The Spatial Distribution of Soil Loss in Alakir Creek Basin (Antalya) and Factors Influential on It

Soil erosion, which is caused by water, is one of the most important environmental problems of Turkey. It increases every day as a result of the unconscious activities of people. This study aims to reveal soil loss in Alakir Creek basin and highlight the factors influential on differences between areas in terms of soil loss. GIS (Geographic Information Systems) based RUSLE (Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation) method was employed in the study. Various materials obtained from different resources were used. The obtained findings were evaluated via one-way analysis of variance and simple binary correlation. It was concluded that the basin has an average annual soil loss of 5.26 t ha(-1) y(-1). This is a significant finding because this value is below Turkey's average (6.14 t ha(-1) y(-1)). On the other hand, it was found that very low (Risk 1) erosion risk is effective in most of the basin area (61.9%). Also, the statistical analysis results indicated that a significant difference and a positive (+) relationship exist between the erosion risk in the basin and the variables. Certain measures should be taken to prevent or minimize erosion across the basin. In this context, firstly the current erosion areas should be announced as erosion control areas and taken under control. This study showed that erosion practices supported by GIS and statistical analyses yield sounder results.