• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.40 no.1 s.182
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• pp.103-113
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• 2007

The empirical USLE and the physically-based GeoWEPP which were distributed model linked with GIS (Geographical Information System) were applied to small natural catchment located in Icheon-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. The results using by two models were total sediment yield from study catchment between January, 2004 and January, 2005. During the study period, the observed total sediment yield was 270.54 ton and the total sediment yield computed by USLE and GeoWEPP model were 358.1 ton and 283.30 ton, respectively. Each of results computed by USLE and GeoWEPP overestimated more than the observed total sediment yield, but, based on the results, the total sediment yield computed by GeoWEPP approximated to the observed result. We suggest that the reason why the total sediment yield using by models overestimated was that computed amounts by two models did not contain the amount of suspended sediment flowed over the weir.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.59 no.5
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• pp.109-126
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• 2017

Universal soil loss equation (USLE) is used to estimate soil loss solely or employed in any hydrologic models. Since soil erosion has been an issue in South Korea for decades, the Ministry of Environment enacted a law to regulate soil erosion in 2012, which is the Notification of topsoil erosion status. The notification is composed of preliminary and field investigations, the preliminary investigation suggests to use USLE and provides USLE factors. However, the USLE factors provided in the notification was prepared at least 10 years ago, therefore it is limited to reflect recent climate changes. Moreover the current yearly USLE approach does not provide an opportunity to consider seasonal variation of soil erosion in South Korea. A GIS-based model was therefore applied to evaluate the yearly USLE approach in the notification. The GIS-based model employs USLE to estimate soil loss, providing an opportunity to estimate monthly soil loss with monthly USLE factor databases. Soil loss was compared in five watersheds, which were Geumgang, Hangang, Nakdonggang, Seomjingang, and Yeongsangang watersheds. The minimum difference was found at Seomjingang watershed, the yearly potential soil loss were 40.15 Mg/ha/yr by the notification approach and 34.42 Mg/ha/yr by the GIS-based model using monthly approach. And, the maximum difference was found at Nakdonggang watershed, the yearly potential soil loss were 27.01 Mg/ha/yr by the notification approach and 10.67 Mg/ha/yr by the GIS-based model using monthly approach. As a part of the study result, it was found that the potential soil loss can be overestimated in the notification approach.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers Conference
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• 2005.10a
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• pp.241-246
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• 2005

Doam watershed is located at alpine areas in the Kangwon province. The annual average precipitation, including snow accumulation during the winter, at the Doam watershed is significantly higher than other areas. Thus, pollutant laden runoff and sediment discharge from the alpine agricultural fields are causing water quality degradation at the Doam watershed. To estimate soil erosion from the agricultural fields, the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) has been widely used because of its simplicity to use. The USLE rainfall erosivity (R) factor is responsible for impacts of rainfall on soil erosion. Thus, use of constant R factor for the Doam watershed cannot reflect variations in precipitation patterns, consequently soil erosion estimation. In the early spring at the Doam watershed, the stream flow increases because of snow melt, which results in erosion of loosened soil experiencing freezing and thaw during the winter. However, the USLE model cannot consider the impacts on soil erosion of freezing and thaw of the soil. Also, it cannot simulate temporal changes in USLE input parameters. Thus, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was investigated for its applicability to estimate soil erosion at the Doam watershed, instead of the widely used USLE model. The SWAT hydrology and erosion/sediment components were validated after calibration of the hydrologic component. The $R^2$ and Nash-Sutcliffe coefficient values are higher enough, thus it was found the SWAT model can be efficiently used to simulate hydrology and sediment yield at the Doam watershed. The effects of snow melt on SWAT estimated stream flow and sediment were investigated using long-term precipitation and temperature data at the Doam watershed. It was found significant amount of flow and sediment in the spring are contributed by melting snow accumulated during the winter. Thus, it is recommend that the SWAT model capable of simulating snow melt and long-term weather data needs to be used in estimating soil erosion at alpine agricultural land instead of the USLE model for successful soil erosion management at the Doam watershed.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2002.05b
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• pp.823-828
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• 2002

• Spatial Information Research
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.241-249
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• 2003

The purpose of this paper is to provide the basic data to select the most proper site, which is essential for the economic activation of North Korea by means of the GIS tool. In this purpose, firstly, Nampo area is sampled as model case, classifying the factors into the natural environmental one and socio- cultural one. Secondly, to analyze the land use status and topographic status which is essential for natural environment factor. Besides USLE(Universal Soil Loss Equation), which is one of the disaster effect assessments, is being applied to suggest the selection method for minimizing the environment change by way of assuming the land effluence amount. The started could advance to prove the ideal model in selecting the most suitable site while minimizing the environmental change by means of the composite tool of GIS and USLE.

• Journal of Korean Society for Geospatial Information Science
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.77-85
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• 2007

Assessment of soil erosion is a cost and time-consuming task. There are many models developed to predict soil erosion from an area, but Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) is most widely used empirical equation for estimating annual soil erosion. Soil erosion depends upon-rainfall intensity, type of soil, land cover and land use, slope degree, slope length and soil conservation practice. All these parameters are have spatial distribution and hence satellite remote sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS) are applicable in the assessment of the influence on soil erosion. GIS has been integrated with the USLE (Universal Soil Loss Equation) model in identification of rainfall-based erosion to the Bocheong River which is the representative basin of IHP due to Typhoon Rusa. Similar studies are available in literature, ranging from those that use a simple model such as USLE to others of a more sophisticated nature.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.31-41
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• 2019

In 2013, the Ministry of Environment in South Korea promulgated a new regulatory bulletin that contained revised enforcement ordinance on soil management protocols. The bulletin recommends the use of Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) for the soil erosion estimation, but USLE has limited applicability in prediction of soil erosion because it does not allow direct estimation of actual mass of soil erosion. Therefore, there is a great need of revising the protocol to allow direct comparison between the measured and estimated values of soil erosion. The Korean Soil Loss Equation (KORSLE) was developed recently and used to estimate soil loss in two fields as an alternative to existing USLE model. KORSLE was applied to estimate monthly rainfall erosivity indices as well as temporal variation in potential soil loss. The estimated potential soil loss by KORSLE was adjusted with correction factor for direct comparison with measured soil erosion. The result was reasonable since Nash-Stucliff efficiency were 0.8020 in calibration and 0.5089 in validation. The results suggest that KORSLE is an appropriate model as an alternative to USLE to predict soil erosion at field scale.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.525-531
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• 2016

This study integrates the Universal Soil Loss Equation(USLE) with GIS method to assess the soil erosion for national land cover map between 2007 and 2014. The land cover change map and C factors of USLE were applied to the estimation of spatial distribution of sediment yield. However, they generated distinct results because of differences in their applied methods and calculation processes of national land cover map. To generate the USLE model, C factors of MOE(Ministry of Environment) were compared with soil erosion of Inje stadium development area at the Naerin watershed in Gangwon province to 2014. The several thematic maps of research area such as land cover map, topographic and soil maps, together with tabular precipitation data used for soil erosion calculation. The land cover change were carried with level-2 and high level land cover map of MOE and estimated maximum double of soil erosion.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.314-320
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• 2008

During the summer season, more than half of the annual precipitation in Korea occurs during the summer season due to the geographical location in the Asian monsoon belt. So, this causes severe soil erosion from croplands, which is directly linked to the deterioration of crop/land productivity and surface water quality. Therefore, much attention has been given to develop accurate estimation tools of soil erosion. The aim of this study is to assess the performance of using the empirical Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) and the physical-based model of the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) to quantify eroded amount of soil from agricultural fields. Input data files, including climate, soil, slope, and cropping management, were modified to fit into Korean conditions. Chuncheon (forest) and Jeonju (level-plain) were selected as two Korean cities with different topographic characteristics for model analysis. The results of this current study indicated that better soil erosion prediction can be achieved using the WEPP model since it has better power to illustrate a higher degree of spatial variability than USLE in topography, precipitation, soils, and crop management practices. These present findings are expected to contribute to the development of the environmental assessment program as well as the conservation of the agricultural environment in Korea.

• Journal of Korean Society for Geospatial Information Science
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• v.11 no.2 s.25
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• pp.11-16
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• 2003

Soil loss by the rains has effect on natural environment. But It is difficult to find out the data that is surveyed in watershed. In this paper, we choose USLE erosion model, which could be connected easily with GSIS and available generally, and extracted factors which is entered model by using GSIS spatial analysis method. Especially, As revised USLE model, It should be applied in watershed and as it calculated soil loss before Idlest fire and behind, it analysed the degree that it have an effect on soil loss. As each analyzed factors and the result of soil loss estimate consist of 22m-pixel size, we could identify soil loss by each pixel and distribution pattern.