In a previous study, the feasibility of four materials (bentonite, steelmaking slag, lime and organic compost) to induce soil aggregate formation was assessed and the mixtures of organic compost and lime were chosen as most effective amendments in terms of cost benefit. This work is a subsequent study to evaluate the effectiveness of those amendments in reducing soil loss in
$15^{\circ}$ sloped agricultural area by using rainfall simulation test. Three different soils were treated with two conditions of organic compost/lime mixtures (2% + 2%, 3% + 1%, w/w). In the amended soils, soil fertility was increased due to the increase of CEC, T-N, and T-P. During the rainfall simulation, suspended solid in run-off water from amended soil were reduced by 43% ~ 78%. When the content of organic compost was higher than that of lime, reduction of soil loss was also increased by 67% ~ 78%. Sediment discharge was also decreased by 72% ~ 96% in the amended soil. Similar to the suspended solid analysis, higher organic compost content led to more reduction of soil discharging, which implies organic compost is more effective than lime in reducing soil loss. The overall result suggests that the mixtures of organic compost and lime could be used as amendment materials to reduce soil loss in sloped farmland.
Keywords: Soil loss;Sloped land;Lime;Organic compost;Run-off water;