Use of variables derived from the Digital Elevation Model for the sustainable planning of soils in Bom Jardim - RJ.

The research goal is to analyze terrain attributes obtained from a digital elevation model (DEM) to represent soil forming factors used in digital soil mapping at Bom Jardim county, Rio de Janeiro state, and also to delimit arable areas. The DEM was generated to represent the altimetry of the study area, and subsequently, the basic attributes of the terrain were extracted: slope, slope height, aspect, valley depth index, topographic moisture index and factor - LS. Soil properties were correlated with terrain attributes through a Spearman correlation method. It is concluded that, the terrain covariates derived from the digital elevation model can represent the soil forming factors and be used at the digital soil mapping of the area, as well as be used to establish agricultural suitability areas in mountainous areas, such as Bom Jardim - RJ