Impact of Rainfall Erosivity and Land Use/Land Cover Changes on Water Erosion: A Case Study of the Bouhamdane Watershed, Northeastern Algeria

Abstract This study evaluates the impacts of spatiotemporal changes in rainfall erosivity and land use/land cover (LULC) on water erosion in the Bouhamdane watershed, northeastern Algeria. Water erosion was quantified for four periods (1984–1994, 1994–2004, 2004–2014, and 2014–2024) using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), integrated with Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing, and machine learning techniques. The results indicate that mean annual soil loss decreased from 10.43 t ha–1 yr–1 during 1984–1994 to 9.26 t ha–1 yr–1 in 1994–2004, reaching a minimum of 8.36 t ha–1 yr–1 in 2004–2014, before increasing again to 9.04 t ha–1 yr–1 in 2014–2024. This temporal pattern reflects the combined effects of rainfall erosivity variability and LULC changes. Erosion patterns are associated with the dominance of bare land, cropland expansion, urban growth, and the loss of open forest. The study reveals that LULC changes exert a stronger influence on erosion rates than rainfall erosivity, although both factors significantly contribute to water erosion dynamics. These findings provide valuable guidance for integrated land management, reforestation, and erosion control strategies aimed at promoting sustainable soil and water resource management in the Bouhamdane watershed.