MACROPORE FLOW AND MASS WASTING OF GULLIES IN THE LOESS PLATEAU, CHINA

Due to the extensive gullying from historically excessive erosion in the loess plateau of China, much of this region is being converted to native grass and shrub vegetation. Tunnel scour and mass wasting are important gully erosion processes resulting from preferential flow through macropores ( pores > 1 mm diameter). The objective of this study is to assess the changes with time in macropore flow characteristics of soils on the Loess Plateau following conversion to grass vegetation and the associated degree of mass wasting of gully faces. Ridge areas that had been revegetated for 1 year, 6 years, and > 15 years following tilling, and for 6 years following contour-ditching and the adjacent gully faces were characterized for their macropore and soil matrix properties on a 50 cm by 50 cm area. The total number of macropores increased from 11.6/m2 to 39.6/m2 from 1 to 6 years and to 51.6/m2 after 15 years of revegetation following tillage. The macroporosity increased from 0.0008 m3/m3 to 0.0018 m3/m3 from 1 to 6 years of revegetation following tillage but the lowest macroporosity (0.0005 m3/m3) was 6 years of revegetation following contour-ditching. The contour-ditched area had the lowest infiltration rate (95 m/d) through the soil matrix (areas without macropores) with the tilled areas having similar infiltration rates regardless of the number of years of revegetation (averaged 146 m/d). Due to tunnel scour erosion of macropores during infiltration into the area revegetated for 1 year, pore diameters enlarged by more than 200% resulting in this condition having the highest individual macropore infiltration rates (7967 m/d). Macropores in all other areas were stable with no tunnel scour erosion of macropores. The total capacity for infiltration through macropores increased significantly with time following revegetation. The number of macropores on the gully faces was triple (92.8/m2) and the macroporosity quadruple (0.004 m3/m3) that of the ridge surfaces. The upper gully faces exhibited 1.1 slumps m-1 for a total soil loss of 48622 kg per ha.