Urbanization, Erosion, and Landscape Transformations in the Sóter Stream Watershed in Campo Grande, MS

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the formation and evolution of the gully located in the Ecological Park of Sóter within the urban perimeter of Campo Grande/MS. For the analysis, the context of the Sóter Stream Watershed was considered. The cartographic base used was the aerophotogrammetric survey at a scale of 1:1,000/2013. Once the digital elevation model was generated, the watershed boundary was extracted and the topographic attributes that influence hydrogeomorphic processes were calculated. The historical analysis of landscape transformation was based on orthophotos from the 1970s and 1980s, land use and cover data from MapBiomas, and images from Google Earth. The linear erosion process originated between the 1970s and 1980s in response to urban expansion and the channeling of the stormwater drainage system to a single point. This, combined with the sandy soils, led to the formation of the gully. Over the years, no measures have been taken by the municipal government to recover the area, and the erosion process remains active, resulting in environmental and economic impacts.