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Keywords

Site selection, Rainwater harvesting, Environmental sustainability, Site suitability, Weighted overlay

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Water scarcity remains a major environmental and socio-economic challenge in arid and semi-arid regions, where efficient Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) can be a promising solution in providing adequate water. An integrated approach for site selection of RWH in Shatt al-Hilla Region of Iraq using satellite imagery and geomatics techniques. The Landsat 9 OLI/TIRS data, and a 30-meter spatial resolution Digital Elevation Model (DEM) were used to extract several key indicators, including Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI), Modified Normalized Difference Water Index (MNDWI), Bare Soil Index (BSI), slope, and aspect. Using geographic information system (GIS) weighted overlay analysis (WOA), each factor was weighted as follows: MNDWI (30%), slope (25%), SAVI (20%), BSI (15%), and aspect (10%). The overall final RWH suitability map showed four different categories: highly suitable (26.8%), moderately suitable (34.2%), marginally suitable (22.5%), and unsuitable (16.5%) categories. Most highly suitable areas were located in generally low-relief areas with minimal vegetation cover and high bare soil visibility. The results were further validated using Google Earth Pro, and site visits verified the reliability of the results. The combination of satellite-based indices with GIS spatial analysis was an efficient, economical, and scalable tool for water resource planning. This framework allows policymakers and environmental planners to plan and set priorities for rainwater harvesting infrastructure that will support long-term water security and environmental sustainability in regions suffering from climatic and hydrological stress.

DOI

10.30684/2412-0758.1575

First Page

36

Last Page

58

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