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The aim of this study was to carry out a detailed soil survey to determine soil types and their influence
on landslide occurrence in Bududa District in eastern Uganda. Four transects were chosen following
zones with and without landsides. Soil profile description and classification was done using FAO
methods. Infiltration rates were measured as described by Landon in 1991. Results show that the soil
types are those conditioned by topography and tropical climate namely Nitisols, Cambisols, Lixisols,
Ferralsols, Leptosols, Gleysols, and Acrisols. Soil type was not significant in landslide occurrences.
However soil texture in the horizons was significant in some of the landslides especially in the western
zone. One factor that was common to all soils sampled in the western side was the same soil texture of
clay down the profile and the subsequent absence of landslides in the surroundings of the profiles. In
the eastern zone soil profile horizon is significant in some of the landslides but in the shallow
landslides the slope and the shallow depth which creates a discontinuity between the saprolite and the
rock causing water stagnation is the main influence. The clay minerals present are high plasticity clays;
Kaolinite and Illite. The infiltration rate of the top soils is generally rapid in the top soils, allowing fast
flow of water into the deeper horizons.
Key words: Soil types, soil horizon, infiltration, landslides, Bududa district.
INTRODUCTION
Although considerable research has been done on land- There is probably no such a thing as a single cause of
slides in the world, little is known about their causes in landslides, because a number of conditions usually inte-
the mountainous areas of Uganda. Bududa District which ract to make a rock or soil susceptible to landsliding.
lies on the steep slopes of Mt. Elgon in eastern Uganda According to Knapen et al. (2006), the factors that
has increasingly experienced catastrophic landslides over influence landslides in the east African highlands are high
the years and according to one of the elders, in the past rainfall, steep slopes, slope shape and high clay content
communities believed in myths and superstitions as the in the soils. Sidle (1985), observed that soil properties
causes of these landslides. Chenery (1960), in ‘An intro- such as particle size and pore distribution of the soil ma-
duction to the soils of the Uganda Protectorate’, mentions trix can influence slope stability. These properties
soil slips in this area of Bududa. During the El Niño rains influence the rate of water movement and the capacity of
of 1997 landslides killed forty eight people and displaced the soil to hold water. In addition finer soils tend to hold
ten thousand in this area (Kitutu et al., 2004). By 2004 higher volumes of water under unsaturated conditions
about fifteen thousand people were displaced and land- than do coarse textured soils (Sidle, 1985). Other para-
less, giving a rate of 700 internally displaced persons per meters that play a part in triggering landslides are swell-
year. In addition, damage to roads and bridges further ing properties of clay and the rate at which water infil-
constrains the district in development initiatives. trates into the clay at depth (Inganga and Ucakuwun,
2001). Zung AB (2008) shows that certain soil charac-
teristics may be useful tools for assessing landslide
*Corresponding author: Email: gkitutu@nemaug.org, Tel: frequency. He further supports the hypothesis that land-
+256772629368. Fax: +25641257521. slide occurrence in the Bridger-Teton National Forest is
612 Afr. J. Agric. Res.
MATERIALS AND METHODS The scarps of most of the landslides in the western zone of Bududa
district show the same sequence of layers (Brugelmans, 2003).
Study area These landslide scarps are indicated in Figure 1 and the sequence
shows buried soil profiles. Radiometric analyses were done using
The study area is in Bududa district which lies at the foot of the 210
Pb dating techniques to interpret the buried soil profiles. Dried
south-western slopes of the Mount Elgon volcano. It is geographi- sediment samples from a soil core from a landslide scar at Busayi
Kitutu et al. 613
Table 1. Horizon properties for the soil profile on the carbonatite dome (Soil type:
Rhodic Nitisol).
Soil Horizon Depth (cm) Clay % Silt (%) Sand (%) Texture class
A 0 - 40 49.6 21.3 29.1 Clay
B 40 - 140 63.6 13.3 23.1 Clay
B continues 140 beyond Clay
in Bududa zone were analysed for 210Pb, 226Ra, and 137Cs by direct (Reedman, 1973). The stability of these soils may be due
gamma assay in the Liverpool University Environmental Radioacti- to the high cohesion as a result of cementing minerals
vity Laboratory, using Ortec HPGe GWL series well-type coaxial
low background intrinsic germanium detectors (Appleby et al.
such as calcium carbonate. A similar phenomenon was
1986). 210Pb was determined via its gamma emissions at 46.5 keV, also observed by Pearce et al. (1981) in New Zealand,
and 226Ra by the 295 keV and 352 keV γ-rays emitted by its daugh- that the degree of calcium carbonate cementing was
ter isotope 214Pb following 3 weeks storage in sealed containers to directly related to some of the stable rocks and soils.
allow radioactive equilibration. 137Cs was measured by its emissions
at 662 keV. The absolute efficiencies of the detectors were deter-
mined using calibrated sources and sediment samples of known
Soils in the western zone
activity. Corrections were made for the effect of self-absorption of
low energy γ-rays within the sample (Appleby et al. 1992).
The Bududa and Bushika transects are situated in the
zone west of the carbonatite dome. The soil types identi-
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION fied are Cambisols, Nitisols, Acrisols and Lixisols.
The described soil profiles at sample areas gr1, gr2,
Soil variability gr3, gr4, gr5 and gr6 show a similar sequence of high
clay content throughout the horizon (Table 2) and this
Most of the upland soils on steep slopes and pediments sequence differs from the one observed by Knapen et al.,
in the surveyed area are deep and very porous in the top 2006 at the landslide scars. The sample area gr3 being
100cm of clay loams or clays. They have very little or no downslope is not susceptible to landslide occurrences
laterite and they show very little horizon differentiation (Table 2). Four landslides were observed around gr5 but
below the top 20 - 25 cm apart from slight changes in the soil profile does not show any horizon stratification
firmness. However, along the streams which radiate neither the properties of water stagnation which seem to
almost from all directions, especially from the mountain be common to the soils on the landslide scars. The
slopes, soil material has been brought down and packed sequence of buried soil profiles appears to be localised at
with stiff clay, forming an impervious layer within 100 cm places were the landslides occur and this may be due to
from the soil surface. Stratification above this layer is not past landslide activity. Past landslide activity was
a common feature due mainly to the speed of the water confirmed by the local people in this western zone and
which tended to carry away all fresh sediments to the they estimated a recurrence of approximately 100 years.
lower areas.
Table 2. Texture analysis and infiltration for soils around the Carbonatite dome in Bududa District.
Soil Depth (cm) Clay % Silt (%) Sand Texture Cumulative Basic Infiltration Infiltration category Number of
Horizon (%) class Intake (cm). rates (cm/hr) (BA1,1979) landslides
Bududa transect
Soil profile gr1: Fluvic Cambisol ( Lower slope) landuse : banana and coffee
Ap 0-20 43.6 11.3 45.1 Sandy clay
AB 20-32 - - - - 96.1 12.4 Rapid 0
B 32-90 45.6 13.3 41.1 Clay
BC 90-120 47.6 11.3 41.1 Clay
C 120+ 57.6 13.3 33.1 Clay
Soil profile gr2: Rhodic Nitisol ( Lower slope) landuse : banana and coffee
Ap 0-15 55.6 15.3 29.1 Clay
B1 15-45 55.6 7.3 29.1 Clay 212.4 25.2 Rapid 0
B2 45-80 53.6 19.3 39.1 Clay
BC 80-150 45.6 17.3 35.1 Clay
Soil profile gr3: Rhodic Acrisol (Upper slope) landuse : banana and coffee
Ap 0-15 53.6 17.3 29.1 Clay
Bt1 15-50 81.6 11.3 7.1 Clay 227.1 38.0 Very rapid 0
Bt2 50-160 83.6 7.3 9.1 Clay
BC 160-200 77.6 5.3 17.1 Clay
Bushika transect
Soil profile gr6: Endo-skeletic Cambisol (Upper slope) Landuse : cultivated garden
Ap 0-30 49.6 9.3 41.1 Clay
B1 30-50 55.6 5.3 39.1 Clay 176.7 29.6 Very rapid 0
B 50+ - - - -
Soil profile gr5: Rhodic Nitisol (Upper slope) Landuse : cultivated garden
Ap 0-30 57.6 15.3 27.1 Clay
B 30-80 43.6 11.3 45.1 Sandy clay 216.7 36.8 Very rapid 4
Bt 80-120 53.6 9.3 37.1 Clay
B 120 + - - - -
Soil profile gr4: Haplic Lixisol ( upper slope) land use : banana coffee
Ap 0-30 57.6 11.3 31.1 Clay
Bt 30-90 69.6 11.3 19.1 Clay 275.8 3.1 Moderately slow 0
Bc 90-160 67.6 7.3 25.1 Clay
Nusu transect
Soil profile gr7: Haplic Ferralsol (lower slope) landuse: sugarcane and Eucalyptus
Ap 0-20 39.6 13.3 47.1 Sandy clay
616 Afr. J. Agric. Res.
Table 2. Contd.
Atterberg limits
210
Pb
137
Depth Total Unsupported Supported Cs
-2 -1 -1 -1 -1
cm g cm Bq kg ± Bq kg ± Bq kg ± Bq kg ±
50 63 39.3 3.8 -28.9 3.9 68.2 0.8 0.0 0.0
100 137 48.9 4.8 -10.4 4.9 59.4 1.0 0.0 0.0
150 215 33.2 3.0 -12.0 3.1 45.3 0.6 0.0 0.0
200 288 25.0 3.2 -7.8 3.2 32.9 0.6 0.0 0.0
250 351 34.1 3.2 -7.3 3.3 41.3 0.6 0.0 0.0
300 415 53.7 3.0 3.7 3.1 50.0 0.6 0.0 0.0
Lixisols, Ferralsols, Leptosols, Gleysols, Nitisols and Acri- phere for more than a decade and hence cannot be
210
sols. The soil type has no influence on landslides but soil dated using Pb method.
texture seems to be of significance. Landslides in
western zone are due to soil horizon stratification that
favours water stagnation in the lower horizons and they ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
are only confined to places where there is water stag-
nation in the lower soil horizons. The landslides in the Appreciation goes to Mr. Clement Ssali a soil scientist at
eastern zone are dependent on several factors which Namalere Agricultural Station for the technical support
include soil texture, depth to the bedrock, landuse and during the soil surveys. More appreciation goes to Dr.
slope shape. The clay minerals present are Kaolinite and Moses Isabirye and Mr. Sendiwanyo of Kawanda Agricul-
illite. The buried soil profiles in the western side could be tural Research Institute and Dr. Mwanjalulu Mwajaliwa of
due to different landslide events but the high deposition Makerere University for the technical assistance during
rates do not allow the soils be exposed to the atmos- the laboratory soil analysis and general discussions.
Kitutu et al. 619
Figure 6. Total and supported 210Pb concentrations versus depth in the Bududa soil
core.