Arab J Geosci (2016) 9:304 DOI 10.1007/s12517-016-2326-9

ORIGINAL PAPER

Integrated remote sensing and GIS approach for delineation of groundwater potential zones using aquifer parameters in Devak and Rui watershed of Jammu and Kashmir, India A. S. Jasrotia 1,2 & A. Kumar 2 & R. Singh 1

Received: 3 September 2015 / Accepted: 13 January 2016 # Saudi Society for Geosciences 2016

Abstract Remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) have become one of the leading tools in the field of hydrogeological science, which helps in assessing, monitoring and conserving groundwater resources. In this paper, integrated remote sensing, GIS and fieldwork techniques were combined to delineate the groundwater potential zones map of Devak and Rui watersheds of Jammu and Kashmir. Remote sensing data were used to prepare hydrogeomorphology, drainage density and land use/land cover maps. The advanced space borne thermal emission and reflection (ASTER) digital elevation model (DEM) data was used for preparing the slope map. Pumping test data were used to prepare discharge, specific capacity, static water level, transmissivity and hydraulic conductivity maps. Well inventory data were collected to prepare the pre-monsoon water table, post-monsoon water table, static water level and fluctuation maps. All the thematic maps pertaining to chosen parameters were converted to raster data. The raster maps of these parameters were assigned an appropriate theme weight and class score. All thematic layers were integrated using the weighted index overlay analysis (WIOA) method in the GIS environment to determine groundwater potential map. The ground water prospects zones were depicted in five categories excellent, good, moderate, low and runoff zone. The results revealed that excellent zone covers 13.5 %, good zone 22.7 %,

* A. S. Jasrotia [email protected]

1

Department of Geology, University of Jammu, Jammu 180 006, India

2

Department of Remote Sensing and GIS, University of Jammu, Jammu 180 006, India

moderate zone 15.8 %, low zone 18.5 %, and runoff zone covers 29.5 % of the total study area. The result depicts the groundwater potential zones found to be helpful in better planning and management of groundwater resources in the study area. Keywords Remote sensing . Aquifer parameters . Groundwater potential zones . Devak-Rui watersheds

Introduction The importance of groundwater for the existence of human society cannot be overemphasized. Groundwater is the major source of drinking water in both urban and rural areas in India. Besides, it is an important source of water for the agricultural and the industrial sector. Ground water is an important part of the water cycle originating when part of the precipitation that seeps down through the soil to become the groundwater (Krishnamurthy et al. 1996; Jha and Chowdary 2007; Chowdhury et al. 2010). The demand for water has been increased over the years, and this has led to water scarcity in many parts of the world. The situation is aggravated by the problem of water pollution or contamination. India is heading towards a freshwater crisis mainly due to improper management of water resources and environmental degradation, which has lead to a lack of access to safe water supply to millions of people. During the past two decades, the water level in several parts of the country has been falling rapidly due to an increase in extraction. The number of wells drilled for irrigation of both food and cash crops have rapidly and indiscriminately increased (Joshi and Tyagi 1994; Briscoe 2005; Kumar et al. 2005; Jasrotia et al. 2007; Thakur and Raghuwanshi 2008; Aggarwal et al. 2009; Jones 2010; Magesh et al. 2012).

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India’s rapidly rising population and changing lifestyle have also increased the domestic need for water. The water requirement for the industry also shows an overall increase. Intense competition among users—agriculture, industry, and domestic sectors—is driving the groundwater table lower. In India, more than 90 % rural population and nearly 30 % urban population have completely depend on groundwater for drinking and other domestic use purposes. Groundwater is one of the most valuable natural resources which support human health, economic development and ecological diversity. The importance of groundwater is quite high as it constitutes more than 90 % of the world liquid freshwater and is not uniformly distributed around the world. The distribution of groundwater on the earth is subject to various spatio-temporal distributions of the aquifers and terrain characterizations. The dependency on the groundwater is expected to increase in the future, and requirement in 2050 is estimated about more than three times to present level due to increase in population. The occurrence and distribution of groundwater is not uniform through the country and is subject to wide spatio temporal variation depending on the underlying rock formation, their structural fabrics, rainfall and geomorphology (Bower 1978; Reddy et al. 1996; Gupta and Deshpande 2004; Rodell et al. 2009; Chawla et al. 2010). Integrated remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) are quite effective, widely used for visual representation assessment, monitoring and management in several fields, including environment, disaster and hydrology. Integration of remote sensing data and GIS for exploration of groundwater resources have become a breakthrough in the field of groundwater research, assist in assessing, monitoring and conserving groundwater resources. Satellite remote sensing provides a synoptic view helpful in the identification and delineation of various landform features, structural element and terrain characteristics being significant indicators of groundwater potentials (Krishnamurthy and Srinivas 1995). Remote sensing and DEM data, derived information have been evaluated extensively and successfully for several years, since it is needed within hierarchical approaches to detect landforms of different sizes (Sander et al. 1996; Walsh et al. 1998; Gahegan and Ehlers 2000; Bocco et al. 2001; Bolten and Bubenzer 2006; Mesev and Walrath 2007; Demirkesen 2008). For decades, many workers such as El-kadi et al. (1994), Teeuw (1995), Saraf and Choudhary (1998), Goyal et al. (1999), Rokade et al. (2007), Jasrotia et al. (2007) and Gumma and Pavelic (2013) have used the approach of remote sensing and GIS for ground water exploration and identification of artificial recharge sites. Jaiswal et al. (2003) have used GIS technique for generation of groundwater prospect zones towards rural development. Pardeep (1998), Murthy (2000), Obi et al. (2000), Prasad et al. (2008), Gangapuram et al. (2009), Avtar et al. (2010) and Adji and Sejati (2014) have used terrain characteristics

and GIS to delineate groundwater potential zone. Interpretation groundwater potential zones along with the groundwater quality zones using integrated remote sensing and GIS techniques have been also well documented (Rao and Jugran 2003; Jasrotia et al. 2013). In recent studies several studies have been carried out in India and abroad for identifying the groundwater potential zones using GIS for the evaluation of groundwater resources. Many researchers have applied the favorability analysis techniques in groundwater study (Shahid et al. 2000; Hajkowicz and Collins 2007; Magesh et al. 2012; Singh et al. 2013). Some new kinds of GIS-based analysis for delineation of groundwater potential zonation around the world have been made such as the multi-criteria data analysis on crystalline rocks Madurci et al. (2008), index based models (Dar et al. 2010), knowledge-driven GIS modelling (Manap et al. 2013; Pothiraj and Rajagopalan, 2013). In some studies, probabilistic models such as multi-criteria decision analysis (Murthy and Mamo 2009; Chenini et al. 2010; Gupta and Srivastava 2010; Pedrero et al. 2011; Manap et al. 2014), analytical hierarchy process (AHP) (Chowdhury et al. 2009; Pradhan 2009; Kaliraj et al. 2014; Rahmati et al. 2015) and geostatistical and geospatial approach (Mallick et al. 2015). The present study focuses on the GIS-based identification of groundwater potential zones in Devak and Rui watersheds of Jammu and Kashmir, India by using the aquifers parameters and terrain characteristics which will be helpful for the futuristic planning, utilization and management of groundwater resources.

Study area and methodology Study area The study area falls in the sub-mountainous region at the foothills of the Himalayas and lies between latitude 32° 30′ N to 32° 45′ N and longitude 75° to 75° 15′ E with an areal extent of 650 km2 (Fig. 1) comes under the urban as well as rural developing areas. The area enjoys subtropical to moist temperate climate with an average temperature of 2–20 °C in winter and 30–47 °C in summer enjoys the SW, NW-SE type of monsoon with average annual rainfall of 1116 mm out of which monsoon rainfall is 800 mm. The Siwaliks ranges rise gradually in the northern part of the study area and merge with the Indo-Gangetic plains in the south. The structure and lithology plays a major role in evolution of topography and drainage pattern of the area. The geological formations comprise mainly Upper Murree, Siwalik and Recent Formations, which are exposed in uplifted thrust sheets of Early Miocene through Pleistocene synorogenic foreland basin sedimentation. The Krishanpur-Madli Thrust passes through the Upper Murree and Upper Siwalik. The Upper Siwalik is subdivided into

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Jammu & Kashmir Map

INDIA

Fig. 1 Location map of the study area

Purmandal Sandstone Formation and Nagrota Sandstone Formation. Boulders conglomerates of Jammu Formation

consist of the sub-motaine deposits, which are laid down in the form of piedmont alluvial plains in the front of Upper

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Siwalik hill slope and delimiting the northern margin of the plain. Methodology In order to demarcate groundwater potential zones, a multi-source data which includes satellite data, conventional maps, including Survey of India (SoI) topographic sheets, pumping test data and well inventory data, were used for the identification of groundwater potential zones in the study area. The Indian Remote Sensing Satellite IRS-ID, linear image self scanning (LISS-III) of 23.5 m resolution and PAN 5.8 m resolution merged data was used in the present study. Image processing was carried out using ERDAS IMAGINE 10 software, such as filtering and contrasting for the visual tracing of many hydrogeomorphological units, and their boundaries was possible. The SoI toposheet maps 43P/2 on a scale of 1:50,000 equal to the corresponding imagery were also used for the preparation thematic maps. The geology, geomorphology, structure, lineament hydrogeomorphology, drainage, land use land cover, etc. have been prepared based on visual interpretation/analysis of satellite data in conjunction with the available ancillary data and field surveys. Field data viz. depth to water level collected from 55 open inventories wells, pumping test data of the 16 bore wells were also collected from the study area during the field survey to determine the aquifer parameters. The advanced space borne thermal emission and reflection (ASTER) digital elevation model DEM data, 30 m resolution was used to prepare the slope map with an accuracy of 6 m in the plains and 14 m in hilly terrain. The methodology used in the study area is shown in the flowchart (Fig. 2). The thematic layers that are in vector format are converted into raster format and loaded in the GIS environment. Groundwater potential zones were identified by overlaying all the thematic maps by weighted index overlay method (WIOA) by using the spatial analysis tool in Arc GIS. During WIOA, the ranking was given for each individual parameter of each thematic map, and weights were assigned according to the multi-influencing factor of that particular feature on the hydrogeological environment of the study area, later verified in the field for correctness and accuracy of potential zones. Different thematic maps were assigned a weight-age score on a scale of 1 to 10, considering the weights suggested by various experts and those used in earlier studies as well as field knowledge and local experience. A weight represents the relative importance of a parameter vis-a-vis the objective. The qualitative evaluation of different features of a given theme was performed, with: runoff (1–1.5); low (2– 3.5); moderate (4–5.5); good (6–7.5); and excellent (8–10). In this approach, aquifer parameters and terrain characterizations have been used to determine groundwater potential zones which will help to design a suitable exploration plan in the similar kind of terrain in the Himalayan region.

Results and discussions On the basis of lithologs data of tube wells, an attempt has been made to understand the nature and disposition of aquifers by constructing the fence diagram (Fig. 3). Detail study of aquifer parameters and terrain characterizations have been made in order to demarcate the groundwater potential zones. The various thematic maps have been generated from the field data and satellite data interpretation, integrated in the GIS environment and discussed as under.

Hydrogeomorphology Hydrogeomorphology map has been prepared by integrating the lithological, structural and geomorphological maps. Hydrogeomorphology map shown in Fig. 3 depicts important geomorphical units, landforms and underlying geology, so as to provide an understanding of the processes, lithology, structures and geologic controls relating to groundwater occurrence as well as to groundwater prospects. The study area has been classified in different hydrogeomorphological units such as structural hill, low dissected structural hill, highly dissected structural hill, residual hill, valley fill deposits, piedmont alluvial plain, older alluvial plain, river terrace, braided bar and active flood plain. The groundwater prospects of the hydrological units are given in Table 1. In each unit, water holding and emitting characteristics have been inferred in conjunction with the available field information, and these hydrogeomorphological units have been divided into three zones for groundwater availability point of view. These three zones are as follows: Runoff zone The runoff zone is characterized by high altitude, steep slope and high drainage density with a thin layer of soil cover. The structural hills of Siwaliks Formation including the residual hills of Nagrota Formation fall in this category. However, major fractures, joints, faults, lineaments and narrow intermountain valleys favour minute infiltration in the hilly area. In the runoff zone, the water ultimately flows from higher gradient to low lying areas. Recharge zone The recharge zone is one of the important factors in groundwater studies. The gentle slope and unconsolidated material in the valley fill areas, together with faults, fractures, lineaments and thick soil cover, favour groundwater recharge. The unconfined aquifers, usually occupying higher elevations with a deeper water table constitute the recharge area. The piedmont zone and fluvial deposits fall in this category. The area is predominately under high drawdown and high infiltration ratio.

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IRS-ID (LISS+PAN), ASTER DEM

Topographic map

Soil map

Field collection data

Base map Visual Interpretation

Tube wells pumping test data

ASTER DEM

Aquifer Performance Test Drainage map

Geology map Hydrogeomorphology map LU/LC map Drainage density map Slope map

Dug wells inventory data

Step Drawdown Test Discharge map Drawdown map Static water level map Specific capacity map

Hydrologic soil texture map

Pre-monsoon and Post-monsoon water table map Fluctuation map

Hydraulic conductivity map Transmissivity map

Spatial data generation in GIS Categorization of thematic layers Integration of thematic layers Groundwater potential zones Fig. 2 Flow chart showing methodology adopted in present study

Discharge zone The discharge zone of the study area with low topographic and shallow water table conditions. The discharge zone mainly occurs at the lower reaches of the Devak and Rui watersheds having shallow aquifer conditions. The ground water discharge area is characterized by an outcropping of the water table or the capillary fringe through which water is lost to the atmosphere by evaporation and transpiration or with streams as base flow. In a younger and older alluvial plain, the outlets of ground water are diffused in the form of seepages, but at places, the flow may be

directed in the form of springs through well-defined outlets.

Land use/land cover Land use/land cover plays an important role in the occurrence and development of groundwater resources. It controls many hydrogeological processes in the water cycle viz., infiltration, evapotranspiration, surface runoff, etc. surface cover provides roughness to the surface and reduce discharge thereby increases the infiltration. Remote

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Water bodies and wetted area lands were assigned a high weight-age factor because it is mostly associated with water body, were identified by the light blue tone, fine/medium texture, river bed appears as cyan and light blue colour in the FCC, groundwater prospects in such units are excellent. The areal extent of the land use land cover is given in Table 2. The land use land cover layer assigned the weight-age 9, as it largely influences the movement and occurrence of groundwater. Drainage density

Fig. 3 Fence diagram

sensing satellite images provide excellent information with regard to spatial distribution of land use types in less time and low cost in comparison to conventional data. The Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS-ID), LISS-III and PAN merge data, topographic maps and field information have been used as reference data for the preparation of land use land cover map. The different classes of land use/land cover have been identified in the study area by using on screen digitization are agriculture field, dense forest, open forest, deciduous forest, built-up area, fallow land and wetted land and river bed (Fig. 4). Open forests are identified by dull red-greenish colour in false colour composite (FCC) and the dense forest bright red colour in FCC, but the deciduous forest shows light grey colour in the image. The built-up area is identified by blocky appearance light cyan colour in the FCC. The built-up area is identified by blocky appearance cyan coloured fine to medium texture with regular shape and varying size consider as poor groundwater prospects. Agriculture fields are identified by step like arrangement in the dull red colour in FCC considered as good groundwater prospects. Table 1 Hydrogeomorphologic unit based on groundwater potential zonation

Drainage density is an inverse function of permeability. The less permeable rock leads to the less infiltration of rainfall, which conversely tends to be concentrated in surface runoff. This gives origin to a well-developed and fine drainage system. In the present study, since the drainage density can indirectly indicate the groundwater potential of an area due to its relation to surface runoff and permeability, it was considered as one of the indicators of groundwater occurrence. The drainage density map shown in Fig. 4 exposed that the drainage density is relatively high in the hill/steep slopes and low in a gentle slope inducing the more infiltration. The drainage class has assigned the weight 6 as evidential theme based on the influence of drainage density on groundwater regime. Slope Slope is one of the important factors controlling the infiltration of groundwater into the subsurface, hence an indicator of the suitability for groundwater prospect. The slope map prepared from the ASTER digital elevation model DEM data (30 m). In the gentle slope area, the surface runoff is very slow which allows more time for rainwater to percolate and categorized as good groundwater prospect, whereas high slope area facilitates high runoff, allowing

Geomorphology

Geologic units

Hydrological properties

Active flood plain Braided bar River terrace(T1) River terrace(T2) Older alluvial plain Piedmont plain Residual hills Valley fill deposits Highly dissected structural hills Low dissected structural hills Structural hills

Younger Alluvium Younger Alluvium Younger Alluvium Younger Alluvium Older Alluvium Older Alluvium Nagrota Formation Lower Siwaliks Purmandal Sandstone Formation Middle Siwaliks Lower Siwaliks

Recharge-cum-discharge Recharge-cum-discharge Recharge Recharge Recharge-cum-discharge Recharge Recharge-cum-runoff Recharge-cum-runoff Mainly runoff Mainly runoff Mainly runoff

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Fig. 4 Thematic layers used in the present study

less residence time for rainwater hence comparatively less infiltration, considered as a poor groundwater prospect. Based on the All India Land Use Land Cover (AILULC) classification, slope map was classified into seven categories, i.e. nearly level (0–1 %), very gentle (1–3 %), gentle (3–5 %), moderate (5–10 %), steep (10–15 %), moderate

steep (15–35 %) and very steep (>35 %). Slope map of the study area as shown in Fig. 4 indicates that it varies from 0 to 1 to <35 %, and larger area occupies by nearly level to very gentle slope. Since the slope is also a criterion for infiltration of precipitation, nearly level and very gentle slope were designated in the excellent category for

304 Table 2

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Page 8 of 15 Areal extent of land use land cover 2

Discharge

Land use/land cover

Area (km )

Percentage

Agriculture field Dense forest Open forest Deciduous forest Fallow land Hilly area Valley filled Built-up area Wetted area Water body River bed Total

159 62 188 42 39 65 16 21.3 17 4.7 36 650

24.5 9.5 28.9 6.5 6.0 10.0 2.5 3.3 2.6 0.7 5.5 100

groundwater potential, as the nearly flat terrain is the most favourable for infiltration. Soil texture Soil texture is commonly considered the upper weathered zone of the earth and characteristics invariably control the penetration of surface water into an aquifer system. It has a significant impact on the amount of recharge water, which can infiltrate into the ground and are directly related to the rate of infiltration, percolation and permeability. The soil texture map of the study area generated by digitizing the soil texture map obtained from the National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP) Nagpur, Maharashtra, India. The map has classified into five classes, and score has been categorized to each class according to their influence on groundwater occurrence shown in Fig. 4. Depth to water table Depth to water table data of pre-monsoon and post-monsoon were collected from the dug wells around the study area which provides the sufficient information about groundwater recharging condition. During the pre-monsoon period, the depth to water table ranges from 0.9 to 29 m in the study area. In the post-monsoon period, water level ranges from 0.5 to 29.7 m. The pre-monsoon and post-monsoon water table data have been taken for computing the fluctuation map as shown in Fig. 4. The shallow water area has comparatively more potential for groundwater prospect than the deeper water table area, hence given the high class score in a particular theme. The pre-monsoon and post-monsoon themes were assigned the weight-age-7 based on the influence of water level changes to the groundwater prospect whereas the static level and season water level season fluctuation themes were assigned the weight-age 5.

The volume of water flowing through an aquifer in a given period of time is known as discharge. The discharge of tube wells tapping multiple confined to semi-confined aquifers in the study area vary from 3.30 to 31.43 L/s ( Ta b l e 2 ) . T h e m i n i m u m d i s c h a rg e o b s e r v e d a t Purmandal tube well which is located in adjoining to the hilly area. The maximum discharge observed at the Koulpur tube well located in the southwestern part of study area made-up of older and younger alluvium. The area with maximum discharge has the highest potential for groundwater and assigned a high score in a particular theme and vice versa. The discharge theme has assigned the weightage 7 based on influence of discharge rate on groundwater potential. Drawdown The drawdown is the difference between the static water level and the pumping water level. In general, it is amount which the water level was lowered during pumping. The drawdown varies from 1.05 to 36.43 m in the study area. The minimum drawdown value occurred in the southwestern part, which lies in the alluvial plains and indicates the maximum groundwater recharge conditions, and the maximum drawdown value lies in the north and northeastern parts of the study area indicates the maximum runoff and minimum groundwater recharge conditions (Fig. 4). The least drawdown zone indicates good groundwater prospect and vice versa. Specific capacity The specific capacity measures of both the effectiveness of a well and also the aquifer characteristics, which gives information about the productivity of both aquifer and well in a single parameter. A high specific capacity indicates an efficient well having good yields and a decline in specific capacity indicates failure of the well screens by clogging. The specific capacity varies from 0.001 to 0.0076 m2/s in the study area. The maximum specific capacity observed in the southwestern parts and minimum in the northern parts of the study area shown in Fig. 4. The specific capacity map has assigned the weight 8 based on its importance to groundwater prospect identification. Transmissivity Transmissivity is the rate of flow of water under a unit hydraulic gradient transmitted through a cross section of unit width over the whole saturated thickness of the aquifer.

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Consequently, transmissivity is a product of the average hydraulic conductivity and saturated thickness of the aquifer. Transmissivity of tube wells tapping the multiple confined to semi-confined aquifers vary from 6 to 3106 m2/day. The concept of transmissivity holds good mainly under confined flow conditions, while under unconfined conditions, its value may vary with time due to changes in saturated thickness of the aquifer. The transmissivity map of the study area was prepared in GIS using interpolation techniques. The zone having high transmissivity was considered as excellent to moderate groundwater prospect; whereas, the zone with low transmissivity was assigned as moderate to low groundwater prospect. The transmissivity theme has assigned the weight-age 6 as evidential theme.

Hydraulic conductivity Hydraulic conductivity is the rate of flow under a unit hydraulic gradient through a unit cross-sectional area of the aquifer and controlled by the amount and interconnection of void spaces within the aquifer, fracturing and bedding planes. The hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer of the study area was computed by taping the multiple confined to semi-confined aquifers. The hydraulic conductivity varies from 0.0002 cm/s to 0.1241 cm/s in the study area (Table 3). The theme has assigned the weight-age 6, based on the influence to groundwater prospect whereas a highest score has been assigned to the zone having high conductivity and vice versa. Table 3 Aquifer parameters from the pumping test of the tube wells

Integration of thematic layer The delineation of potential groundwater zonation based on the integration of different thematic layers considering their behaviour with respect to groundwater control. The following steps have been followed for integration of the thematic layers in the GIS environment. & & & & &

Identification of different evidential theme Conversion of vector map into grid map Assigning the weights to different themes Assigning the score to the classes in the individual themes Integration and analysis using the weighted overlay model

Different themes were assigned on a scale of 1 to 10 according to their importance, relative to other thematic layers with respect to groundwater control. The weights were finalized considering the weights suggested by various experts and those used in earlier studies as well as field knowledge and local experience (Table 4). Different classes of each theme were also assigned weights on a scale of 1 to 10 according to their relative influence on groundwater potential. Based on this scale, a qualitative evaluation of different features of a given theme was performed, with: runoff (1–1.5); low (2–3.5); moderate (4– 5.5); good (6–7.5); and excellent (8–10). The hydrogeomorphology theme was assigned the highest weight-age 10, directly impact the groundwater occurrence and very significant for groundwater availability point of view. The land use land cover layer assigned to weight-age 9

S. no.

Name of the tube wells location

K (cm/s)

T (m2/day)

Sp. cap. (m2/s)

Q (L/s)

s (m)

Swl (m)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Nud Ghagwal Supwal Rakhmbtali Purmandal Samba Rakhbroti Pangdour Penthi Muhal Gadwal Naran

0.0039 0.0846 0.0159 0.1241 0.0002 0.0169 0.0130 0.0605 0.0591 0.0725 0.0318 0.0123

165 877 367 3106 6 281 193 1052 638 970 659 252

0.0003 0.0100 0.0015 0.0071 0.0001 0.0035 0.0012 0.0033 0.0076 0.0037 0.0014 0.0028

9.46 10.53 29.00 11.67 3.30 10.48 15.33 8.43 24.17 9.20 16.67 22.50

36.43 1.05 19.76 1.65 34.44 3.0 12.85 2.57 3.20 2.52 12.16 7.99

8.75 32.67 5.30 35.20 8.75 60 13.18 15.15 2.94 39.39 6.84 11.21

13 14 15 16

Dughor Vijaypur Kaoulpur Jatwal

0.0104 0.0264 0.0289 0.0231

602 571 600 650

0.0063 0.0044 0.0045 0.0048

19.00 12.63 31.43 12.17

3.0 2.89 7.0 2.53

22.86 13.27 4.26 71.25

K hydraulic conductivity, T transmissivity, Sp. cap. specific capacity, Q discharge, s drawdown, Swl static water level

304 Table 4

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Page 10 of 15 Assigned weight for different themes, score and normalized weight of individual feature

S. no.

Theme

Class

Groundwater prospect

Assigned weight

Score

Normalized weight

1.

Hydrogeomorphology

Drainage density (km/km2)

3.

Land use/land cover

Excellent Excellent Excellent Good Good Moderate Moderate Low Low Poor Poor Excellent Excellent Good Moderate Low Excellent

10

2.

Active flood plain Braided bar River terrace (T1) River terrace (T2) Older alluvial plain Piedmont plain Residual hills Valley fill deposits Highly dissected structural hills Low dissected structural hills Structural hills 0–2 2–4 4–6 6–8 >8 Water body

10 9 8 7 6 5 5 5 3 2 1 10 8 6 4 3 10

0.15 0.13 0.11 0.10 0.08 0.08 0.08 0.05 0.03 0.02 1.00 0.32 0.26 0.19 0.13 0.10 0.15

Wetted area River bed Agriculture field Valley filled Dense forest Fallow land Deciduous forest Built-up area Open forest Hilly area Nearly level (0–1 %) Very gentle (1–3 %) Gentle (3–5 %) Moderate (5–10 %) Moderate steep (10–15 %) Steep (15–35 %) Very steep (>35 %) Recent soil Fine loamy soil

Excellent Excellent Good Good Moderate Moderate Moderate Low Low Poor Excellent

9 9 7 7 6 6 5 4 3 1 10 9 8 6 5 3 1 10 7

0.13 0.13 0.10 0.10 0.09 0.09 0.07 0.06 0.04 0.01 0.24 0.21 0.19 0.14 0.12 0.07 0.02 0.32 0.23

Coarse loamy soil Loamy skeletal soil Fine silty soil <5 5–10 10–15 15–20 20–25 25–30 >30 Runoff zone <5 5–10

Moderate Moderate Low Excellent Excellent Excellent Good Moderate Moderate Low Poor Excellent Excellent

6 5 3 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 1 10 9

0.19 0.16 0.10 0.20 0.18 0.16 0.14 0.12 0.10 0.08 0.02 0.25 0.23

4.

5.

Slope

Soil texture

6.

Post-monsoon water level (m)

7.

Pre-monsoon water level (m)

Excellent Good Moderate Low Poor Excellent Good

6

9

7

5

7

7

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Table 4 (continued) S. no.

Theme

8.

Fluctuation in water table (m)

9.

Static water level (m)

Class

Groundwater prospect

10–5 15–20 20–25

Score

Normalized weight

Good Moderate Low

7 6 4

0.18 0.15 0.10

>25 Runoff zone <0.5 0.5–1 1–1–5 1.5–2 2–2.5 2.5–3 3–3.5 3.5–4 4–4.5 4.5–5 5–5.5 5.5–6 6–6.5 >6.5 Runoff zone <10

Low Poor Excellent Excellent Excellent Good Good Good Moderate Moderate Moderate Low Low Low Poor Poor Poor Excellent

3 1 10 10 9 8 8 7 6 6 5 4 4 3 2 2 1 10

0.08 0.03 0.12 0.12 0.11 0.09 0.09 0.08 0.07 0.07 0.06 0.05 0.05 0.04 0.02 0.02 0.01 0.25

10–20 20–30 30–40 40–50 50–60 >60 Runoff zone >27.5 25–27.5 22.5–25 20–22.5 17.5–20 15–17.5 12.5–15 10–12.5 7.5–10 5–7.5 <5 Runoff zone

Good Moderate Moderate Low Low Poor Poor Excellent Excellent Good Good Good Moderate Moderate Low Low Low Poor Poor

7 6 6 4 4 2 1 10 9 8 7 7 6 5 4 3 3 2 1

0.18 0.15 0.15 0.10 0.10 0.05 0.03 0.15 0.14 0.12 0.11 0.11 0.09 0.08 0.06 0.05 0.05 0.03 0.02

7

10

0.21

8

9 7 7 6 5 3 1 10

0.19 0.15 0.15 0.13 0.10 0.06 0.02 0.13

10.

Discharge (L/s)

11.

Drawdown (m)

<5

Excellent

Specific capacity (m2/s)

5–10 10–5 15–20 20–25 25–30 >30 Runoff zone >0.0083

Excellent Good Good Moderate Moderate Low Poor Excellent

12.

Assigned weight

5

5

7

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Table 4 (continued) S. no.

Theme

13.

Transmissivity (m2/day)

14.

Hydraulic conductivity (cm/s)

Class

Groundwater prospect

0.0075–0.0083 0.0067–0.0075 0.0058–0.0067

Score

Normalized weight

Excellent Excellent Good

9 9 8

0.12 0.12 0.11

0.0050–0.0058 0.0042–0.0050 0.0033–0.0042 0.0025–0.0033 0.0017–0.0025 0.0017–0.0008 <0.0008 Runoff zone >2485 1865–2485 1245–1865 625–1245 <625 Runoff zone >0.0984 0.0752–0.0984 0.0521–0.0752 0.0289–0.0521

Good Good Moderate Moderate Low Low Poor Poor Excellent Excellent Good Moderate Low Poor Excellent Excellent Good Moderate

8 8 7 6 4 3 2 1 10 8 7 6 3 1 10 8 7 6

0.11 0.11 0.09 0.08 0.05 0.04 0.03 0.01 0.29 0.23 0.20 0.17 0.09 0.03 0.26 0.21 0.18 0.15

0.0058–0.0289 <0.0058 Runoff zone

Low Low Poor

4 3 1

0.10 0.08 0.03

largely influences the groundwater movement and occurrence. Specific capacity was assigned the weight-age 8 as it provides important subsurface information in terms of yielding capacity of the aquifer. The slope is one of the factors controlling the infiltration of groundwater into the subsurface; hence an indicator of the suitability for groundwater prospect. Based on field condition and terrain characteristics slope theme was assigned weight-age 7. Discharge and drawdown layers were assigned the weight-age 7 as the themes provide important subsurface information about the capacity of the aquifer. Drainage density indicates closeness of spacing of channels as well as the nature of surface material. The high drainage density area indicates the low-infiltration rate, whereas the low-density areas are favourable for groundwater with high infiltration rate, and the theme was assigned the weight-age 6, as it indirectly affects the groundwater potential. Seasonal water level provides information about groundwater occurrence and behaviour of aquifer which indirectly influence the groundwater potential; pre- and post-monsoon water levels provide the important seasonal information about groundwater availability are also assigned weight-age 7. Transmissivity and hydraulic conductivity themes were assigned the weight-age 6; important aquifer parameters

Assigned weight

6

6

indirectly indicate groundwater prospects. Based on field information, significance to control the groundwater movement and availability of the static water level and water table fluctuation themes were assigned the weight-age 5.

Weighted index overlay analysis method The weighted index overlay analysis method was adopted for combining the multi-class maps in the study area. This method takes into consideration the relative importance of the parameters and the classes belonging to each parameter. The determination of weight-age of each class is the most crucial in integrated analysis, as the output is largely dependent on the assignment of appropriate weight-age. The method is applied where maps are added together in a weighted combination, the input maps are binary and each map carries a single weight factor. The map classes occurring in each input map are assigned different scores, in addition to the maps themselves receiving weights. The average score is defined as follows: S ¼ ΣSij*Wi=ΣWi

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Fig. 6 Pie doughnut chart of potential zones map

Fig. 5 Groundwater prospect map

where S is the weight score of an area object (polygon, pixel), Wi is the weight for the ith input map and Sij is the rating score of the jth class of the ith map. The value of j depends upon the class occurring in the current location. Groundwater potential zones The groundwater potential zones map of the study area was prepared by the integration of various thematic layers viz. hydrogeomorphology, drainage density, land use/land cover, slope, soil texture, pre-monsoon and post-monsoon water table, water table fluctuation, static water level, discharge, drawdown, specific capacity, hydraulic conductivity and transmissivity in the GIS environment using weighted index overlay analysis. The groundwater potential zones map of the study area was classified into five categories (Fig. 5), and extent of various zones in terms of the percentage of the total area is shown in Table 5. The Pie doughnut chart illustrates the area covered by the different zones in the potential zones map (Fig. 6). The excellent groundwater potential zone mainly falls in the younger and older alluvial plain, nearly level slope, shallow water table condition covering 13.5 % of the total Table 5 Areal distribution of groundwater potential zones

Groundwater potential zone

Area (km2)

Percent

Excellent Good Moderate Low Runoff zone Total

87.75 147.55 102.7 120.25 191.75 650

13.5 22.7 15.8 18.5 29.5 100

study area. The good groundwater potential zone mainly falls in the piedmont alluvial plain, older alluvial plain along the river terrace of the Devak, Rui rivers and the portions of the river valley having very gentle to gentle slope (<5 %) covering the 22.7 % of the total area. The moderate groundwater potential zones falls in the central and northeastern part of the study area includes the residual hills and valley fill deposits characterized by moderate to moderately steep slope covering 15.8 % of the total area. The low groundwater potential zone falls in the northern parts of the study area which includes residual and structural hills, with moderately steep to steep slope, high water level fluctuations, low discharge rate and high drawdown, deep water table conditions covering 18.5 % of the total study area. The runoff zone includes the area with high drainage density, moderately steep to very steep slope, rainfall which occurs on such sloppy surface predominately low-infiltration and high runoff; characterized by deep a water table condition, water occurs only in perched water table conditions or along the faults, fractures and lineaments covering 29.5 % of the total study area.

Conclusions With the increasing demand of water resources, mapping of groundwater resources has been increased over the years. From the previously mentioned studies related to the use of remote sensing and GIS in groundwater mapping, it could be concluded that groundwater mapping is one of the main tools for efficient and controlled development of groundwater resources. These maps will be used by engineers, planners and decision makers to allocate, develop and manage groundwater within a national water policy. In this study, groundwater potential zones have been identified based on aquifer parameters and terrain characteristics using integrated remote sensing and geographic information system techniques. Satellite imageries, topographic maps and DEM data were used to prepare different thematic layers such as hydrogeomorphology, land

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use, slope, soil and drainage density. Various thematic layers of aquifer parameters such as transmissivity, hydraulic conductivity, depth to water table (pre-monsoon and postmonsoon), discharge, drawdown, specific capacity, fluctuation of water level, static water level, etc. were prepared by using different dug wells and tube well data collected from field observation. All the thematic layers were assigned a proper weight-age, scores depending on their influence on groundwater potential, integrated in the GIS environment using weighted index overlay analysis (WIQA) to finally prepare the groundwater potential zones. The surface and subsurface information based study provides a more realistic analysis of the groundwater availability in the study area. The groundwater prospects are depicted in five categories such as excellent, good, moderate, low and runoff zone. This groundwater prospect zones map is very useful for the development of sustainable schemes for groundwater resources. Acknowledgments The authors are thankful to the Central Groundwater Board (CGWB), North Western Himalaya Region, Jammu for pumping test data. The authors also equally thank Head, Department of Geology and Department of Remote Sensing & GIS, University of Jammu, for support in providing the necessary facilities and encouragement to carry out the present work. We express our sincere gratitude to the three anonymous reviewers for evaluating the research paper critically; their valuable suggestions improved the quality of this manuscript.

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