Identification of Suitable Sites for Artificial Groundwater Recharge Structures in Semi-arid region of Anantapur District: AHP Approach

Abstract

The conservation and sustainable advancement of soil and water assets is one of the fundamental standards for improvement of arid and semi-arid regions of India. The present study is underway to evaluate the Artificial Groundwater Recharge Zones (AGRZ) in the semi-arid region of Anantapur district, Andhra Pradesh, India using Remote Sensing (RS), Geographical Information System (GIS) and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) technique. The comparative weights were assigned to different thematic layers with the help of the decision making tool of AHP. A set of eight thematic layers influence groundwater potential (GWP) is determined based on their corresponding weights, which depend on a Saaty’s 9 points scale. These weights are normalized using AHP technique to identify the AGRZs. Five AGRZs were recognized as very low, low, moderate, good and very good, depending on its suitability to identify the sites for groundwater recharge. About 4.29 % (8.96km2) and 17.70 % (36.95km2) area in the region show very good and good potentials of artificial groundwater recharge, respectively. On the other hand 61.59% (128.60km2), 11.94% (24.94km2) and 4.48 % (9.35km2) area showed moderate, poor and very poor potentials. Overall accuracy of AGRZ map is 82.05%. 92 check dams, 19 percolation tanks and 7 check walls were found suitable in the region. The effectiveness and prediction ability of the method depends on integrity of the criterion used. AHP based methodology can be useful for precise and reliable analysis and predictions of groundwater in semi-arid regions of India.