The Use of AHP within GIS in Selecting Potential Sites for Water Harvesting Sites in the Azraq Basin—Jordan

Abstract

The identification of potential sites for water harvesting is an important step towards maximizing water availability and land productivity in the arid and semi-arid areas. This research aimed to select the optimum sites for water harvesting in the Azraq basin of Jordan through the use of GIS techniques. The Azraq basin is characterized by flash floods that involve large quantities of runoff. The selection criteria in this research were based on six parameters identified based on an extensive literature review. Five experts were then asked to evaluate the importance of each criterion. The consistency ratio between the experts opinions was evaluated using the pairwise comparison method and a final weight was computed for each criterion. A water harvesting suitability map was then generated following the weighted linear combination (WLC) method. The sites that are not suitable for water harvesting within the study area were identified and eliminated following the Boolean method, and final water harvesting suitability map was generated. Finally, the findings of this research can be used to assist in the efficient planning of the water resources management to ensure a sustainable development of the water in Jordan and in other areas suffering from water shortages.