The soil erosion predicted by the RUSLE model based on the factors mentioned above was well supported by data from a field 137CS study, and the fitting correlation coefficients were 0.8869 (P b 0.01).
The annual average soil erosion for 2000–2010 on the Loess Plateau was 15.2 t ha−1 yr−1 , with a standard deviation of 26.5 t ha−1 yr−1.
The spatial distribution of the average soil erosion on the Loess Plateau from 2000 to 2010 was characteristically light for the annual average soil erosion, being less than 25 t ha−1 yr−1 and accounting for 80.5% of the total area (Fig. 2-e).
According to the Technological Standard of Soil and Water Conservation SL190-2007, issued by the Ministry of Water Resources of China, the quantitative output of the estimated soil loss was divided into seven ordinal classes. Most of the Loess Plateau fell within the minimal and low erosion categories during 2000 to 2010 (Table 2). Areas of moderate, severe, and very severe soil erosion were mainly distributed in gully and hilly regions and mountainous areas in the central and southwestern parts of the Loess Plateau, where fragmented topography with well-developed gullies and steep slopes characterize the landscape.