A GIS-based approach for identifying potential sites for harvesting rainwater in the Western Desert of Iraq

Ammar Adham; Khamis Naba Sayl; Rasha Abed; Mohamed Arbi Abdeladhim; Jan G. Wesseling; Michel Riksen; Luuk Fleskens; Usama Karim; Coen J. Ritsema

International Soil and Water Conservation Research (Dec 2018)

A GIS-based approach for identifying potential sites for harvesting rainwater in the Western Desert of Iraq

Ammar Adham,
Khamis Naba Sayl,
Rasha Abed,
Mohamed Arbi Abdeladhim,
Jan G. Wesseling,
Michel Riksen,
Luuk Fleskens,
Usama Karim,
Coen J. Ritsema

Affiliations

Ammar Adham: Wageningen University, Soil Physics and Land Management Group, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands; Department of Civil Engineering, Engineering College, University of Anbar, Ramadi, Iraq; Corresponding author at: Wageningen University, Soil Physics and Land Management Group, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands.
Khamis Naba Sayl: Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 UKM Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia; Department of Dams and Water Resources, Engineering College, University of Anbar, Ramadi, Iraq
Rasha Abed: Wageningen University, Soil Physics and Land Management Group, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands
Mohamed Arbi Abdeladhim: Wageningen University, Soil Physics and Land Management Group, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands
Jan G. Wesseling: Wageningen University, Soil Physics and Land Management Group, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands
Michel Riksen: Wageningen University, Soil Physics and Land Management Group, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands
Luuk Fleskens: Wageningen University, Soil Physics and Land Management Group, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands
Usama Karim: Department of Civil Engineering and Management, University of Twente, P. O. Box 217, 7500 AE Enschede, the Netherlands
Coen J. Ritsema: Wageningen University, Soil Physics and Land Management Group, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 6, no. 4
pp. 297 – 304

Abstract

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People living in arid and semi-arid areas with highly variable rainfall and unforeseeable periods of droughts or floods are severely affected by water shortages and often have insecure livelihoods. The construction of dams in wadies to harvest rainwater from small watersheds and to induce artificial groundwater recharge is one of the solutions available to overcome water shortages in the Western Desert of Iraq. The success of rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems depends heavily on their technical design and on the identification of suitable sites. Our main goal was to identify suitable sites for dams using a suitability model created with ModelBuilder in ArcGIS 10.2. The model combined various biophysical factors: slope, runoff depth, land use, soil texture, and stream order. The suitability map should be useful to hydrologists, decision-makers, and planners for quickly identifying areas with the highest potential for harvesting rainwater. The implementation of this method should also support any policy shifts towards the widespread adoption of RWH. Keywords: GIS, Rainwater harvesting, Iraq's western desert, Suitability map

Published in International Soil and Water Conservation Research

ISSN: 2095-6339 (Print); 2589-059X (Online)
Publisher: KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
Country of publisher: China
LCC subjects: Technology: Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General)
Website: https://www.keaipublishing.com/en/journals/international-soil-and-water-conservation-research/

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