Abstract            Volume:6  Issue-11  Year-2018         Original Research Articles

Online ISSN : 2347 - 3215 Issues : 12 per year Publisher : Excellent Publishers Email : editorijcret@gmail.com

Soil erosion is a result of many factors such as rainfall intensity steepness of slope, length of slope, vegetative cover, soil erodibility factor as well as anthropogenic influences. Among these factors, soil erodibility is considered an essential parameter since it governs the ease with which soil particles are detached and transported by water. At the centre of this study is the determination of the erodibility factor (otherwise known as K factor) in the Wischmeier Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE). The erodibility was determined by measuring four basic parameters closely related with the soil physical status: soil texture, soil structure, soil permeability, and organic matter content of the soil. Twenty four samples of surface and sub-surface soils were collected from three gully erosion sites in Uyo watershed which were used to measure the above mentioned parameters in order to determine the K-factor. Using the model developed by Wichmeier and Smith (1978), the K factor was calculated for each soil sample when appropriate data are entered in a proper sequence. The permeability class as well as soil structure codes were determined using the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) document published in 1983. The Wischmeier equation, among many erosion models, seems obviously to be the most realistic one, because it considers all the possible soil factors affecting soil erodibility. The K factor values obtained were found to be between 0.269Mg.h.MJ-1mm-1 to 0.325Mg.h.MJ-1mm-1, which means that there is a slight variation in Uyo soils with respect to their behaviour towards erodibility or consequently towards erosion. It was discovered that the most significant variable or parameter on soil erodibility was silt and coarse sand whereas the less significant variable was clay. This study reveals the proneness and susceptibility of soils with high silt content to structural breakdown and consequently erosion.

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