Holocene sediment budgets for upland catchments: The problem of soilscape model and data availability

This study presents a Holocene sediment budget for the upland catchment of the Speyerbach in the Palatinate Forest, southwestern Germany. The influences of both, data availability and the choice of an appropriate soilscape model on the sediment budget calculations are investigated. For budget calculations the spatial distribution of soils was derived from the soil map 1:50,000. Thickness values of soil truncation and colluvial burial were extracted from two soil data sets with varying information content. Data processing contained a disaggregation of the soil map with the help of land use data. In order to model the sediment budget a reference soil thickness (a so-called soilscape model), which represents the initial conditions is necessary. As upland soils are developed in periglacial solifluction sheets, the main solifluction sheet (MSS, “Hauptlage”) showing a constant thickness and being affected by soil forming processes was chosen.