Changes in runoff and erosion as a consequence of land-use changes in the Central Spanish Pyrenees

Abstract

Both in small experimental plots and in the "Aísa Valley Experimental Station" (Central Spanish Pyrenees), the role of different land-uses in explaining runoff and sediment yield is being studied in closed, experimental plots. In these plots, continuous information on overland flow and suspended and solute sediment concentration is obtained. Results suggest that cereal cultivation in steep slopes encourages soil erosion, especially under non-conservative systems. The passage of cereals into meadows represents an improvement of the hydrological functioning, which reaches its most positive values with colonization by a dense shrub cover.