Estimating the Volume of Water Erosion in the Wadi ZaIm Basin using the (Epm) Model

Abstract

The study area is located in the northeastern part of Iraq, with the area of the basin being (232.7 km2). The research aims to study the estimation of the volume of soil lost due to water erosion factors using the Gavrilovic model, which is a hydrological model used to estimate the volume of soil uprooted in water valleys. To apply this model requires It provides a set of factors, namely (rainfall, temperature, slope, soil, vegetation density, and erosion). We also relis on satellite visuals (Landsat8) in deriving vegetation density and on the digital elevation model (DEM) in deriving the slope, after applying the model. In the study area, it was found that the size of the uprooted or lost soil in Wadi Zalm varied, as the area of invisible erosion reached (45.5 km2), at a rate of (19.6%) of the total area of the study area, while weak erosion records the highest area, amounting to (167.2 km2), at a rate of ( 71.9%), while the area of moderate erosion reachs (18.6 km2) at a rate of (8%), while generalized erosion reachs an area of (1.3 km2) of the total area of the study area at a rate of (0.6%).