Quantification and characterization of hydrological drought in the Oued El-Abid watershed between 1978-2019: Statistical and GIS approaches

Abstract

Hydrological drought is considered an environmental phenomenon related to climate changes that affect natural resources in general. The evaluation of droughts is essential to in the management ofwater resources. This study aims to demonstrate the use of statistical indices (SSFI and NHI) andGIS (remote sensing) to quantify, characterize and identify hydrologic drought. These indices are applied to the watershed of OuedEl-Abid using the annual stream flows time series at the threestations studied (AitOuchen, Tilouguit, and TiziN’Isli), spanning from 1978 to 2019. Results showed that dry and very dry years occur more frequently. Because of, the lake of Bin El-Ouidane dam ismarked by a substantial regression of the water storage. Thematic maps of land use using spatialremote sensing (supervised classification) show that the years 1984, 2000, and 2017 are the driestand most vulnerable years.