Estimating the GIS-based soil loss and sediment delivery ratio to the sea for four major basins in South Korea

This paper describes a sediment delivery ratio (SDR) using the Geographic Information System (GIS)-based Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), to calculate the soil loss and sediment rating curve (SRC) basis of measured data in the six basins of Four Rivers, South Korea. The data set for calculating SDR was prepared during 3 years from 2008 to 2010. Mean soil loss in the six basins of Four Rivers was 515–869 t km⁻² yr⁻¹ and mean specific sediment yield (SSY) was 20–208 t km⁻² yr⁻¹ with basin size. The SDR ranged from 0.03 to 0.33 in the six rivers. Most sediment flows in the monsoon period from June to September (mean Max.: >97%; mean Min.: >84%), but SDR is lower than those of similar continental river basins. This is due to environmental factors, for example rainfall characteristics and associated run-off, soil characteristics and cultivated patterns with increasing basin size. This research provides the first application of SDR based on the observed field data in South Korea.