INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOMATICS AND GEOSCIENCES Volume 2, No 1, 2011 Copyright 2010 All rights reserved Integrated Publishing services Research article ISSN 0976 4380 Delineation of groundwater potential zones in Mewat District, Haryana, India Sitender 1, Rajeshwari 2 1- Research scholar, 2- Associate Professor Department of Geography, Kurukshetra University, Haryana - 136119 sitendar@gmail.com ABSTRACT Groundwater is one of the very precious natural resource of earth that sustains all human activities. It is essential not only for sustenance of the human life but also for the economic and social progress of a region. Present paper is an attempt to delineate groundwater potential zones in a southern district of Haryana, named Mewat. Survey of India toposheets, satellite imageries and some other collateral data is used for the preparation of thematic layers like geology, geomorphology, percent slope, drainage density, lineament density and land use/land cover of the study area. Multi-criteria evaluation technique is used to integrate all the thematic layers. Individual themes and their corresponding categories are assigned a knowledge base ranking from 1 to 6 depending on their suitability to hold groundwater and their weightage are calculated. Using rater calculator tool in Arc GIS software, all thematic maps are integrated to produce a composite groundwater potential map of the study area. This map was further classified into five categories which represents very poor to excellent potential zones. The study reveals that paleo channels and alluvial plain are the geomorphological features with excellent potential for groundwater occurrence followed by aeolian plain. The residual hills, structural hills and linear ridges due to high slope and absence of primary porosity lies in the very poor to poor potential zones. Keywords: Groundwater, Potential zones, GIS, Remote sensing, Mewat. 1. Introduction Groundwater is one of the very precious natural resource of earth and is primary source of life that sustains all human activities. It is essentially required not only for the sustenance of the human life but also for the economic and social progress of a region. It constitutes a major portion of the earth s water circulatory system known as hydrologic system. Although it is more dynamic renewable natural resource yet availability with good quality and quantity in appropriate time and space is more important (Chaudhary et al. 1996). Due to increasing population, urbanization, deforestation and industrialization pressure on this resource is continuously increasing. The available surface water resources are inadequate to meet all the water requirements for various purposes. It may be noted that not only its demand has increased over years but it seems that the demand will never cease. Hence, delineation of groundwater potential zones has acquired great importance. As groundwater can not be seen directly from the earth s surface, so a variety of techniques can provide information concerning its potential occurrence. Several studies since early 1960 s have been attempted to explain spatial variability of groundwater occurrence in different terrain conditions using technologies like aerial photography and geographic information system. Remote sensing from satellite has recently become a valuable tool that provide quick and baseline information on sub-surface water conditions. With this Submitted on September 2011 published on November 2011 270
information, one can find out the factors controlling the occurrence potential and movement of groundwater such as lithology, geological structures, geomorphology, soil, land use land cover and other related characteristics of the area. This data can be spatially integrated by means of geographic information system and finally groundwater potential zones can be delineated. In this field attempts have already been made in different parts of the country by various scholars like Chaudhary et al (1996), Krishnamurthy et al (1996), Das et al (1997), Goyal et al (1999), Pratap et al (2000), Nag (2005), Vijith et al (2007), Suja Rose et al (2009), Kumar Pradeep (2010) etc. They had arrived at groundwater prospects by deriving thematic layers from satellite data, Survey of India toposheets and by integrating them in GIS environment. The study area is devoid of water supply through canal systems. Vagaries of monsoon and semi-arid to hot climate further aggravate the situation. Due to limited number of rainy days, natural depressions like Kotla and Ujina lakes also remains dry during most of the time of year. Therefore, groundwater forms the principal source of water for domestic, drinking and irrigation purposes. Present study is an attempt to delineate groundwater potential zones by an integrated approach of remote sensing and geographic information system, so that further development of groundwater could be designed and implemented, effectively. 2. Study area Mewat district lies between 27 o 39 to 28 o 20 N latitude and 76 o 31 to 77 o 20 E longitude, covering an area of 1484 km 2. Climate of the district may be classified as tropical steppe, semi-arid and hot which is characterized by extreme dryness of air. Normal annual rainfall of the district is 594 mm which is spread over 31 days. The depth of water level in the study area is between 5 to 29 mbgl. The shallowest water table is recorded to be 1.15 mbgl. Net groundwater available in the district is 22902 ham (CGWB, 2007). Most of the villages and towns in the district have piped water supply based on tubewells which are also the major source of irrigation. 3. Materials and Method Study area is covered by 48 Survey of India toposheets of scale 1:25,000 which are interpreted to generate drainage density and slope maps. Twelve scenes of geocoded IRS P6 LISS IV satellite data covering the study area are visually interpreted for the preparation of geomorphology and land use/land cover maps. Geological map (1:2,50,000 scale), published by Geological Survey of India and lineament map prepared by HARSAC, Hisar are used for the preparation of geology and lineament density maps, respectively. All six thematic layers and their corresponding categories are assigned a knowledge base ranking from 1 to 6 depending on their suitability to hold groundwater. The maximum value is given to the feature with highest groundwater potentiality and minimum being to the lowest potential feature. Based on these ranks their weightage are calculated and added to each layer (Table 1). Table 1: Thematic maps, their categories and weights Geomorphology (Map weight 0.286) Land use land cover (Map weight 0.048) Categories Rank Weight Category Rank Weight Alluvial plain 6 0.207 Agricultural land 6 0.168 271
Aeolian plain 5 0.173 Degraded pasture land 3 0.083 Linear ridges 3 0.103 Land affected by 1 0.027 salinity/alkalinity Paleo channels 6 0.207 Land under forest cover 3 0.083 Pediment inselbergs 2 0.069 Land under plantation 2 0.055 complex Piedmont area 4 0.138 Land with scrub 2 0.055 Residual hills 1 0.034 Mining wasteland 1 0.027 Structural hills 2 0.069 Settlement 1 0.027 Water bodies 6 0.168 Water channel area 6 0.168 Waterlogged and marshy land 5 0.139 Geology (Map weight 0.238) Drainage density (Map weight 0.095) Categories Ran k Weigh t Category Ran k Weigh t Coarse to fine aeolian 4 0.286 <1 (Very low) 5 0.333 sand Sand, silt and clay with 6 0.428 1-2 (Low) 4 0.267 kankar Quartzite and schist 1 0.072 2-4 (Moderate) 3 0.200 Quartzite, phyllite and slate 3 0.214 4-6 (High) 2 0.133 >6 (Very high) 1 0.067 Percent slope (Map weight 0.143) Lineament density (Map weight 0.190) Categories Ran Weigh Category Ran Weigh k t k t <1 (Nearly level) 6 0.286 0.00-0.54 (Very low) 1 0.048 1-5 (Very gentle) 5 0.238 0.54-1.09 (Low) 2 0.095 5-10 (Gentle) 4 0.190 1.09-1.64 (Moderate) 3 0.143 10-20 (Moderately 3 0.143 1.64-2.18 (Moderately high) 4 0.190 gentle) 20-50 (Steep) 2 0.095 2.18-2.73 (High) 5 0.238 >50 (Very steep) 1 0.048 2.73-3.28 (Very high) 272
From the various methods available for determining interclass/inter-map dependency, a probability weighted approach has been adopted that allow a linear combination of probability weights of each thematic map and different categories of derived thematic maps by assessing their importance in groundwater occurrence. This process involves raster overlay analysis which is called multi-criteria evaluation techniques (MCE). The Raster Calculator option of spatial analyst extension in Arc GIS 9.3 is used to prepare the integrated final groundwater potential map of the study area. This map indicates the potentiality of groundwater occurrence in the study area which is then classified into five categories based on the mean and standard deviation values namely very poor, poor to moderate, moderate to good, good to very good and excellent. 4. Result and Discussion 4.1 Geology / Lithology Geology of the district is dominated by Quaternary sediments and Delhi supergroup of rock formations. Quaternary sediments include alluvium deposits consisting a sequence of inter layered clay/silt and sand with occasional kankar formations incase of older alluvium formations and coarse to fine aeolian sand in case of aeolian deposits. These are largely distributed over 1135.27 km 2 and 166.69 km 2 area, respectively. Delhi supergroup rock formation in south-eastern part (51.05 km 2 ) is dominated by quartzite, phyllite and slate while quartzite and schist dominates the western edges (130.99 km 2 ) of the study area. 4.2 Geomorphology Geomorphological mapping involves the identification and characterization of various landforms and structural features. Many of these features are favourable for the occurrence of groundwater and are classified in terms of groundwater potentiality. Major geomorphological units found in the study area are residual hills, structural hills, linear ridges, piedmont plain, paleochannels, pediment inselbergs complex, alluvial plain and aeolian plain (Fig.1). Residual hills are resulted from the end product of pediplanation which reduces the original mountains into a series of scattered knolls standing on the pediplains (Thornbury, 1990). These units are considered as poor potential zones, as they have unfractured rock material, low infiltration and behave largely as runoff zone which cover 8.01 km 2 area. Structural hills (97.09 km 2 ) are the linear or acute hills exhibiting definite trend lines and mostly act as runoff zones. Linear ridges (19.64 km 2 ) are characterized by massive structure and high resistance to erosion. They also act as runoff zone and have poor potential for groundwater. Piedmont plain (56.61 km 2 ) has low relief and surface water remains for considerable time before meeting major rivers. It provides good scope for infiltration and recharge of groundwater. Consequently they pose good potential for groundwater occurrence. Paleochannels with 1.58 km 2 area shows excellent potential for groundwater. Aeolian plain (247.93 km 2 ) is covered by sand of aeolian origin with the presence of scattered sand dunes/sand mounds. Their lithological composition is medium to fine sand with little clay which is porous and permeable. This area is good from recharge point of view. Alluvial plain (1052.32 km 2 ) comprises a sequence of sand, silt and clay with kankars. Fine to coarse sand layers form potential aquifers zone and yield copious water. Pediment inselbergs complex occupies 0.87 km 2 area. They are pediments dotted with a number of inselbergs which can not be separated and mapped as individual units. They have very low potential for groundwater occurrence. 273
4.3 Lineament Density Figure 1: Image showing geomorphology of study area Presence of lineaments may act as a conduit for groundwater movement which results in increased secondary porosity and therefore, can serve as groundwater potential zone (Obi Reddy et al. 2000). Lineament density map is a measure of quantitative length of linear feature expressed in a grid. Lineament density of an area indirectly reveals the groundwater potential of that area since the presence of lineaments usually denotes a permeable zone. Areas with higher lineament density are good for groundwater development. In most of the study area lineament density are less than 1.09 km/km 2 while in the rest of the area it varies from 1.09 to 3.28 km/km 2 which is confined to the hard rock region (Fig.2). 274
4.4 Percent Slope Figure 2: Image showing lineament density of study area Slope of any terrain is one of the factor controlling the infiltration of groundwater into subsurface. In the gentle slope area, the surface runoff is slow allowing more time for rainwater to percolate, whereas, steep slope area facilitates high runoff allowing less residence time for rainwater and hence comparatively less infiltration. Therefore, from the contour lines (at 5 meter interval) DEM was generated and percent slope is derived (Fig.3). Most of the area (1176.59 km 2 ) is covered by less than 1 percent slope (Nearly level), 177.55 km 2 area has 1-5 percent slope (Very gentle), 29.24 km 2 area has 5-10 percent slope (Gentle), 29.77 km 2 area has 10-20 percent slope (Moderately gentle), 47.88 km 2 area has 20-50 percent slope (Steep) and 22.97 km 2 area has more than 50 percent slope (Very steep). 275
4.5 Drainage Density Figure 3: Image showing slope of study area The surface water infiltration is found to be more in the sheet wash than in channel flow. To visualize the area of sheet wash and channel flow, the zones of different drainage density viz very high (>6 km/km 2 ), high (4-6 km/km 2 ), moderate (2-4 km/km 2 ), low (1-2 km/km 2 ) and very low (<1 km/km 2 ) are derived based on spatial density analysis of drainage network which comprises 6.04 km 2, 62.75 km 2, 120.52 km 2, 1293.25 km 2 and 1.44 km 2 of the area, respectively (Fig.4). The area of very high drainage density represents more closeness of drainage lines and vice-versa. Groundwater potential is found to be poor in very high drainage density areas as major part of the water poured over them during rainfall is lost as surface runoff with little infiltration to meet groundwater. On the contrary low drainage 276
density areas permit more infiltration and recharge to the groundwater and therefore have more potential for groundwater occurrence. 4.6 Land use/land cover Figure 4: Image showing drainage density of study area Land use/land cover plays important role in the occurrence and development of groundwater. Therefore, IRS P6 LISS IV data was visually interpreted and eleven land use classes are identified in the entire study area namely agricultural land (1194.78 km 2 ), waterlogged and marshy land (4.13 km 2 ), water channel area (1.06 km 2 ), degraded pasture land (21.55 km 2 ), settlement (54.53 km 2 ), land affected by salinity/alkalinity (7.22 km 2 ), land under forest cover 277
(159.72 km 2 ), land under plantation (7.69 km 2 ), land with scrub (9.43 km 2 ), mining wasteland (3.16 km 2 ) and water bodies (20.73 km 2 ). Agricultural land, forest cover and settlement are the prominent land use types in the study area (Fig.5). 4.7 Groundwater Potential Zones Figure 5: Image showing land use of study area After the integration of all thematic maps, resulted map has been classified into five groundwater potential zones namely: very poor, poor to moderate, moderate to good, good to 278
very good and excellent covering 59.20 km 2, 104.12 km 2, 77.15 km 2, 264.14 km 2 and 979.39 km 2 area, respectively (Fig.6). Figure 6: Image showing groundwater potential zones of study area Groundwater potential map clearly indicate that alluvial plain which is composed of sand, silt and clay with nearly level slope and very low drainage density has excellent potentiality. Piedmont plain with gentle slope and low drainage density poses good to very good potential while aeolian plain with coarse to fine aeolian sand has good to moderate potential due to less water holding capacity. Structural hills and linear ridges with steep slope and high drainage density but due to presence of high lineament density offer poor to moderate potential. Residual hills and parts of structural hills with low lineament density, very steep slope and very high drainage density lie in very poor potential zones. Thus the generated groundwater potential map serves as a base line for future exploration. 5. Conclusion In the present study, multi-criteria evaluation technique using raster based GIS analysis is attempted to delineate the groundwater potential zones. Remote sensing and GIS have proved as vital tools in delineating groundwater potential zones based on the integration of various 279
thematic maps. Occurrence of groundwater has a direct relationship with the geomorphology and slope of the area. In hard rock area potentiality for groundwater occurrence is influenced by the presence of lineaments. Study area is dominated by unconsolidated sediment deposits of quaternary age and nearly level slope. Consequently about 66 percent area has excellent and 18 percent area has very good to good potential for groundwater occurrence. Residual hills, structural hills and linear ridges with steep slope and high drainage density have either very poor or poor to moderate groundwater potential which is influenced by the presence of lineaments. Acknowledgement The authors are thankful to the Chairman, Department of Geography, for providing the environment to complete this research work and Chief Scientist, Haryana Space Application Centre (HARSAC), Hisar for providing the lineament map of the study area. 5. References 1. B.S. Chaudhary, Manoj Kumar, A.K. Roy and D.S. Ruhal (1996), Application of Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems in Groundwater Investigations in Sohna Block, Gurgaon District, Haryana (INDIA), International Archives of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Volume XXXI, Part B6, Vienna, pp 18-23. 2. B.V.M. Rao Toleti, B.S. Chaudhary, K.E. Mothi Kumar, G.P. Saroha, Manoj Yadav, Ajeet Singh, M.P. Sharma, A.C. Pandey and P.K. Singh (2000), Integrated Groundwater Resource Mapping in Gurgaon District (Haryana), India using Remote Sensing and GIS Technique, available at http://www.gisdevelopment.net. 3. Das S, Behra S.C, Kar A, Narendra P and Guha N.S. (1997), Hydrogeomorphological Mapping in Groundwater Exploration using Remotely Sensed Data Case Study in Keonjhar District in Orissa, Journal of Indian Society of Remote Sensing, 25(4), pp 247-259. 4. Goyal S, Bhardwaj R.S, Jugran D.K. (1999), Multi-criteria Analysis using GIS for Groundwater Resource Evaluation in Rawasen and Pilli Watershed, Uttar Pradesh, available at http://www.gisdevelopment.net. 5. Groundwater Information Booklet, Mewat District, Haryana (2007). 6. G.N. Pradeep Kumar, P. Srinivas, K. Jaya Chandra and P. Sujatha (2010), Delineation of Groundwater Potential Zones using Remote sensing and GIS Techniques: A Case Study of Kumapalli Vagu Basin in Andhra Pradesh, India, International Journal of Water Resource and Environmental Engineering, 2(3), pp 70-79. 7. H. Vijith (2007), 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, Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing, 35(2), pp 163-171. 8. Krishnamurthy J, Kumar N.V, Jayaraman V, Manivel M. (1996), An Approach to Demarcate Groundwater Potential Zones Through Remote Sensing and Geographical Information System, International Journal of Remote Sensing, 17(10), pp 1867-1884. 280
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