Short description

One focus of the current project was the further development of quantification approaches for the substance inputs associated with soil erosion. Submodels for the relevant processes are soil loss, sediment input into water bodies, and substance accumulation in eroded soil material and soil material entering water bodies. These submodels were further developed according to the best available state of knowledge and integrated into the MoRE (Modelling of Regionalized Emissions) modeling tool used nationwide to balance nutrient and pollutant inputs to water bodies. In addition, the results were validated on the basis of the Kraichbach test area with the help of large-volume samplers.

Erosion reduction or prevention is an important aspect of soil protection. Targets in the European Green Deal indicate a necessary decrease in erosion risk of 30% by 2050. For reporting and meeting this target, a much better assessment of soil erosion events is necessary. During the project work it became apparent that the question of the influence of soil erosion with regard to the input of substances could be examined from the point of view of water bodies. Nationwide, regionalized calculations on sediment inputs and the associated material input into water bodies are available. Questions about the effects of erosion with regard to explicit soil protection, in particular the assessment of the significance of erosive soil losses through water, are still largely unanswered.

The aim of the planned project extension is therefore to develop and implement a harmonized and area-wide applicable approach for assessing the significance of soil loss on the basis of the fundamentals (results and instruments) already created in the project. The negative effect of soil loss on the usability of arable land is to be taken into account. The tool with the already integrated contents, the "Sediment-Viewer" (https://stoffeintraege-more.de), which has already been developed during the project, offers a direct and transparent and thus important basis for the planned technical discussions and consultations with experts. Important workflows have already been integrated and the tool is expandable. After the end of the project, the system can be called up by the respective stakeholders for decision support, e.g. with regard to the localization of measures or the evaluation of areas with regard to the materiality of soil erosion (risk assessment), independent of scale.