Effects of land use, land cover and rainfall regimes on the surface runoff and soil loss on karst slopes in southwest China

Surface runoff and soil loss from 2007 to 2010 related to land use and rainfall regimes in karst hill slopes in Guizhou Province, southwest China, were analyzed. Using the hierarchical clustering method, sixty-one rainfall events under the subtropical monsoon climate condition were classified into 5 types of rainfall regimes according to the depth, maximum 30-min intensity, and duration of rainfall. In our study, we first demonstrated that the amounts of surface runoff and soil loss on the karst hill slopes were very small compared to the non-karst areas, because the dual hydrological structure in the karst region, including ground and underground drainage systems, could influence the processes of rainfall recharge and runoff generation. Most rainfall water was transported underground through limestone fissures and fractures, while little was in the form of surface runoff. Second, the runoff and soil loss were affected by land use management and vegetation cover. Soil loss was intensified in a descending order to five types of land uses: pastureland > burned area > cropland > combination vegetation land > young forestland. Third, the runoff and soil loss exhibited remarkable variances among different rainfall regimes. Large runoff and soil loss were mainly created by heavy rainfall storms with a rainfall depth of more than 40 mm and a maximum 30-min rainfall intensity of over 30 mm h− 1. In addition, rainfall storms with large antecedent precipitations could also produce large runoff and soil loss. These observations indicated that limestone fissures and fractures play important roles in surface runoff generation on karst limestone slopes due to their large storage capacity and high infiltration rate. Lastly, the soil erosion risk in the karst pure limestone slope is quite high and should be paid particular attention, especially in regards to over-grazing because the soil loss created by a single heavy rainstorm in pastureland was 5 times the annual soil loss tolerance.

► Surface runoff and soil loss on the karst hill slopes were very small.
► Runoff and soil loss were affected by land use, land cover and rainfall regimes.
► Antecedent precipitation could promote runoff and soil loss on limestone slopes.
► Due to the low soil formation rates, soil erosion risk was quite high.