Clarification on avoided erosion and avoided export

What is the issue or question you have?

The user guide defines the terms as:

  • Avoided erosion (avoided_erosion.tif) - Vegetation’s contribution to reducing erosion from a pixel. In other words, valuing the vegetation for not allowing erosion to happen in the first place. This indicates the ecosystem service from the perspective of local soil loss, which would be of interest, for example, in farming areas where topsoil retention is important.

  • Avoided export (avoided_export.tif) - Vegetation’s contribution to avoided erosion from a pixel, as well as trapping of sediment originating upslope of the pixel, so that neither of these proceed downslope to enter a stream. This may also be thought of as the total sediment retained on the pixel. Avoided export indicates the ecosystem service from the perspective of a downstream water user, who would benefit from having sediment kept out of the stream they are using for drinking, hydropower, or other uses.

Is it correct to say:

Avoided_export = Avoided_erosion + trapping_sediment_from_upstream

Reading carefully, in the guide the wording is this:

  • Avoided erosion (avoided_erosion.tif) - Vegetation’s contribution to reducing erosion…
    and
  • Avoided export (avoided_export.tif) - Vegetation’s contribution to avoided erosion from a pixel, as well as trappi…

What I’m asking is, is the value “Vegetation’s contribution to reducing erosion” identical to “Vegetation’s contribution to avoided erosion” ?

What do you expect to happen?

an amazing person from InVEST pops by and answers my question.

What have you tried so far?

reading the guide

Attach the logfile here:

none.

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Hi @gismat -

What I’m asking is, is the value “Vegetation’s contribution to reducing erosion” identical to “Vegetation’s contribution to avoided erosion” ?

Yes, it is identical. Another way of saying it is vegetation’s contribution to keeping soil on a pixel, and not letting it move downslope.

~ Stacie

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