The Chinese Loess Plateau is one of the most severely eroded regions in the world. It has been calculated that the average erosion modulus for the region is 5000–10,000 t km−2 , even reaching a peak of 20–30,000 t km−2 in some regions (Liu and Liu, 2010), yielding a vast quantity of sediment that is carried by the Yellow River (Huang He) and its tributaries. Approximately 90% of the sediment in the Yellow River originates from soil erosion on the Loess Plateau (Tang, 2004).
Severe soil erosion has led to the impoverishment of cultivated land, and thus poverty of the local people, and to desertification, which destroys land conditions crucial for human survival. Field monitoring and investigations have confirmed the reduction of soil erosion on hill slopes and in small catchments of the Loess Plateau (Zheng, 2006; Zhou et al., 2006). Soil erosion on the Loess Plateau in the latest study showed a significantly declining trend as a result of the improved vegetation cover and ecological construction (Sun et al., 2013).
Only a limited amount of research has been undertaken on the actual or potential effects of land uses or topographies on soil erosion and how this might relate to human modification of vegetation cover initiated by policies such as the “Grain-to-Green” Program (Fu et al., 2011). Therefore, a quantitative assessment is needed for scientific support for the ongoing implementation and evaluation of ecological construction and environmental management programs