Evaluation of the Potential Water Erosion of the Jama River Basin for Management and Control Purposes

The Jama River basin is located north of the Manabí province. It has an area of 1,371.65 km2, which is equivalent to 11.93% of the territory of the Manabí hydrographic demarcation. The multiannual average precipitation in the area has been estimated at 736.96mm with an average temperature of 25 ° C. The area is very productive, however, due to the irregular distribution of runoff, 90% in the rainy season and 10% in the dry season, there is a large water deficit, especially in the months of May to December. With the Integral Plan for the Development of Water Resources in the province of Manabí, a project was identified in 1990 to be able to store the runoff from the Jama River and thereby overcome the deficit problem, but due to the lack of economic resources so far no nothing has been done about it and the problem of water scarcity is becoming more and more acute. As a contribution to future decisions for the development of the water resources of the Jama River basin, in this research work an estimate of the potential water erosion of the mentioned basin has been made, which is essential for dredging projects, management of reservoirs, reforestation plans, etc. For this purpose, the USLE has been applied, and erosion has been categorized according to the patterns established by the FAO.