| Abstract: | In this paper the researches made in 1981-1990 have identified that the annual soil loss in the Three Gorges region is 157 million t. and the annual incoming sediment load of the Three Gorges reservoir is 40 million t. Soil erosion increases with the destruction of vegetative cover and its subsequent evolution. The annual amounts of sediment erosion for forest land, shrub land, grassland and farmland make up respectively 6.19%, 10.76%, 23.05% and 60% of the total erosion of the Three Gorges region; the quantities of incoming sediment load to the Yangtze River from the above four types of land account for 5.95%, 12.42%, 35.46% and 46.1 % of the total amount of sediment transported to the reservoir. The farmland of offers the main source of sediment. Gravitational erosion produces more bed loads, which will present serious threat to the Three Gorges Project if entering the reservoir. Resettlement of people to the upper parts of the mountainous areas for agricultural production will increase the sediment yield of the Three Gorges region by 10-20 million t and increase the incoming sediment of the Yangtze River by 50-60 million t. Consequently, it is necessary to make a realistic assessment of the soil erosion in the Three Gorges region. |
