Delineation of groundwater potential zones using integrated remote sensing, GIS and multi-criteria decision making (MCDM)

This study aimed to delineate the groundwater potential zones (GWPZ) through the integrations of remote sensing (RS), geographical information system (GIS), and multi-criteria decision making (MCDM). In this case, the RS and GIS were used to produce the hydrogeological thematic layers, that is, geomorphology, slope, geology, land use, lineaments, and drainage. Therefore, the weighting of each thematic layer was done by the weighted overlay technique in the ArcGIS environment and normalized by the MCDM technique. The results consequently acquired from the integration of the various thematic maps were then cross-checked with an electrical resistivity of the subsurface layers and boreholes data; it was produced a good match with the GWPZ model. The final map of the area was demarcated by four different GWPZ, namely, very good (11.03%), good (38.44%) poor (37.33%), and very poor (13.20%) of the Shemeliab watershed area. The outcomes of this research are advantageous to the decision-makers of the water management for locating suitable positions of new production wells for their target areas. The process and findings of this study also could be used for improving plans for potential utilization of the groundwater resources in other regions of the same geological, hydrogeological, and environmental conditions.