keywords: GIS, remote sensing, multi-criteria decision analysis, groundwater.
The provision of potable water for the teeming population is one of the cardinal objectives of governance in the developing countries. The continuous change in global Climate, increase in population, inadequate supply of pipe borne water and drying up of wells during dry season over the years are the major reasons for inadequate supply of adequate quantity of quality potable water to meet the demands of the population. The study examined groundwater modeling using geospatial technology in Kachia Local Government Area, Kaduna state Nigeria. Remote sensing, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis techniques were used to analy ze digital layers of lineament, rainfall, geological structure, drainage, soil, slope, land use/cover and topography to detect the most promising sites for groundwater exploration in the area. Results from the study revealed five groundwater zones in the area; very good, good, moderate, fair and poor. Very good zones had the highest groundwater potential located at the eastern part of the study area and occupy about 14.1%. Areas of good potential occupy 22.4%, moderate occupy 15.0% while fair occupy 23.9%. A large portion of the study area has low groundwater potential with aerial coverage of 24.6%, dominantly at the western part of the study area.The study concluded that, the usefulness of remote sensing and GIS in providing efficient and effective information that save time and money in mapping promising sites for groundwater potential zones cannot be over emphasized. The final groundwater map is a vital source of information for geologist, engineers, borehole drillers and the government in locating the most promising sites of water resources for sustainable development of the area.
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