Section 4: Soil and Water Conservation Engineering
Soil and Water Erosion
Subtopic: Soil loss estimation
Question Statement:
In the Universal Soil Loss Equation ($A = R \cdot K \cdot LS \cdot C \cdot P$), the soil erodibility factor $K$ represents:
Options:
(A) The kinetic energy of raindrops per unit rainfall depth
(B) The soil loss rate per unit of rainfall erosivity index on a standard unit plot
(C) The ratio of soil loss with vegetative cover to bare fallow
(D) The percentage of silt and clay in the upper soil profile
Answer Key:
B
Step-by-Step Solution & Explanation
Soil erodibility factor $K$ is the rate of soil loss per rainfall erosion index unit ($EI_{30}$) as measured on a standard unit plot ($22.13\text{ m}$ long on a uniform $9\%$ slope under continuous clean-tilled fallow).