Estimation of surface runoff for an agricultural watershed using remote sensing and GIS based curve number method

Abstract

Water is a very important part of life circle, due to which life flourishes in Earth. In today’s scenario water scarcity is becoming the major problem so there is an urgent need to conserve it. In order to manage the scare water resources efficiently estimation of runoff in a watershed is very important factor. In India the availability of accurate runoff information is rare where most of the watersheds are ungauged, which poses a serious challenge for hydrologists. Number of mathematical models is available to quantify runoff. Soil Conservation Services-Curve Number method (SCS-CN) is used for computing the runoff depth based on the rainfall depth.In the present study SCS-CN method has been applied to estimate the runoff depth in Maniari watershed in Lormi block of Mungeli District Chhattisgarh state. This method is based on one parameter i.e. curve number which is basically a coefficient that is used to estimate runoff due to rainfall. layers has been prepared namely base map, soil map, land use map and other maps of the study area using GIS and remote sensing data. Based on the rainfall data of the study area, daily runoff depth has been estimated. Integration of GIS with the SCS-CN method is used for estimating runoff from the un-gauged watersheds for better watershed management and conservation purposes.