Analysis of soil erosion changes and influencing factors based on the CSLE model and GeoDector in Dongjiang River Basin of China

Abstract Soil and water conservation and protection are of great importance to China, as the source of the Pearl and Xiang Rivers, and the main rare earth mining area, the ecology of Dongjiang River Basin, is very fragile. In this paper, the Chinese soil loss equation and the Geodetector method are used to analyze the spatial and temporal patterns and the impact factors of soil erosion in this area from 2016 to 2020. The results show that (1) Soil erosion intensity in the Dongjiang River Basin from 2016 to 2020 is mainly mild, with the soil erosion intensity in the Dongjiang River Basin in 2016 being the largest in five years. (2) The erosion modulus shows an increasing trend with the increase of slope. In terms of vegetation, when the vegetation cover is <30%, the soil erosion modulus is the largest, which is easy to induce soil erosion. When the vegetation cover is >60%, the soil erosion modulus is the smallest, which effectively slows down the occurrence of soil erosion. Rainfall is proportional to the soil erosion modulus and soil erosion. (3) The results of Geodetector indicate that the single factor sizes are land use > vegetation > slope > precipitation, and interaction factors all show a nonlinear enhancement. (4) The proper allocation of land use types, the prohibition of steep slopes for cultivation, and the restoration of forestry can effectively prevent and control soil erosion in the area.