Rainfall erosivity in the Upper Llobregat Basin, SE Pyrenees

The aim of this study was to determine the spatial distribution of rainfall erosivity in a 504 km2 river basin in Eastern Pyrenees and assess its uncertainties. The study area is topographically complex and is dominated by Mediterranean climate with intense rains during summer. Available rainfall da...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Authors: Catari Yujra, Gusman, Gallart Gallego, Francesc
Format: article
Publication Date:2010
Country:España
Institution:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Repository:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:ddd.uab.cat:158635
Online Access:https://ddd.uab.cat/record/158635
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.3989/Pirineos.2010.165003
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:R factor
Error propagation
RUSLE
Pyrenees
Upper Llobregat basin
Propagación de error
Pirineos
Cuenca alta del Llobregat
Description
Summary:The aim of this study was to determine the spatial distribution of rainfall erosivity in a 504 km2 river basin in Eastern Pyrenees and assess its uncertainties. The study area is topographically complex and is dominated by Mediterranean climate with intense rains during summer. Available rainfall dataset includes 14 years spanning from 1991 to 2004 at daily resolution from seven weather stations and sub-hourly from one station. Daily R values were calculated from sub-hourly data, and then by using the relationship between daily R values and precipitation, the R values for weather stations having only daily rainfall resolution were calculated. The error propagation by using such upscaling approach was analyzed. The studied sources of uncertainty of R factor at annual scale were: the use of the relationship between daily R values and precipitation, the temporal averaging of R values and spatial variation. Results have shown that at annual scale the temporal averaging was the largest contributor of uncertainty (70%); however this contribution decreased significantly (14%) when R was estimated for the long term.