Mapeamento de áreas de risco de erosão na Cidade da Beira

Abstract

Erosion is one of the main environmental problems affecting Mozambique. Studies aimed at mapping areas that are susceptible to erosion help in decision-making in efforts to combat erosion. Erosion has been one of the main agents of environmental degradation and the application of prevention techniques is the best alternative to mitigate the impact of erosion. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can be used efficiently in mapping erosion risk. Geoprocessing techniques have been widely used to provide and solve various environmental problems. The methodology used to achieve the established objectives consisted of applying the Multicriteria Analysis method, allowing the combination of the variables soil type, land use and land cover and slope. This information was cross-referenced using the Weigthet Overlay tool, where weights were assigned to each variable and scores to their components, thus generating the erosion risk map. Within this context, the objective of this work was to map the areas at risk of erosion in the city of Beira. The areas susceptible to erosion processes in the city of Beira were classified into five classes, namely: very low, low, moderate, high and very high risk. Three factors were considered: soil type, land use and cover and relief. The areas at greatest risk of erosion are located in the coastal zone, as this is the preferred location for the establishment of human settlements. (TRADUÇAO NOSSA)