Modeling soil erosion and reservoir sedimentation at hillslope and catchment scale in semi-arid Burkina Faso [Elektronische Ressource] / Almut C. Schmengler

Zentrum für Entwicklungsforschung _______________________________________________________________ Modeling soil erosion and reservoir sedimentation at hillslope and catchment scale in semi-arid Burkina Faso Inaugural-Dissertation zurErlangung des Grades Doktor der Agrarwissenschaften (Dr. agr.) der Hohen Landwirtschaftlichen Fakultät derRheinischen Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität zu Bonn vorgelegt am 29.09.2010 vonALMUT C. SCHMENGLER ausAACHEN1. Referent: Prof. Dr. Paul L.G. Vlek2. Referent: Prof. Dr. Richard DikauTag der Promotion: 02.03.2011Erscheinungsjahr: 2011 Diese Dissertation ist auf dem Hochschulschriftenserver der ULB Bonn http://hss.ulb.uni-bonn.de/diss_online elektronisch publiziert ABSTRACT Soil erosion is a major factor of land degradation in Sub-Saharan Africa. The loss of nutrient-rich topsoil from hillslopes causes severe agricultural problems for an extremely vulnerable agricultural society that depends on soil quality as a fundamental base for its livelihood. The removal of soil in source areas leads to sediment accumulation in sink areas such as dammed reservoirs. Especially the siltation of small reservoirs is seen as a serious environmental threat in Burkina Faso, where more than a thousand dams have been built to store unevenly distributed rainwater for the dry season. These dams are in danger of losing their function as essential water reservoirs for domestic use, irrigation and stock watering in the near future.