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Research ArticleResearch Section

Purpose, development, and synthesis of the Soil Vulnerability Index for inherent vulnerability classification of cropland soils

A.L. Thompson, C. Baffaut, S. Lohani, L.F. Duriancik, M.L. Norfleet and K. Ingram
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation January 2020, 75 (1) 1-11; DOI: https://doi.org/10.2489/jswc.75.1.1
A.L. Thompson
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C. Baffaut
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S. Lohani
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L.F. Duriancik
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M.L. Norfleet
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K. Ingram
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Abstract

The Soil Vulnerability Index (SVI) was developed by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to classify inherent vulnerability of cropland soils based on field sediment and nutrient transport resulting from surface runoff and leaching. The primary purpose of the SVI is to aid conservation planners in more rapidly assessing managed lands and inherent resource concerns. The index is based on hydrologic soil group, slope, and soil erodibility for cultivated cropland soils, with the addition of percentage rock fragments and organic matter when considering leaching. Although the SVI is intended for use throughout the United States, its development was based on the physiographic and rainfall characteristics of the Upper Mississippi and Ohio-Tennessee River basins. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the SVI in areas both in and outside of the area for which it was developed. Thirteen different watersheds were selected to conduct this evaluation. Vulnerability classifications using the SVI were compared with those from on-site experts' knowledge and with model simulations using local data. Four companion papers in this special collection discuss SVI classification based on the effects of land slope, artificial drainage, sediment and nutrient loads, and vulnerability assessment using hydrologic simulation models. Using results from the various sites, the objective of this paper was to synthesize the interpretation of the value and applicability of SVI vulnerability classification to sediment and nutrient loss across various physiographic regions and suggest where improvement in the SVI could be made.

    Key words
  • erosion
  • leaching
  • sediment
  • Soil Vulnerability Index
  • targeting
  • threshold
  • © 2020 by the Soil and Water Conservation Society
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Journal of Soil and Water Conservation: 75 (1)
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation
Vol. 75, Issue 1
January/February 2020
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Purpose, development, and synthesis of the Soil Vulnerability Index for inherent vulnerability classification of cropland soils
A.L. Thompson, C. Baffaut, S. Lohani, L.F. Duriancik, M.L. Norfleet, K. Ingram
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation Jan 2020, 75 (1) 1-11; DOI: 10.2489/jswc.75.1.1

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Purpose, development, and synthesis of the Soil Vulnerability Index for inherent vulnerability classification of cropland soils
A.L. Thompson, C. Baffaut, S. Lohani, L.F. Duriancik, M.L. Norfleet, K. Ingram
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation Jan 2020, 75 (1) 1-11; DOI: 10.2489/jswc.75.1.1
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  • Article
    • Abstract
    • Introduction
    • Development of the SVI
    • Validation Site Descriptions
    • Synthesis of SVI Evaluation
    • Summary and Conclusions
    • Acknowledgements
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Cited By...

  • Quantifying the impacts of the Conservation Effects Assessment Project watershed assessments: The first fifteen years
  • Assessment of the Soil Vulnerability Index and comparison with AnnAGNPS in two Lower Mississippi River Basin watersheds
  • Soil Vulnerability Index assessment as a tool to explain annual constituent loads in a nested watershed
  • Performance of the Soil Vulnerability Index with respect to slope, digital elevation model resolution, and hydrologic soil group
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More in this TOC Section

Research Section

  • Plant morphological and functional characteristics combined with elevation and aspect influence phytogenic mound parameters in a dry-hot valley
  • Manure injection alters the spatial distribution of soil nitrate, mineralizable carbon, and microbial biomass
  • Erosion and sediment delivery in southern Iowa watersheds: Implications for conservation planning
Show more Research Section

Special Research Section: Soil Vulnerability Index

  • Evaluation of the Soil Vulnerability Index for artificially drained cropland across eight Conservation Effects Assessment Project watersheds
  • Performance of the Soil Vulnerability Index with respect to slope, digital elevation model resolution, and hydrologic soil group
Show more Special Research Section: Soil Vulnerability Index

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Keywords

  • erosion
  • leaching
  • sediment
  • Soil Vulnerability Index
  • targeting
  • threshold

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