Soil erodibility study at Sepang, Batu Dam and Puchong areas / Bakri Dahalan

Soil erosion has become a very serious problem in Malaysia in recent times, and with the accelerated rate of land development both in the public and commercial sectors, this problem will certainly enhance and worsen unless proper planning and management of the utilisation of land is adopted at the very early stage of any proposal of land use. Severe soil erosion is among the major cause of landslide and hence, this issue should be addressed seriously by all and at any cost since the development of land and land usage seem to be the prime activities of the general public now and forever. Soil erosion is the function of erosivity of rainfall and the erodibility of soil. Erosivity is defined as the potential ability of the rainfall to cause erosion, whilst, erodibility is defined as the vulnerability of the soil to erosion. Every soil on this planet has its own erodibility factor and this factor will dictate its erodibility potentials in relation to other environmental factors. Erodibility potential of a soil would determine the risk or degree of erosion potential of that particular soil, hence, one would be able to predict the sustainability of the soil in respect to erosion in which constructions will be erected on it. This form of early information would enable one to take essential precaution measures to uphold the condition of the soil or to take some other alternatives in preventing any erosion risk to occur at the project area to be developed.