Rainfall Erosivity in the Municipality of São Pedro-SP: Analysis Between 1960-2020

Abstract

In São Pedro-SP, water erosion affects urban and rural areas and causes environmental, social, and economic losses. To understand the dynamics of erosive processes, it is essential to know the characteristics of the physical environment, including rainfall erosivity. In this context, the objective of this work was to characterize the rainfall erosivity in São Pedro, located in the state of São Paulo, using rainfall data of four temporal situations: 1960, 1972, 1988, 2010 and 2020. The analysis was developed based on the mean annual precipitation, rainfall erosivity index (EI30) and Rainfall Coefficient (R). For the spatial distribution of erosivity, the Inverse Distance Interpolation Power (IPD) was used in ArcGIS. The highest indices were observed in 1962 and 1972 and indicate that there was a reduction in erosive potential. The results allow to conclude that in São Pedro, there was rainfall with medium and high erosive potential, and it had a joint action with other environmental and anthropic factors, which could favor the deflagration and evolution of soil erosion. Therefore, these results are important and can help soil management and conservation planning, as well as the management of the territory, by following the characteristics of the physical environment.

Keywords:
Soil erosion; Erosivity; Interpolation