ABSTRACT Amazonian soils have been suffering severe changes resulting from human activities in the region, causing significant changes in soil attributes that can contribute to greater susceptibility to erosion processes. Therefore, the present work aimed to estimate the erodibility in natural and anthropic environments in the southern region of the Amazon. Eight areas in the region were selected, including areas of native forest, savannah, cerradão, pasture and reforestation, delimiting 32 sampling points per area, with collections at a depth of 0.00-0.20 m, totaling 256 samples. Next, texture analysis and quantification of soil organic carbon were performed, and then erodibility was estimated by indirect prediction methods, Tukey’s test, Pearson’s correlation and factorial analysis of principal components. According to the results obtained, it was observed that the evaluated areas of native forest 1 and 2, cerradão and pasture present high susceptibility to erosion in relation to the cerrado, reforestation with genipap, teak and mixed areas. Therefore, it was noted that the high level of erodibility is associated with a greater predominance of sand fraction, K factor, Ki Kr and low clay content, as well as with the management employed in the areas.

Resumo A erodibilidade é uma característica do solo que representa a susceptibilidade com que suas partículas da camada mais superficial são levadas e transportadas para locais mais baixos por agentes erosivos, causando danos ambientais e econômicos. O objetivo deste trabalho foi estimar a erodibilidade do solo em áreas de pastagens e florestas no município de Porto Velho-Rondônia. Em campo, foram selecionadas três áreas com diferentes tipos de vegetação, uma com braquiária, outra com capim mombaça e uma terceira em floresta nativa. Nas áreas com pastagens, foi delineada uma malha amostral de tamanhos iguais (90 m x 60 m), e na área de floresta uma malha amostral aproximada (90 m x 50 m), com espaçamento regular de 10 m entre os pontos amostrais para ambas as áreas. A amostragem foi realizada nos pontos de cruzamento da malha na profundidade de 0,0-0,2 m, compondo 70 pontos amostrais nas áreas com pastagens e 60 pontos amostrais na área de floresta, totalizando 200 amostras. Em seguida, foram realizadas análises laboratoriais para determinação da textura seguida do fracionamento da areia, e do carbono orgânico seguida da estimativa da matéria orgânica do solo. Os fatores de erodibilidade foram calculados por meio de modelos de predição indireta e, em seguida, foram aplicadas técnicas univariadas, geoestatísticas e multivariadas. Os ambientes de pastagem diferiram do ambiente de floresta. No entanto, a área de capim mombaça funciona como um ambiente intermediário entre a floresta e a braquiária, estando mais próxima do ambiente de floresta.

Abstract “Erodibility” is a characteristic of the soil that represents the susceptibility with which its particles from the most superficial layer are taken and transported to lower places by erosive agents, causing environmental and economic damages. This work estimated soil erodibility in pastures and forest areas in the municipality of Porto Velho-Rondônia. In the field, three areas with different types of vegetation were selected, one with brachiaria, another with mombaça grass, and a third in native forest. In areas with pastures, a sampling mesh of equal sizes was outlined (90 m x 60 m), and in the forested area an approximate sampling mesh (90 m x 50 m), with a regular spacing of 10 m between the samples points for both areas. The sampling was done at the crossing points of the mesh at a depth of 0.0-0.2 m, composing 70 sample points in the areas with pastures and 60 sample points in the forest area, totaling 200 samples. Then, laboratory analyzes were carried out to determine the texture followed by the fractionation of the sand, and the organic carbon followed by the estimate of the organic matter of the soil. The erodibility factors were calculated using indirect prediction models, and then, univariate, geostatistical and multivariate techniques were applied. The pastures’ environments differed from the forest environment. However, the mombaça grass area functions as an intermediate environment between the forest and the brachiaria, being closer to the forest environment.

ABSTRACT In the Amazon region, soil patches with an anthropic A horizon are found, called Indian black earths (IBEs). Indian black earths are highly fertile and, therefore, are deforested by small local farmers to cultivate without basic management that maintains soil and crop sustainability. Therefore, in order to evaluate the effect of using different cultures on the spatial variability of soil chemical attributes, three cultivated IBEs and one IBE under natural forest were selected for georeferencing and sample collection. The collection was made with a mesh system with 88 points per IBE, stratified in three layers: 0–0.05, 0.05–0.10 and 0.10–0.20 m. The soil was sampled, dried in the shade and sieved to obtain the fine earth fraction for analysis of chemical attributes. Descriptive statistical and geostatistical analyses were applied to the results. The use and management of soil influenced the spatial behavior of the chemical attributes of IBEs. The cultivation of Brachiaria over many years favored the reduction of the spatial variability of chemical attributes. The use of cacao and coffee crops also favored the homogeneity of the IBEs in relation to the natural forest, but not as much as for Brachiaria, likely due to the succession of crops that preceded these crops. The IBE in the forest contains a high natural spatial correlation in the first 0.1 m of the surface; however, more than 70% of this correlation is linked to a random variation.