INTEGRATED APPROACH FOR IDENTIFICATION OF GROUNDWATER POTENTIAL ZONE IN HARD ROCK TERRAIN

摘要

El Nino phenomenon in Malaysia prolonged dry seasons resulted in the decrease of surface water resources. Groundwater has been identified by the relevant authorities in Malaysia as an alternative water resource in the areas affected by the El Nino. Several studies have shown that integration of remote sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) were able to identify groundwater potential zone in more accurate, faster and cost effective. The aim of this study is to use remote sensing and GIS to identify groundwater potential zone in hard rock aquifer at Upper part of Muar River Basin which is one of the areas affected by El-Nino event. In this study, five (5) parameters that controlled the groundwater occurrence were derived and extracted from satellite images (Landsat-8 & SPOT 6) and ancillary data. Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to determine the weightage and score of each parameter. Weighted Overlay technique was then used to integrate these parameters in GIS environment to produce groundwater potential map. As a result, three (3) zones of groundwater potential were categorised as High (>10m~3/hour). Moderate (5-10m~3/hour) and Low (<5m~3/hour) that indicate the groundwater potential in term of yield. The map shows that 22% of the study area is in High, 23% in Moderate and 55% in Low potential zones. The yield (25m~3/h) of verification borehole drilled in the High potential zone is consistent with the groundwater potential map. This study shows that integrated approach of remote sensing and GIS is proven to be a useful tool in producing groundwater potential map. The map is needed to assist the relevant authorities in identifying an alternative water resource especially to overcome the water crisis during El-Nino event.