples in the main agricultural fields have revealed soil loss
es of between 26 t ha(-1) yr(-1) and 46 t ha(-1) yr(-1). Yet when the
agricultural system in these fields is examined, it is found to be so
complex that it is difficult to assess the impact of these rates of lo
ss. (C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.