Soil redistribution rate and its relationship with soil organic carbon and total nitrogen using 137Cs technique in a cultivated complex hillslope in western Iran

The spatial pattern of soil redistribution rate was investigated using cesium-137 (137Cs) within a cultivated complex hillslope in western Iran. The relationship between soil redistribution rate and soil organic carbon and total nitrogen pattern were studied using co-regionalization analysis. Ninety-one soil cores were sampled for 137Cs, total nitrogen, and soil organic carbon measurements. The simplified mass balance model estimated a gross erosion rate of 29.8 t ha−1 yr−1 and a net soil deposition rate of 21.8 t ha−1 yr−1; hence, a net soil loss rate of 8 t ha−1 yr−1. This magnitude of soil erosion rate is higher than the acceptable rate in semiarid regions. Co-regionalization analysis and co-dispersive coefficients among the selected variables showed that only a small fraction of the variability in total nitrogen and soil organic carbon could be explained by soil redistribution and that the remaining might be the result of different management practices by local farmers.