Impacts of agricultural intensification on soil erosion and sustainability of olive groves in Alentejo (Portugal)

Abstract Context Olive groves are key features of Iberian Mediterranean landscapes. With the intensification olive grove production, some negative environmental impacts on soils must be considered to achieve farm sustainability. Objectives To estimate, theoretically and empirically, soil erosion in Alentejo (Portugal) considering different planting densities managements (i.e. conventional, integrated, organic), related loss Methods Soil was empirically calculated using sediment traps. modelled Universal Loss Equation (USLE) model. The impact sustainability assessed by simulating future projections 100 500 years. Results An overestimation theoretical rates for all management models compared empirical results observed. Plant cover strongly contributed reduce loss. Temporal simulations based experimental data showed a longer intensive than expected according values. Conclusions Despite agriculture, this study highlights that it is essential consider erosion, an aspect influences sustainability, regardless density. Future studies should expand our experiments across wider sample locations groves, better discern how impacted agricultural options decisions.