The Impact of Soil Erosion in the Upper Blue Nile on Downstream Reservoir Sedimentation

Land-use changes from natural forest to agricultural land in the Blue Nile Basin has resulted in accelerated soil erosion upstream and sedimentation in reservoirs and irrigation canals downstream. The only effective solution to reduce the sedimentation problems is reducing the sediment input. This book identifies the sources of sediment and quantifies the amounts involved. The methods used in this research consist of extensive field work covering most of the basin, numerical modelling and mineralogical analysis. The results allow identifying the areas providing most of the transported sediment from where it is recommended to start with the erosion control practices.