Year 2025, Volume 71 Issue 3
| Year : | 2025 |
| Volume : | 71 |
| Issue : | 3 |
| Authors : | Soufiane AAFIR, Abdessalam OUALLALI, Mohamed MOUKHCHANE, Habiba AASSOUMI, Velibor SPALEVIC |
| Title : | ASSESSING SOIL EROSION AND RUNOFF DYNAMICS IN THE EL-MAKHAZINE WATERSHED: A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS WITH THE IntErO ALGORITHM |
| Abstract : | In recent years, Morocco has been identified as one of the most sensitive areas to the negative consequences of climate change. Extended droughts, interspersed by significant rainfall events, result in extreme phenomena such as floods and intense rainfall. This is particularly evident in northern Morocco's Rif region, known for its high susceptibility to surface runoff and soil erosion. Watershed management has emerged as one of the most successful techniques for reducing erosion and conserving water and soil resources. The current work aims to demonstrate the efficacy of hydrological modeling of watersheds as a necessary step before implementing any anti-erosion interventions. The integrated potential erosion method (EPM) within the IntErO (Intensity of Erosion and Outflow) algorithm is one of the most effective approaches. Still, it has been underutilized in Morocco for modelling the impact of surface runoff and calculating erosion rates and sediment yield on hydraulic infrastructures. The algorithm was tested in the El Makhazine watershed, which includes one of Morocco's largest dams that provides over 300 million cubic meters of potable water and irrigates more than 34,000 hectares of agricultural land. The watershed is highly sensitive to erosion due to its geological formations, soil types, slopes, and land use, resulting in an average loss of 1870.06 m³/km²/year (equivalent to 29.4 t ha⁻¹ year⁻¹). IntErO assigns the studied area to category III in terms of destruction and deterioration, with a Z coefficient of 0.631. Surface erosion is the most common type of erosion in the watershed, ranging into category II according to Gavrilovic's classification and mobilizing large volumes of sediment toward the downstream dam. This study highlights the effectiveness of IntErO, based on the EPM model, for rapidly and efficiently mapping and quantifying water erosion. It can be utilized by decision-makers and land planners for effective management interventions related to water and soil resources in the El Makhazine watershed. |
| For citation : | Aafir, S., Ouallali, A., Moukhchane, M., Aassoumi, H., Spalevic, V. (2025). Assessing soil erosion and runoff dynamics in the El-Makhazine Watershed: A comprehensive analysis with the IntErO algorithm. Agriculture and Forestry, 71(3), 259-278. https://doi.org/10.17707/AgricultForest.71.3.15 |
| Keywords : | Runoff dynamics, hydrological modelling, Soil erosion, IntErO Algorithm, North Morocco |
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