Date Presented:

Abstract:

The Paros Island (Cyclades Islands, Aegean Sea, Greece) is characterized by a Mediterranean type of climate, while the Tihany Peninsula (Trans Danubian Middle Range Mountains, Lake Balaton, Hungary) is characterized by a Sub-Mediterranean type of climate. The Paros Island has abrupt rainfalls and lower temperatures during winters and long term sunshine accompanied by dry periods during the summer. The situation is similar in the Tihany Peninsula, except that there is snowfall in the winter and very intensive but short rainfalls in the summertime. These circumstances constitute a tough environment for the land. The low or sparse vegetation and steep slopes of the investigated areas leaves the ground exposed and very vulnerable to erosion. The recent change to the activities of the local people from agricultural to touristic ones and especially the abandonment of the agricultural terraces during the last 50 years has influenced the soil cover of the island, leading to total soil loss
and exposure of the bedrock in many areas. The increase of tourist activities caused the same results however the agricultural activities have not ceased but increased a little. The slopes of the examined areas are high in general terms thus making soil regeneration almost impossible. The soil that is transferred is either moving towards the small alluvial plains of the island and inside the peninsula in Hungary. We try to compare the situation of the investigated Greek island and Hungarian peninsula by
pointing out the areas that still appear to be in a high risk for erosion and to estimate the average amount of soil loss. For the later the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) was tested on the data of the island. The application of the USLE took place with the use of MapInfo and ArcGIS Tools. We wish to give some details about the experiences of using the USLE model on these two territories.