1. Introduction
The increasing rate of land cover land use change (LCLUC) and its impacts is the most important issues imply the sustainable development of natural resources. A large number of farmers in Thailand the immediate problems of today cost of living override any consideration of the future. They are geared to safety and utilize minimum input for subsistence. The development program in the subsistence economic initiated by his Majesty the King Bhumipol has been used countrywide in Thailand. However, intensive use of natural resources calls for detailed investigation of LCLUC and its impact. The soils in Northeast Thailand are inherently low in fertility and have light texture with vulnerable erodibiltiy. At present, demands on land production have been forced into the expansion of land use that is often in appropriate and
results in degradation of forest and soils. Soil erosion prediction as a result of LCLUC is an immediate need to envisage the future trend in the sustainable development. A number of researches in many parts of the world try to quantify the LCLUC and its impact on soil erosion for sustainable development of landuse.
The study conducted by Solaimani K. et al (2009) emphasized the importance of LCLU changes in soil erosion over the Mediterranean basins, providing the relationships between land use patterns, erosion and the sediment yield. The role of land use change on water erosion was studied in Hungary, identifying the use of water erosion prediction project (WEPP) model in comparison to the USLE model. The USLE calculates 4-5 times more soil loss. (Demeny K. et al, 2008) Field experiments on soil loss under shifting cultivation conducted by Takahashi K. et al (1984) and Nagahori K. et al (1984) reported the severe rates of soil loss occurring mainly in the first year after clearing the forest. Due to dynamic nature of soil erosion, attention should be given in the factors involved and how to parameterize the factors. Using land cover
change scenarios allows people to better understand the consequence of land use changes and their effects on non point source and erosion (Carter J. et al, 2005) Another study conducted by Bricquet J. P. (2003) on soil erosion under land use change from two catchments in Laos and Thailand was based on two scenarios of climate change and LCLUC. The results confirmed the very high sensibility of soil erosion to land use change as compared to climatic change. This study aims to model the impact of LCLUC on soil loss, using multitemporal satellite data and GIS.