Assessing Soil Erosion Risk using Application and Field Evaluation of the ICONA Model in the Costal Sourak Watershed in Hormozgan Province, Iran

Today, soil erosion has become one of the most severe problems in the world, especially in arid and semi-arid regions, affecting environmental, agricultural, and food security. The growth and development of human activities, land-use change, and resource degradation are among the factors affecting erosion intensity. However, preventive approaches based on soil erosion risk assessment have received less attention to taking proper management measures. Due to the importance of preventive measures and soil erosion control, this study was conducted in the costal Sourak Watershed in Hormozgan Province using the ICONA model to investigate erosion risk and identify erosion-sensitive areas.

The information input layers of steepness, rock surfaces and land- use are overlapped for the employ of this model in the study watershed. Soil erodibility risk map was also developed using complying soil erodibility and soil conservation maps.

The results, besides prioritizing sub-watersheds, portrayed the erosion risk at different levels of very low, low, moderate, high, and very high with relative area extension of less than one percent, 31.08, 23.28, 12.01, and 28.67%, respectively.

The findings of the current research, in addition to confirming the ability of the applied model to estimate the risk of soil erosion in the study watershed, emphasized the possibility of using the erosion risk map as a suitable tool for managers and executive experts in the effective management of water and soil in the region.