Abstract
Gully development and expansion in southeastern Nigeria have threatened humans and the ecosystem, leading to several environmental damages worth millions of dollars. This has drawn the attention of many researchers and environmental stakeholders in recent decades. In this study, an integrated approach involving field survey, geotechnical, and geomorphological assessment was employed to ascertain the erodibility potential of two erosion-prone geologic units in southeastern Nigeria. Based on the field observations, soils from the studied gullies were composed of loose lateritic unconsolidated soils belonging to the Upper Cretaceous (Maastrichtian)—lower Paleocene and middle Eocene. On the basis of the grain size study, it was discovered that the soil components of both geological formations were devoid of finer soil materials. The soil permeability coefficients ranged from 1.13 × 10−5 to 2.45 × 10−4 m/s and 6.18 × 10−5 to 5.25 × 10−4 m/s for the Ajali and Nanka formations, respectively. The maximum dry density (MDD) ranged from 1.69 to 1.90 g/cm3 and 1.72 to 2.10 g/cm3, whereas optimum moisture content (OMC) ranged from 11.0 to 14.30 % and 12.12 to 18.10 % in the compaction test. Indications that the soils are non-plastic to low-plastic were drawn from the natural moisture content (NMC) results and the Atterberg limit. The soil cohesion ranged from 0−6 kPa to 1−7 kPa. The friction angle varied from 23−28o and 32−38o. Results from this study revealed that the soil materials have poor geotechnical properties and are susceptible to erosion due to the prevalence of rainfall in the area. The geomorphological characteristics show that topographically, the region is characterised by undulating and steep gully slope gradients, with the gullies in the Ajali Formation showing higher susceptibility to landslides compared to those of Nanka. Findings from this study have shown that the occurrence of gullies in the area is attributed mainly to poor soil geotechnical properties and geomorphological characteristics.
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Unigwe, C.O., Igwe, O., Onwuka, O.S. et al. Understanding the influence of geotechnical and geomorphological characteristics on the erosional processes of two geologic units in Udi and Aguata, SE Nigeria. Arab J Geosci 16, 231 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-023-11311-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-023-11311-6