Determination of the relationship among compound Topographic Index (CTI), soil properties and land-use in karst ecosystems

ABSTRACT Topography is a key factor that affects edaphic, climatic, and biotic factors directly or indirectly. Relationships between Compound Topographic Index (CTI) model and soil properties were investigated in order to determine the ecological potential of the area in order to plan the sustainability of the fertile lands and the rehabilitation of the degraded areas in the study area. Totally 84 soil samples (0–20 cm) collected from different land use types (forest, cropland, rangeland) in Karst Mountain, Andırın-Kahramanmaras, Turkey. The CTI distributions are generated from digital elevation data of 12 m resolution obtained from AlosPalsar Satellite images. Although CTI values changed to Forest> Cropland> Rangeland, the highest correlation was found between CTI and soil moisture content in rangeland (R2 = 0.81). Lower correlations were found with other land uses (R2 = 0.63 in Cropland and R2 = 0.31 in Forest). CEC and Clay content were found to have a significant (p < 0.01) positive correlation with Curvature. Despite a distinctive topographic structure of karst ecosystems, these correlations verified the influence of topography on soil properties. CTI, which has strong correlations with soil moisture content can be used in planning reclamation processes of degraded karst ecosystems.