HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Figures Only Full Text Free Full Text (PDF) Free Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (32) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Steegen, A. Articles by Merckx, R. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Steegen, A. Articles by Merckx, R. GeoRef GeoRef Citation Agricola Articles by Steegen, A. Articles by Merckx, R. Related Collections Water Quality Watershed and Landscape Processes Nutrient Management Water Pollution Soil Erosion

TECHNICAL REPORT
Landscape and Watershed Processes

Factors Controlling Sediment and Phosphorus Export from Two Belgian Agricultural Catchments

^a Lab. for Experimental Geomorphology, K.U. Leuven, Redingenstraat 16, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
^b Lab. for Soil Fertility and Soil Biology, K.U. Leuven, Kardinaal Mercierlaan 92, 3001 Heverlee, Belgium

* Corresponding author (gerard.govers{at}geo.kuleuven.ac.be)

Received for publication June 19, 2001. Sediment and total phosphorus (TP) export vary through space and time. This study was conducted to determine the factors controlling sediment and TP export in two agricultural catchments situated in the Belgian Loess Belt. At the outlet of these catchments runoff discharge was continuously measured and suspended sediment samples were taken during rainfall events. Within the catchments vegetation type and cover, soil surface parameters, erosion features, sediment pathways, and rainfall characteristics were monitored. Total P content and sediment characteristics such as clay, organic carbon, and suspended sediment concentration were correlated. Total sediment and TP export differ significantly between the monitored catchments. Much of the difference is due to the occurrence of an extreme event in one catchment and the morphology and spatial organization of land use in the catchments. In one catchment, the direct connection between erosive areas and the catchment outlet by means of a road system contributed to a high sediment delivery ratio (SDR) at the outlet. In the other catchment, the presence of a wide valley in the center of the catchment caused sediment deposition. Vegetation also had an effect on sediment production and deposition. Thus, many factors control sediment and TP export from small agricultural catchments; some of these factors are related to the physical catchment characterisics such as morphology and landscape structure and are (semi)permanent, while others, such as vegetation cover and land use, are time dependent.

Abbreviations: OrgC, organic carbon content • Q, runoff discharge • SDR, sediment delivery ratio • SSC, suspended sediment concentration • TP, total phosphorus

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. W. McDowell and R. J. Wilcock Particulate Phosphorus Transport within Stream Flow of an Agricultural Catchment J. Environ. Qual., November 1, 2004; 33(6): 2111 - 2121. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. Verstraeten and J. Poesen Regional Scale Variability in Sediment and Nutrient Delivery from Small Agricultural Watersheds J. Environ. Qual., May 1, 2002; 31(3): 870 - 879. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]