Abstract
Groundwater is considered as one of the most important sources of fresh-water, on which many regions around the world depend, especially in semi-arid and arid regions. Protecting and maintaining groundwater is a difficult process, but it is very important to maintain an important source of water. The current study aims to assess the susceptibility of groundwater to pollution using the DRASTIC model along with the GIS environments and its tool boxes. A vulnerability map was created by relying on data collected from 55 wells surveyed by the researchers as well as archived records from governmental institutions and some international organizations. The results indicate that the region falls into three vulnerability functional zones , namely very low, low and medium. Fortunately, most of the region is in a very low - low range (89-125) which covers approximately 94.6% of total area of the region, while the medium zone (125-133) forms 5.4%, as the smallest part of the total area ofregion. To reduce the risk of pollution in the medium zones of vulnerability, precautionary measures must be taken before commencing industrial or agricultural activities.
Highlights
The vulnerability map is considered as a valuable tool in environmental management and constitutes an important part of water protection schemes [1]
Vulnerability maps are used to determine the area of potential groundwater pollution
Vulnerability map of the study area The vulnerability map of the Shwan sub-basin was prepared based on the seven parameters
Summary
The vulnerability map is considered as a valuable tool in environmental management and constitutes an important part of water protection schemes [1]. Vulnerability maps are used to determine the area of potential groundwater pollution. Vulnerability is defined as the natural failure to protect groundwater against the risks of pollution due to the local hydrogeological conditions [10]. Shwan sub-basin is located in the North-Eastern part of Iraq, within Kirkuk governorate. It covers an area of about 678 km. Hydrogeological setting The formations (Bai-Hassan and the Quaternary deposit) are the groups that contain the groundwater aquifers in the study area [18]. The depths of the 55 wells were measured by using GIS program to create the groundwater flow map of the study area, which shows that the water in the area heads mainly from the eastern towards the western directions, as illustrated in Figure (3)
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