Williams José Méndez Mata

Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Aplicadas / Escuela de Ingeniería Civil / Departamento de Construcciones Civiles y Arquitectura, Faculty Member

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Profesor en Ciencias Naturales Mención Ciencias de la Tierra (UPEL – IPC, 1993). Magister en Geografía Mención Geografía Física (UPEL – IPC, 1999). Doctor en Ciencias de la Ingeniería (UCV-FI, 2015). Miembro activo en el PEII (Investigador Tipo C). Profesor Asociado a Dedicación Exclusiva en los niveles de pregrado y postgrado, adscrito a la Cátedra de Geología del Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra de la UPEL – Instituto Pedagógico de Caracas. Es investigador miembro ordinario activo del Centro de Investigación “Estudios del Medio Físico Venezolano” del IPC, en el que se desempeña como investigador en las líneas Geomorfología Fluvial y Costera de Venezuela; Geografía de los Riesgos Naturales y Antrópicos, Ecogeografía y Conservación de Recursos Naturales; y Gestión y Educación para la Mitigación y Reducción del Riesgo y el Desastre. Ponente en varios eventos profesionales nacionales e internacionales, así como participante y responsable (investigador) de diversos proyectos en las áreas de Geomorfología, Hidrología, Impacto Ambiental y Gestión de Riesgos. Ha publicado varios artículos de investigación en revistas de circulación nacional e internacional. Actualmente Coordinador del Centro de Investigación “Estudios del Medio Físico Venezolano”, y miembro permanente de la Comisión de Asesoría Técnica del Área Geografía en la Academia de Ciencias Físicas, Matemáticas y Naturales (ACFIMAN).
Address: Universidad Pedagógica Experimental Libertador - Instituto Pedagógico de Caracas, Sector "El Pueblo", Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra, Avenida Páez, Urbanización El Paraíso 1020, frente al Colegio de Abogados del Distrito Federal, Caracas, Municipio Libertador, Distrito Capital, Venezuela

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Papers by Williams José Méndez Mata

Depth of the pedological profile as a conditioning factor of soil erodibility (RUSLE K-Factor) in Ecuadorian basins

Environmental Earth Sciences, 2023

Soil erodibility (K-Factor) is one of the fundamental parameters to estimate its rainfall erosion... more Soil erodibility (K-Factor) is one of the fundamental parameters to estimate its rainfall erosion through mathematical models such as RUSLE. Carrying out an erodibility analysis at different pedological depths allows identifying what would be its susceptibility to erosion processes. Soil unit parcel data obtained by long-term field measurements are required, ensuring that the analyzed sections remain uncovered throughout observation period, investing large amounts of time and money. However, the lack of a good and extensive field database is the main limitation to apply this methodology. The objective of this work was to analyze the spatial distribution of soil erodibility in different pedological profiles, through the implementation of satellite data of soil characteristics. The methodology consisted in delimiting and analyzing the environmental characteristics of the Ecuadorian basins, obtaining the clay, silt, sand SOC contents of the analyzed depths, determining the K-Factor values and comparing them with environmental layers. Basins delimitation and environmental characteristics were extracted from regional literature; soil layer contents were obtained from SoilGrids; K-Factor calculation was made from soil characteristics using Software R and QGIS; results comparison against the elevation and land cover parameters were carried out using QGIS. The results allowed to identify very small variations between pedological profiles; determine that clay and silt are the most incident elements of K-Factor; identify that Crop and Grass are coverages that concentrate on the highest values of K-Factor as well as the highest areas. This allows the administrators of the territory to generate measures to reduce soil loss.

Spatio-temporal assessment of rainfall erosivity in Ecuador based on RUSLE using satellite-based high frequency GPM-IMERG precipitation data

Catena, Aug 29, 2022

Soil erosion caused by rainfall is one of the main soil degradation problems in Ecuador and has m... more Soil erosion caused by rainfall is one of the main soil degradation problems in Ecuador and has major implications on conservation and management of water and soil resources, disaster control, agricultural protection and other applications in the Ecuadorian territory. Extensive precipitation time series are required to estimate the rainfall erosivity as a triggering element of soil erosion, however, meteorological stations distribution in Ecuador is not homogeneous over the national territory (greater concentration in coastal basins) and present high lack of data, generating an incorrect rainfall distribution that requires resorting to other types of available information. The objective of this work was to analysis the spatio-temporal distribution of potential soil erosion through rainfall erosivity in Ecuador, through an innovative method based on the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) employing GPM-IMERG rainfall data. Our methodology considered the delimitation and evaluation of the watersheds environmental characteristics, GPM-IMERG, GPCC and ERG-data evaluation as providers of rainfall databases, and calculation of the erosive force of the rain (R-Factor) over the period 2001-2020. Basins delimitation and layers of environmental characteristics were obtained from regional literature; GPM-IMERG and GPCC from web servers; ERG-data from INAMHI-Ecuador; R-Factor (30 min) calculation was made from GPM-IMERG parameters and its was validated with RIST software using a representative subset of pixels, revealing an excellent compatibility of almost 1% average difference. New information was obtained from spatial, interannual and seasonal R-Factor distribution considering environmental characteristics, even though the satellite image products (GPM-IMERG) still underestimate the high values of R-Factor compared to Literature. New models for Ecuador have been established to estimate the R-Factor from annual rainfall, which allow it to be calculated since the beginning of the last century as well as generate projections of future soil erosion. This helps territory managers to take new measures to deal with soil loss.

Acantilados litorales del Pacífico sur de Ecuador (provincia Santa Elena) como marcadores geomorfológicos de susceptibilidad a la erosión litoral

Geociências, May 27, 2022

Coastal erosion and shoreline retreat are one of the main hazards to the populations located in v... more Coastal erosion and shoreline retreat are one of the main hazards to the populations located in various places of the Ecuadorian coast. Several cliff areas of the Santa Elena province were characterized under physical and anthropogenic intervention criteria, considering them as geomorphological markers of erosion and coastal retreat. A sectorization of the coastal profile; analysis of tides and waves; measurement of the coastal retreat; construction of topographic profiles of cliffs; field survey of geological, geomorphological, topographic, hydrodynamic, biological and anthropogenic parameters; and analysis of susceptibility levels of cliffs to coastal erosion were carried out. The differential retreat between the cliffs of different areas is resulting of the combination of physical (lithology, rocky outcrop structures, topographic slope and morphodynamic) and anthropogenic factors (slope stabilization or inadequate engineering practices). All the cliffs show evidence of retreat due to the impact of the coastal hydrodynamics, and the typology of the landslides. In areas where factors that favor the cliff erodibility and coastal retreat stand out, there is a high probability of damage to housing and road, as is already evident in some cases.

Williams José Méndez Mata

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