Evaluation of groundwater potential zones in the sub-watersheds of north pennar river basin around Pavagada, Karnataka, India using remote sensing and GIS techniques

The study area is one of the watersheds of North Pennar basin, covering an area of 570 km² in Pavagada taluk of Tumkur district. The watershed has been subdivided into nine sub-watersheds namely Dalavayihalli, Maddalenahalli, Talamaradahalli, Puluvalli tank, Nagalamadike, Gowdatimmanahalli, Naliganahalli, Devadabetta and Byadanur. These nine sub-watersheds have been evaluated to delineate groundwater potential zones based on the characteristics of geomorphic units together with slope, geology, lineaments, borewell data using Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques. Slope varies from nearly level (0–1%) to very steep (>35%). The different geomorphic units in each sub-watershed consist of denudational hills, residual hills, inselbergs, pediment inselberg complex, pediments, shallow weathered pediplains, moderately weathered pediplains and valley fills. The lineament map for each sub-watershed has been prepared and the trends were analysed with rose diagrams. The analysis of borewell locations and their yield data in association with lineaments at subwatersheds level reveals that the lineaments are acting as a pathway for groundwater movement. The integrated map comprising groundwater potential zones prepared by “Union” function using GIS indicate that valley fills and moderately weathered pediplains are very good to good, shallow weathered pediplains are good to moderate, pediment inselberg complex and pediments are moderate to poor and denudational hills, residual hills and inselbergs are poor to very poor groundwater prospect zones.     

Perspect and assessment of groundwater resources using remote sensing techniques in and around Choral river basin,Indore and Khargone districts,M.P.

The study area around Choral river basin in the Narmada valley region, forms a part of Indore and Khargone districts of Madhya Pradesh. The geological, geomorphologic, lineament, hydrogeomorphic and groundwater potential zone maps of the study area have been prepared using IRS IC LISS III FCC imagery on 1:50,000 scale. Various litho-units, different land-forms, lineament fabric and hydro-geomorphic units have been worked out by visual interpretation methods and frequent field checks. The integrated hydro-geomorphological map of the study area reveals that the groundwater potential in denudation landforms such as buried pediplains, plateaus, denudational and residual hills is moderate-to-poor. On the other hand, the groundwater occurrence in structural landforms like structural hills, lineaments/faults and narrow gorges is likely to be good to moderate and the depositional landforms namely alluvial plains, valley-fills and meandering-channels favour the accumulation of sub-surface water and, therefore, may be considered as good recharge zones. From the point of view of groundwater occurrence, various hydro-geomorphic units have been classified as high, moderate and low potential zones.     

Groundwater potential in the hard rock terrain of western ghats: A case study from Kottayam district,Kerala using resourcesat (IRS-P6) data and GIS techniques

The present study was aimed to identify and delineate the groundwater potential areas in parts of Western Ghats, Kottayam, covering the upper catchment of Meenachil river. The study area is composed rocks of Archaean age and Charnockite dominated over others. The information on lithology, geomorphology, lineaments, slope and land use/land cover was generated using the Resourcesat (IRS P6 LISS III) data and Survey of India (Sol) toposheets of scale 1:50,000 (surveyed in 1969) and integrated them with raster based Geographical Information System (GIS) to identify the groundwater potential of the study area. Thus, a GIS-based model which takes account of local condition/variations has been developed specifically for mapping groundwater potential. On the basis of hydrogeomorphology, three categories of groundwater potential zones namely good, moderate and poor were identified, and delineated. The high potential zones correspond to the fracture valleys, valley fills, pediments and denudational slope, which coincide with the low slope and high lineaments density areas. The low zone mainly comprise structural hills and escarpments and these act as run-off zones. The derived panchayath-wise groundwater potentiality information could be used for effective identification of suitable locations for extraction of potable water for rural populations.     

Geological, geomorphological, hydrogeological and land use/land cover studies around kamthi area, Nagpur district, Maharashtra using remote sensing techniques

Detailed geological, geomorphological, hydrogeological and land use/land cover studies have been carried out for the Kamthi and adjoining areas of district Nagpur by visual interpretation method of remote sensing data of IRS LISS III, FCC of bands 2, 3 and 4. The interpreted data is supplemented as well as cross-checked by field visits to add minor details of lithounits, nature of lithological contacts, geological and geomorphological features. On the basis of these studies, the various lithounits: Archaean metasediments, the Talchir Shale. the Barakar Sandstone, the Kamthi Sandstone, basalt and alluvium have been mapped. Geomorphological units are mainly of denudational and fluvial origins and are represented by dissected plateaus, pediplains, pediments and alluvium. The land use/land cover study shows that a major part of the area is covered by agricultural land followed by built up and waste land. The flowing and stagnant water bodies, mine and mine dump have also been identified. In the present paper, an attempt has been made to delineate the area with reference to ground water prospects into excellent, very good to good, moderate and poor ground water prospect zones. It has been observed that the sandstone lithounits form excellent aquifers while the basalt and shale form moderate to poor aquifers respectively.     

Remote Sensing and GIS Approach for Delineation of Groundwater Potential and Groundwater Quality Zones of Western Doon Valley, Uttarakhand, India

Groundwater exploration in the Western Doon valley has been carried out to delineate the groundwater potential and groundwater quality zones suitable for domestic purposes based on the integrated use of Remote Sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS). The Western Doon Valley, occupying broad synclinal troughs in the evolving fold-thrust system of sub-Himalaya, which is filled by post-Siwalik fluvial and debris flow deposits in the late Quaternary-Holocene. The Western Doon Valley area is bounded by the Mussoorie range in the north with 1800–2800 m elevation and in the south by young topographic relief of the frontal Siwalik range with ~800 m average elevation. Groundwater quality of Western Doon valley through pictorially representation in the GIS environment, it is inferred that calcium, magnesium, total hardness and nitrate at some locations above the desirable limit. The groundwater prospects map has been prepared by integrating the hydrogeomorphologic, land use/land cover from satellite data (IRS-ID, LISS-III data) slope, soil, drainage density, depth to water table of pre-monsoon and post-monsoon periods (unconfined aquifer), water table fluctuation, static water level (confined to semi-confined aquifers), specific capacity, discharge and drawdown maps using index overlay method in the GIS environment. The groundwater prospects are depicted in five categories Very high, high, moderate, low and very low (runoff zone) integrated with the groundwater quality zones which have been prepared from hydrochemical data. The results indicated that 16.82 % of the area is under Very high potential zone category with 16.11 % and 0.71 % of desirable and undesirable quality of groundwater and 18.65 %, 42.06 %, 6.96 % and 15.46 % classified as high, moderate, low and very low potential zones with desirable and undesirable quality of groundwater for domestic purposes. This study be useful for designing the groundwater prospects and management plan for the sustainable development of study area.     

Role of satellite remote sensing in land system mapping,land resources inventory and land use planning: A sample study of kemang river basin,Arunachal Pradesh

Here an attempt has been made to highlight the importance of satellite remote sensing in land system mapping, land resources inventory and land use planning of a sample river basin (in Arunachal Pradesh) covering an area of 10,186 sq. km. The (Kemang) river basin has been divided intofour land systems viz : structural, denudational, piedmont and fluvial. Each system has been analysed with respect toeight land water-land use (resource) parameters for proper land use and environmental management of the river basin. A tentative‘productivity/development strategy ranking’ is also given for optimum planning of the basin.     

Hydromorphogeological mapping of Panwari area,Hamirpur district,Uttar Pradesh using satellite data

The area around Panwari town, Hamirpur district, Uttar Pradesh, faces acute water scarcity and chronically drought prone. The groundwater resources in the area have not been fully exploited. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the groundwater prospective zones. Landsat TM and IRS-1A LISS-II data have been used to differentiate different hydromorphogeological units and to delineate the major trends of lineaments. The digitally enhanced False Colour Composite, Principal Component Analysis and Edge Detections were useful for better correlation. The digital enhancement was helpful with identification of faint lineaments. In addition, the boundaries of various lands forms were better discriminable on the digitally enhanced products. The deeply and moderately weathered buried pediplains are the most potential zones for groundwater targeting. Occurrence of lineaments in such zones is also a favourable indicator. A number of promising groundwater well sites have been located in the pediplains.     

Evaluation of groundwater potential zones using Remote Sensing data in upper Vaigai river basin,Tamil Nadu,India

The area of upper Vaigai river basin covering parts of Madurai and Theni Districts, in Tamil Nadu, faces acute water scarcity and chronically drought prone. The groundwater resources in the area have not been fully exploited. The present investigation has been made to evaluate the potential zones for groundwater targeting using IRS - ID LISS III geocoded data on 1:50,000 scale. The geology, geomorphology, lineament tectonic maps are generated and integrated to evaluate the hydrogeomorphological characteristics of the upper Vaigai river basin and demarcate the groundwater potential zones. A number of geomorphic units have been observed. Out this the more groundwater prospective units are buried pediment medium, buried pediment deep, flood plain, bajada and lineament and intersection of lineaments. Non potential areas like pediment, pediment inselberg, shallow pediment and pediplain were identified.     

Identification of Groundwater Potential Zones Using Remote Sensing Techniques In and Around Guntur Town, Andhra Pradesh, India

The area in and around Guntur Town in Andhra Pradesh faces an acute water problem. It represents plain land and gentle slope responsible for infiltration and groundwater recharge. Adequate groundwater resource is reported to be available in the investigated area. It has not been properly exploited. The present investigation is, therefore, undertaken to assess groundwater favourable zones for development and exploration with the help of geomorphological units and associated features. The identified units and features by remote sensing technology with the integration of conventional information and limited ground truths are shallow weathered pediplain (PPS), moderately weathered pediplain (PPM), deeply weathered pediplain (PPD), residual hill (RH) and lineaments (L). The results show that the PPD, PPM and PPS are good, moderate to good and poor to moderate promising zones, respectively for groundwater prospecting. The RH is a poor geomorphological unit in respect to prospective zone as groundwater resource. However, adequate recharge source of groundwater can be expected surrounding the RH, as it acts as surface run-off zone. Lineaments parallel to the stream courses and intersecting-lineaments are favourable indicators for groundwater development. They can also be utilized to augment groundwater resource.     

Hydromorphogeological Mapping for Groundwater Prospecting Using Landsat-MSS Images — A Case Study of Part of Dhanbad District,Bihar

The Dhanbad district in Bihar, feces acate water scareity and is chronically drought prone. The groundwater resources in the area have not been fully exploited. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the groundwater prospective zones, Landsat-5 MSS data of band-2 and band-4 and false colour composite of band 2, 3, 4 were interpreted visually to differentiate different hydromarphogeological units and to delineate the major trends of lineaments. The different geomorphic features identified are linear ridges, residual hills, pediplain, buried pedtment and dissected pediplain, besides lineaments. The study shows that the pediplain and buried pediments are promising zones for groundwater prospecting.     

Groundwater prospects evaluation-based on hydrogeomorphological mapping: A case study in Kancheepuram district,Tamil Nadu

Water is the most important natural resource which forms the core of the ecological system. The advent of remote sensing has opened up new vistas in groundwater prospect evaluation, exploration and management. The role of hydrogeomorphological units in tile storage of groundwater from the Kancheepuram distict has been investigated using IRS P6 LISS-III data. The Kancheepuram district exhibits diverse hydrogeomorphological conditions where the groundwater regime is controlled mainly by topography and geology. The extent of various water prospectus zones in terms of percentage includes, maximum area, particularly the north-western, and central part which is characterized by good potential occupying about 43% of total area. The moderate potential is marked by only 35%, and is scattered along the northern and southern side of the study area, the remaining 12% is of poor prospectus, which is falling in the coastal region of the study area.     

A shoreline change analysis along the coast between Kanyakumari and Tuticorin,India, using digital shoreline analysis system

The shoreline is one of the rapidly changing landforms in coastal areas.They are the key element in coastal GIS and provide the most information on coastal land form dynamics.Therefore,accurate detection and frequent monitoring of shorelines is very essential to understand the coastal processes and dynamics of various coastal features.The present study is to investigate the shoreline changes along the coast between Kanyakumari and Tuticorin of south India(where hydrodynamic and morphologic changes occur continuously after the December 2004 tsunami)by using Digital Shoreline Analysis System(DSAS),an extension of ArcGIS.Multidate IRS and Landsat Satellite data(1999,2001,2003,2005,2007,and 2009)are used to extract the shorelines.The data is processed by using the ERDAS IMAGINE 9.1 software and analyzed by ArcGIS 9.2 workstation.The rates of shoreline changes are estimated by three statistical methods,namely,End Point Rate(EPR),Linear Regression Rate(LRR),and Least Me-dian of Squares(LMS)by using DSAS.The study reveals that most of the study area has undergoing erosion.Both natural and an-thropogenic processes along the coast modify the shoreline configuration and control the erosion and accretion of the coastal zones.The coastal zones along the estuary have experienced accretion due to the littoral processes.The zones with headlands have more eroded than other zones along the study area.The study also shows that the coastal zones where sand is mined have relatively more rate of erosion than that of the other zones.Improper and unsustainable sand mining may also lead to severe erosion problem along this area.The shoreline change rates are altered by various geological processes along the coast.Thus,the present study implies that proper beach filling and nourishment projects should be made in the study area to save from hazards.It also indicates the advantage and suitability of DSAS to assess the shoreline changes compared with the traditional manual shoreline change analysis and prom-ising its applications for coastal zone management in other regions.     

Identification of Groundwater Potential Zones of a Tropical River Basin (Kerala,India) Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques

The present work accentuated the expediency of remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) applications in groundwater studies, especially in the identification of groundwater potential zones in Ithikkara River Basin (IRB), Kerala, India. The information on geology, geomorphology, lineaments, slope and land use/land cover was gathered from Landsat ETM + data and Survey of India (SOI) toposheets of scale 1:50,000 in addition, GIS platform was used for the integration of various themes. The composite map generated was further classified according to the spatial variation of the groundwater potential. Four categories of groundwater potential zones namely poor, moderate, good and very good were identified and delineated. The hydrogeomorphological units like valley fills and alluvial plain and are potential zones for groundwater exploration and development and valley fills associated with lineaments is highly promising area for groundwater extraction. The spatial variation of the potential indicates that groundwater occurrence is controlled by geology, structures, slope and landforms.     

Hydromorphogeology and Remote Sensing applications for groundwater exploration in agnigundala mineralised belt, Andhra Pradesh, India

Hydromorphogeological studies have been carried out around Agnigundala mineralised belt (longitude 70°.39′ - 16°.51′ and latitude 16°.2′ - 16°.15′) using remote sensing IRS-IB and SPOT data for ground water exploration. Based on erosional and depositional characters of various geomorphic units like Hills (Structural and denudational) Pediment, Buried pediment, plains and valley fills have been identified in various lithologies like granite, granite gneiss, biotite schist, phyllite,. quartzite and dolomite. The acclamations of individual geomorphic units through visual interpretation are verified from field data. The groundwater potentials of the individual geomorphologic units have been evaluated to obtain a complete hvdrogcological picture of the area. The field data have further helped in quanlifying various geomorphological units with reference to their potential for ground water occurrence.     

Appraisal of zones of potential groundwater based on Photo-Geomorphic Study in Semi-Arid tract of Visakhapatnam District,Andhra Pradesh

Photo-geomorphic and hydrogeological studies over an area of 2020 sq km in the semi-arid tract of Visakhapatnam district, have enabled in identifying five zones of potential groundwater/hydromorphic units. Fluvial plain has the highest hydromorphic potential with a weight point score of 25, and coastal plain has poor to very poor potential with a score of 12. Wash plain, rolling/sandy plain, and piedmont plain have good to moderate to poor potential with scores of 20, 17 and 14 respectively. Geophysical surveys and the drilling of exploratory borewells along fractures/fracture traces and abandoned channels, revealed the existence of deep weathered and fractured zones capable of yielding large quantities of water.     

A method for groundwater prospect zonation in data poor areas using remote sensing and GIS: a case study in Kalikavu Panchayath of Malappuram district,Kerala, India

Abstract

The present study was an attempt to delineate potential groundwater zones in Kalikavu Panchayat of Malappuram district, Kerala, India. The geo-spatial database on geomorphology, landuse, geology, slope and drainage network was generated in a geographic information system (GIS) environment from satellite data, Survey of India topographic sheets and field observations. To understand the movement and occurrence of groundwater, the geology, geomorphology, structural set-up and recharging conditions have to be well understood. In the present study, the potential recharge areas are delineated in terms of geology, geomorphology, land use, slope, drainage pattern, etc. Various thematic data generated were integrated using a heuristic method in the GIS domain to generate maps showing potential groundwater zones. The composite output map scores were reclassified into different zones using a decision rule. The final output map shows different zones of groundwater prospect, viz., very good (15.57% of the area), good (43.74%), moderate (28.38%) and poor (12.31%). Geomorphic units such as valley plains, valley fills and alluvial terraces were identified as good to excellent prospect zones, while the gently sloping lateritic uplands were identified as good to moderate zones. Steeply sloping hilly terrains underlain by hard rocks were identified as poor groundwater prospect zones.     

Analysis of fractures inferred from DBTM and remotely sensed data for groundwater development in godavari sub-watershed, Giridih, Bihar

Godavari sub-watershed is a part of buried pediplain developed over ‘Chotanagpur’ granite gneiss. Aquifer is unconfined in nature and groundwater occurs under water table condition. In the study area, groundwater is being exploited only through dugwells which are not capable of sustaining long duration pumping. Groundwater exploration involves the investigation of depth and nature of weathered and fractured horizon. To understand the groundwater storage and retrieval in the area, the basement topography derived from Digital Basement Topography Modelling (DBTM), the lineaments identified on remotely sensed data and geohydrological and physiographic data have been analysed. From DBTM, fracture zones have also been inferred. Lineaments (probable fractures) identified with the help of remotely sensed data are linear features representated on a planner surface. Lineaments in the area are subtle in expression due to deeply buried pediplian. Correlation of lineaments with DBTM reveals that a few lineaments/fractures are deep seated and a few have no sub-surface extensions. Also some sub-surface fractures inferred from DBTM have no expressions on the image. Attempt has been made to delineate more authentic lineaments/fractures with the help of remotely sensed data and DBTM. Correlation of probable fractures inferred from remotely sensed data and fracture zones inferred from DBTM indicated that 40 per cent of lineaments seems to be real fractures. Higher correlation may be achieved where lineaments are prominent and reproducible. It has also been observed that those lineaments which correlate with the fracture zones inferred from DBTM, are also not completely traceable in their linear extent. The exaggeration in length of lineaments may be due to subtle nature of lineaments. Correlation shows that remotely sensed lineaments are improtant for groundwater exploration and its authenticity can be further ascertained with DBTM.     

Mapping of hydrogeomorphological features in varaha river basin using IRS data

Hydrogeomorphological mapping in Varaha River Basin (VRB) was carried out to develop relationship between groundwater condition and geomophology of the area. The VRB is located in the north coastal region of Andhra Pradesh is characterised by variability in precipitation, temperature, vegetation, infiltration and run-off. Realising the significance of remote sensing in natural resource management and development, IRS 1A data was used in the study. It is inferred that various hydrogeomorphological units identified in the study area, are the outcome of different geomorphic processes that have been operating in the area and reveal which close relationship between groundwater condition and geology and geomorphol-ogy of the area. Areas covered by buried channels have shallow aquifers of good quality wa-ter with excellent yield. Lineaments and fractures may prove to be potential zones for ground-water development.     

Application of machine learning techniques in groundwater potential mapping along the west coast of India

ABSTRACT

Groundwater potential mapping (GWPM) in the coastal zone is crucial for the planning and development of society and the environment. The current study is aimed to map the groundwater potential zones of Sindhudurg coastal stretch on the west coast of India, using three machine learning models: random forest (RF), boosted regression tree (BRT), and the ensemble of RF and support vector machine (SVM). In order to achieve the objective, 15 groundwater influencing factors including elevation, slope, aspect, slope length (LS), profile curvature, plan curvature, topographical wetness index (TWI), distance from streams, distance from lineaments, lithology, geomorphology, soil, land use, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and rainfall were considered for inter-thematic correlations and overlaid with spring and well occurrences in a spatial database. A total of 165 spring and well locations were identified, which had been divided into two classes: training and validation, at the ratio of 70:30, respectively. The RF, BRT, and RF-SVM ensemble models have been applied to delineate the groundwater potential zones and categorized into five classes, namely very high, high, moderate, low, and very low. RF, BRT, and ensemble model results showed that 33.3%, 35.6%, and 36.8% of the research area had a very high groundwater potential zone. These models were validated with area under the receiver operating characteristics (AUROC) curve. The accuracy of RF (94%) and hybrid model (93.4%) was more efficient than BRT (89.8%) model. In order to further evaluate and validate, four different sites were subsequently chosen, and we obtained similar results, ensuring the validity of the applied models. Additionally, ground-penetrating radar (GPR) technique was applied to predict the groundwater table and validated by measured wells. The mean difference between measured and GPR predicted groundwater table was 14 cm, which reflected the importance of GPR to guide the location of new wells in the study region. The outcomes of the study will help the decision-makers, government agencies, and private sectors for sustainable planning of groundwater in the area. Overall, the present study provides a comprehensive high-precision machine learning and GPR-based groundwater potential mapping.