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Water Erosion Potential of the Congo River in the Stanley-Pool Bay

Received: 9 August 2022     Accepted: 13 September 2022     Published: 28 September 2022
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Abstract

Water erosion of soil is the loosening, transport and deposition of soil particles by the flow of water. After an intense rainfall and runoff, the water flow can become concentrated. In the Republic of Congo soil erosion is a natural hazard that is exacerbated by human activities, as there is little information on the spatial knowledge of this phenomenon. In this paper, a scientific study on the understanding of the erosion and transfer processes of suspended solids or sediments from the Congo River into the Stanley-Pool Bay was conducted. For this purpose, a treatment of rainfall data over three decades (1990-2020), parameters influencing the process of erosive dynamics leading to the realization of the water erosion map using the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE), was done. Using open access spatial data and GIS, this USLE model allowed quantifying the rate of material transported over the three decades: a spatialization of erosion risks on the right bank of the Congo River, notably in the Stanley-Pool Bay, a topography dominated by steep slopes up to 10%, a high erosivity and erodibility and a low soil protection were revealed. Finally, the results of the study show that about 40% of the study area is subject to soil loss. The erosion risk is very severe despite the vegetation cover.

Published in Journal of Water Resources and Ocean Science (Volume 11, Issue 3)
DOI 10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12
Page(s) 54-63
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Solid Transport, Sediments, Modelling, Models, Stanley Pool, Congo River

References
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[2] Ben Slimen Abir, 2013. Role of ravinar erosion in the silting of hillside reservoirs in the Tunisian Dorsal and Cap Bon. PhD thesis, presented at the International Center for Advanced Studies in Agronomic Sciences, Montpelier Sup Agro and at the Agronomic Institute of Tunisia.
[3] Spronck R., 1941, Hydrological Measurements in the Divergent Region of the Congo River Sea Rod, Mém. Inst. Roy. Coll. Belge, Sect. Sci. Techn. Coll. 3 (1), 3-56.
[4] Symoens J. J., 1968, Mineralization of Natural Waters, Scientific Findings, Explo. Hydrobiol. Bangwelo Lake and Luapula Basin, Brussels (1). Published in 1968 in Brussels by Hydrobiological circle of Brussels.
[5] Laraque A., Bricquet J. P., Olivry J. C., & Berthelo M., 1995, Solid and dissolved transport of the Congo River (assessment of six years of observations), Great River Basins, Paris, 22-24 November 1993.
[6] Laraque A., Olivry J. C., 1996, Evolution of the hydrology of the Congo-Zaire and its tributaries right bank and dynamics of its solid and dissolved transports, tropical hydrology, geosciences and tools for development, Proc. From the Paris, conference, May, 1995. Pub. IAHS (238), 271-288.
[7] Briquet J. P., 1990, Hydrological regime and balance of Central Africa. In: Quaternary landscapes of Central Atlantic Africa, R. Lanfranchi and D. Schwartz Ed. Publi. ORSTOM- Didactic Collection. Paris, pp. 42-51.
[8] Moukolo N., Laraque A., Olivry J. C., Bricquet J. C., 1993, Transport in solution and suspension for the Congo River (Zaire) and its main tributaries on the right bank, Hydrological Sciences- journal of hydrological sciences, 38, 2, 4.
[9] Kinga Mouzéo, 1986, Current particulate transport of the Congo River and some tributaries, thesis Doc, Univ, Perpignon.
[10] Molinier M., 1979, Note sur les débits et la qualité des eaux du Congo à Brazzaville, Cahier ORSTOM, Ser, Hydrol, XVI (1), 55-66.
[11] Olivry J. C., Bricquet J. P., Thiebaux J. P., Sigha N., 1988, Transport of material on major intertropical rivers:the first results of particulate flux measurements on the Congo River Basin, Sediment Budgets, IAHS Publ, 174, p, 509-521.
[12] Stone R. P. and D. Holborn, 2000. Universal Earth Loss Equation (USLE). Soil Factsheet, Rural Engineering, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Order No. 00 002, Ontario Canada, May 2000.
[13] Kempena A., Guardado R. L, Bilembi D, 2015 "Estimating Soil Loss by Water Erosion in the Micro watersheds of Brazzaville City”Research Paper, Geology, India, Volume 4 Issue 7, July 2015.
[14] Miloud Koussa & Mohamed-Tewfik Bouziane 2018, Contribution of GIS to the mapping of water-erosion risk areas in the Beni Haroun watershed, Mila, Algeria, Geo-Eco-Trop., 2018, 42, 1: 43-56.
[15] Williams J. R (1995): the topic model in vp singh (ed) computer models of watershed hydrology. Water resource publications. P. 909-1000, 1995.
[16] Van der Knijff J. M., R. J. A. Jones, L. Montanarella., 1999: soil Erosion risk assessment in italy, 1999, EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE GENERAL JRC JOINT RESEARCH CENTRE Space Applications Institute European Soil Bureau.
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  • APA Style

    Matsouele Nzonzi Bonheur, Obami Ondon Harmel, Tathy Christian, Moukandi Nkaya Guy Dieudonne, Mabiala Bernard. (2022). Water Erosion Potential of the Congo River in the Stanley-Pool Bay. Journal of Water Resources and Ocean Science, 11(3), 54-63. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12

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    ACS Style

    Matsouele Nzonzi Bonheur; Obami Ondon Harmel; Tathy Christian; Moukandi Nkaya Guy Dieudonne; Mabiala Bernard. Water Erosion Potential of the Congo River in the Stanley-Pool Bay. J. Water Resour. Ocean Sci. 2022, 11(3), 54-63. doi: 10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12

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    AMA Style

    Matsouele Nzonzi Bonheur, Obami Ondon Harmel, Tathy Christian, Moukandi Nkaya Guy Dieudonne, Mabiala Bernard. Water Erosion Potential of the Congo River in the Stanley-Pool Bay. J Water Resour Ocean Sci. 2022;11(3):54-63. doi: 10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12,
      author = {Matsouele Nzonzi Bonheur and Obami Ondon Harmel and Tathy Christian and Moukandi Nkaya Guy Dieudonne and Mabiala Bernard},
      title = {Water Erosion Potential of the Congo River in the Stanley-Pool Bay},
      journal = {Journal of Water Resources and Ocean Science},
      volume = {11},
      number = {3},
      pages = {54-63},
      doi = {10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.wros.20221103.12},
      abstract = {Water erosion of soil is the loosening, transport and deposition of soil particles by the flow of water. After an intense rainfall and runoff, the water flow can become concentrated. In the Republic of Congo soil erosion is a natural hazard that is exacerbated by human activities, as there is little information on the spatial knowledge of this phenomenon. In this paper, a scientific study on the understanding of the erosion and transfer processes of suspended solids or sediments from the Congo River into the Stanley-Pool Bay was conducted. For this purpose, a treatment of rainfall data over three decades (1990-2020), parameters influencing the process of erosive dynamics leading to the realization of the water erosion map using the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE), was done. Using open access spatial data and GIS, this USLE model allowed quantifying the rate of material transported over the three decades: a spatialization of erosion risks on the right bank of the Congo River, notably in the Stanley-Pool Bay, a topography dominated by steep slopes up to 10%, a high erosivity and erodibility and a low soil protection were revealed. Finally, the results of the study show that about 40% of the study area is subject to soil loss. The erosion risk is very severe despite the vegetation cover.},
     year = {2022}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Water Erosion Potential of the Congo River in the Stanley-Pool Bay
    AU  - Matsouele Nzonzi Bonheur
    AU  - Obami Ondon Harmel
    AU  - Tathy Christian
    AU  - Moukandi Nkaya Guy Dieudonne
    AU  - Mabiala Bernard
    Y1  - 2022/09/28
    PY  - 2022
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12
    DO  - 10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12
    T2  - Journal of Water Resources and Ocean Science
    JF  - Journal of Water Resources and Ocean Science
    JO  - Journal of Water Resources and Ocean Science
    SP  - 54
    EP  - 63
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2328-7993
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wros.20221103.12
    AB  - Water erosion of soil is the loosening, transport and deposition of soil particles by the flow of water. After an intense rainfall and runoff, the water flow can become concentrated. In the Republic of Congo soil erosion is a natural hazard that is exacerbated by human activities, as there is little information on the spatial knowledge of this phenomenon. In this paper, a scientific study on the understanding of the erosion and transfer processes of suspended solids or sediments from the Congo River into the Stanley-Pool Bay was conducted. For this purpose, a treatment of rainfall data over three decades (1990-2020), parameters influencing the process of erosive dynamics leading to the realization of the water erosion map using the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE), was done. Using open access spatial data and GIS, this USLE model allowed quantifying the rate of material transported over the three decades: a spatialization of erosion risks on the right bank of the Congo River, notably in the Stanley-Pool Bay, a topography dominated by steep slopes up to 10%, a high erosivity and erodibility and a low soil protection were revealed. Finally, the results of the study show that about 40% of the study area is subject to soil loss. The erosion risk is very severe despite the vegetation cover.
    VL  - 11
    IS  - 3
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Mechanical, Energy and Engineering Laboratory, Higher National Polytechnic School, Marien Ngouabi University, Brazzaville, Congo

  • Mechanical, Energy and Engineering Laboratory, Higher National Polytechnic School, Marien Ngouabi University, Brazzaville, Congo

  • Mechanical, Energy and Engineering Laboratory, Higher National Polytechnic School, Marien Ngouabi University, Brazzaville, Congo

  • Mechanical, Energy and Engineering Laboratory, Higher National Polytechnic School, Marien Ngouabi University, Brazzaville, Congo

  • Mechanical, Energy and Engineering Laboratory, Higher National Polytechnic School, Marien Ngouabi University, Brazzaville, Congo

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