Delineating Zones of Groundwater Recharging Potential using Geospatial Techniques Integrated with GRA-TOPSIS - A Case Study of Wassa West District of the Republic of Ghana

Cynthia Borkai Boye, Daniel Asenso-Gyambibi, Michael Stanley Peprah, Edwin Kojo Larbi, Frank Obeng

Abstract


Identifying and analyzing environmental parameters for assessing groundwater existence and recharge potential using geospatial techniques is crucial and cost effective, particularly for areas where surface water is contamination due to illegal mining activities. In this study, GIS and Multi-criteria decision analysis tool, GRA-TOPSIS, were used to identify groundwater recharge zones in the Wassa West District of Ghana. The study considered geo-environmental factors such as slope, soil types and lithology, land use and land cover types, drainage, and lineament density to map the groundwater recharge zones. Overlay analysis tools in ArcGIS and GRA-TOPSIS were used to select suitable areas, rank and assign weights to the contributing factors to produce the final map. The recharge zones were classified into four categories based on their potential: extremely high, high, moderate, and low. Results showed that 1% of the study area had an extremely high recharge potential, 25% had a high recharge potential, while the majority of the district (73%) had moderate recharge potential. Areas with low recharge potential constituted only 1% of the total area. The results were validated by location data of drilled boreholes using handheld GPS. Depths of boreholes ranged from 35 m to 62 m with yields ranging from 8.1 m3/h - 14.3 m3/h. The study has revealed that lineament density could be used as a proxy for groundwater recharge potential for the study area. The study demonstrated that GIS integrated with GRA-TOPSIS model provides an effective and fast method for identifying the distribution of groundwater yield potential zones in the study area. The findings can support water resource managers in promoting sustainable groundwater management in the Wassa West District of Ghana.


Keywords


GRA-TOPSIS, Groundwater recharge potential, geo-environmental, cost factors, sustainable development, GIS

References


Aduah, M. S., Warburton, M. L., and Jewitt, G. (2015). Analysis of Land Cover Changes in the Bonsa Catchment, Ankobra Basin, Ghana, Applied Ecology and Environmental Research, 13 (4), 935-955.

Al-Fugara, A., Ahmadlou, M., Al-Shabeeb, A. R., Al-Ayyash, S., Al-Amoush, H., and Al-Adamat, R. (2020). Spatial Mapping of Groundwater Springs Potentiality Using Grid Search-Based and Genetic Algorithm-Based Support Vector Regression. Geocarto International, https://doi.org/10.1080/10106049.2020.17116396.

Al-Ruzouq, R., Shanablesh,A., Merabtene, T., Siddique, M., Khalil, M.A., Idris,A., Almulla, E.(2019). Potential groundwater zone mapping based on geo-hydrological considerations and multi-criteria spatial analysis: north UAE. Catena 173, 511-524.

Arabameri, A., Roy, J., Saha, S., Blaschke, T., Ghorbanzadeh, O., and Bui, D. T. (2019). Application of Probabilistic and Machine Learning Models for Groundwater Potentiality Mapping in Damghan Sedimentary Plain, Iran. Remote Sensing, 11(3015), 1-35.

Asante-Annor, A., Konadu, S. A., and Ansah, E. (2018). Determination of Potential Landfill Site in Tarkwa Area Using Multi-Criteria GIS, Geophysical and Geotechnical Evaluation, Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection, 6, 1-27.

Asklunel, R., and Eldvall, B. (2005), “Contamination of Water Resources in Tarkwa Mining Area of Ghana”, Published MSc Thesis, Department of Engineering Geology, Royal Institute of Technology, LTh Ekosystemteknk, 1-72.

Baskaran, M., Hashim, R., Sudesh, K., Sulaiman, O., Hiziroglu, S., Arai, T., and Kosugi, A. (2013). Influence of Stream treatment on the properties of particleboard made from oil palm trunk with addition of polyhydroxyalkanoates, Industrial Crops and Products, Vol.51, 334-341, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2013.09.023

Batur, E. and Maktav, D. (2019), “Assessment of Surface” Water Quality by Using Satellite Images Fusion Based on PCA Method in the Lake Gala, Turkey”, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, Vol.57, No. 5, pp. 2983–2989.

Boye, C. B., Peprah, M. S., and Kodie, N. K. (2018). Geographic Assessment of Telecommunication Signals in a Mining Community: A Case Study of Tarkwa and Its Environs, Ghana Journal of Technology, 2 (2), 41-49.

Carrard, N., Foster, T., and Willetts, J. (2019). Groundwater as a source of drinking water in southeast Asia and the Pacific: A multi-country review of current reliance and resource concerns. Water, 11(8), 1605.

Darkwah, S. O., Scoville, M. D., & Wang, L. K. (2021). Geographic information systems and remote sensing applications in environmental and water resources. In Integrated Natural Resources Management (pp. 197-236). Springer, Cham.

Das, B., and Pal, S. C. (2019). Combination of GIS and Fuzzy-AHP for Delineating Groundwater Recharge Potential Zones in the Critical Goghat-II Block of West Bengal, India. HydroResearch, 2, 21-30.

Ewusi, A., Ahenkorah, I., and Kuma, J. S. Y. (2017). Groundwater Vulnerability Assessment of the Tarkwa Mining Area Using SINTACS Approach and GIS. Ghana Mining Journal, 17(1), 18-30.

Igibah, C. E., and Tanko, J. A. (2019). Assessment of Urban Groundwater Quality Using Piper Trilinear and Multivariate Techniques: A Case Study in the Abuja, North-Central, Nigeria. Environmental Systems Research, 8(14), 1-14.

Jaiswal, R., Mukherjee, S., Krishnamurthy, J., Saxena, R. (2003). Role of remote sensing and GIS techniques for generation of groundwater prospect zones towards rural development - an approach, Int. J. Remote Sens.24(5), 993-1008.

Javanmardi, E., & Liu, S. (2019). Exploring grey systems theory-based methods and applications in analyzing socio-economic systems. Sustainability, 11(15), 4192.

Joe-Asare, T., Peprah, M. S., and Opoku, M. M. (2018). Assessment of the Potability of Underground Water from a Small-Scale Underground Mine: A Case Study, Ghana Mining Journal, 18 (2), 61-67.

Kalantar, B., Al-Najjar, H. A. H., Pradhan, B., Saeidi, V., Halin, A. A., Ueda, N., and Naghibi, S. A. (2019). Optimized Conditioning Factors Using Machine Learning Techniques for Groundwater Potential Mapping. Water, 11(1909), 1-21.

Kortatsi, B. K. (2004), “Hydrochemistry of Groundwater in the Mining Area of Tarkwa Prestea, Ghana”, Published PhD Thesis, University of Ghana, Legon-Accra, Ghana, 1-45.

Kuma, J. S. and Ewusi, A., (2009). Water Resources Issues in Tarkwa Municipality, Southwest Ghana, Ghana Mining Journal, 11, 37 - 46.

Kumi-Boateng, B., Peprah, M. S., and Larbi, E. K. (2020a). The Integration of Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (FAHP), and Bayesian Belief Network (BBN) for Flood Prone Areas Identification – A Case Study of the Greater Accra Region, Ghana. Journal of Geomatics, Vol. 14, No.2, 100-122.

Kwesi, E. A. A, Asamoah, K. N., Arthur, F. A. and Kwofie, J. A. (2020). Mapping of Ground Water Vulnerability for Landfill Site Selection Assessment at the District Level – A Case Study at the Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipality of Ghana, Ghana Journal of Technology, 4 (2), 57 - 65.

Larbi, E. K., Boye, C. B., and Peprah, M. S. (2018). A GIS Approach in Optimal Route Selection in the Mining Communities Using the Analytical Hierarchy Process and the Least Cost Path Analysis, 5th UMaT Biennial International Mining and Mineral Conference, Tarkwa, Ghana, GLM 50-62.

Lattman, L.H., and Parizek, R.R. (1964). Relationships between fracture traces and the occurrence of groundwater in carbonate rocks, Journal of Hydrology, DOI: 10.1016/0022-1694(64)90019-8

Lee, S., Hyun, Y., Lee, S., and Lee, M. J. (2020). Groundwater Potential Mapping Using Remote Sensing-Based and GIS-Based Machine Learning Techniques. Remote Sensing, 12(1200), 1-22.

Latuszynka, A. (2013). Multiple –Criteria Decision Analysis using TOPSIS method for Interval data in research into the level of Information society Development, Folia Oeconomica stetinensia, doi:10.2478/foli-2013-0015.

Mojaddadi, H., B. Pradhan, H. Nampak, N. Ahmad, and A. Halim bin Ghazali (2017). Ensemble machine –learning based geospatial approach for flood risk assessment using multi-sensor remote sensing data and GIS, Geomatics, Natural Hazards and Risk, doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19475705.2017.1294113.

Naghibi, S. A., Ahmadi, K., and Daneshi, A. (2017). Application of Support Vector Machine, Random Forest, and Genetic Algorithm Optimized Random Forest Models in Groundwater Potential Mapping. Water Resources Management, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-017-1660-3, 1-15.

Nithya, C. N., Srinivas, Y., Magesh, N. S., and Kaliraj, S. (2019). Assessment of Groundwater Potential Zones in Chittar Basin, Southern India Using GIS Based AHP Techniques. Remote Sensing Applications: Society and Environment, 15(100248), 1-15.

Patra, S., Mishra, P., and Mahapatra, S. C. (2018). Delineation of Groundwater Potential Zone for Sustainable Development: A Case Study from Ganga Alluvial Plain Covering Hooghly District of India Using Remote Sensing, Geographic Information System, and Analytical Hierarchy Process. Journal of Cleaner Production, 172(2485), 2485-2502.

Peprah, M.S., C.B. Boye, E.K. Larbi, and P. Opoku Appau (2018). Suitability analysis for siting oil and gas filling stations using multi-criteria decision analysis and GIS approach – A case study in Tarkwa and its environs, Journal of Geomatics, 12(2), 158-166.

Peprah, M. S., and Mensah, I. O. (2017). Performance Evaluation of the Ordinary Least Square (OLS) and Total Least Square (TLS) in Adjusting Field Data: An Empirical Study on a DGPS Data, South African Journal of Geomatics, 6 (1), 73-89.

Ramanan, G., and E.R.J. Dhas (2017). Response surface modelling and grey relative analysis to optimize the wire edm machining parameters with multiple response characteristics, International Journal of Control Theory and Applications, ISSN:0974-5572, 27(10).

Razandi, Y., Pourghasemi, H. R., Neisani, N. S., and Rahmati, O. (2015). Application of Analytical Hierarchy Process, Frequency ratio, and Certainty Factor Models for Groundwater Potential Mapping Using GIS. Earth Science Informatics, 8, 867-883.

Samlafo, V. B., and Ofoe, E. O. (2017). Water Quality Assessment of River Bonsa in Tarkwa, a Mining-Impacted Area of Ghana, Chemical Science International Journal, 20(4), 1-8.

Sander, P. (2007). Lineaments in groundwater exploration: A review of applications and limitations, Hydrogeology Journal, 15(1): 71-74, DOI: 10.1007/s10040-006-0138-9

Selvan, S., Mugesh, N.S., Chidambaram, S., Rajamanickam, M., and Sshikkumar, M.C. (2015). A GIS based identification of groundwater recharge potential zones using RS and IF techniques: a case study in Ottapidaram taluk, Tuticorin district, Tamil Nadu, Environ Earth Sci (2015) 73:3785-3799, doi:10.1007/s/2665-014-3664-0.

Singh, P., Gupta, A., & Singh, M. (2014). Hydrological inferences from watershed analysis for water resource management using remote sensing and GIS techniques. The Egyptian Journal of Remote Sensing and Space Science, 17(2), 111-121.

Seidu, J., and Ewusi, A. (2018). Assessment of Groundwater Quality Using Hydrogeochemical Indices and Statistical Analysis in the Tarkwa Mining Area of Ghana, Journal of Environmental Hydrology, 26, 1-15.

Sener, E., Sener, S., and Davraz, A. (2018). Groundwater Potential Mapping by Combining Fuzzy-Analytic Hierarchy Process and GIS in Beysehir Lake Basin, Turkey. Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 11(87), 1-21.

Serele, C., Perez-Hoyos. A., and Kayitakire, F. (2019). Mapping of Groundwater Potential Zones in the Drough-Prone Areas of South Madagascar Using Geospatial Techniques, Geosciene Frontiers, (Article in Press) xxx(xxxx)xxx, 1-11.

Si, A., Das, S., and Kar, S. (2021). Picture fuzzy set-based decision-making approach using Dempster–Shafer theory of evidence and grey relation analysis and its application in COVID-19 medicine selection. Soft Computing, 1-15.

Sharma, L.K., S. Kanga, S. Nathawat, S. Sinha, and P.C.Pandey (2012). Fuzzy Ahp for forest fire risk modelling, Disaster Prevention and Management, 21(2), 160-171. doi:10.1108/09653661211219964

Shih, H., Shyur, H., and Lee, E.S. (2006). An extension of TOPSIS for group decision making, mathematical and computer modelling 45(2007) 801-813, doi:10.1016/j.mem.2006.03.023.

Silwal, C. B., and Pathak, D. (2018). Review on Practices and State of the Art Methods on Delineation of Groundwater Potential Using GIS and Remote Sensing. Bulletin of Department of Geology, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal, 20(21), 7-20.

Termeh, S. V. R., Khosravi, K., Sartaj, M., Keesstra, S. D., Tsai, F. T. C., Dijksma, R., and Pham, B. T. (2019). Optimization of an Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System for Groundwater Potential Mapping, Hydrogeology Journal, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-019-02017-9.

Thapa, S. and R. Engelken (2020). Optimization of pelleting parameters for producing composite pellets using agricultural and agro-processing wastes by taguchi grey relational analysis, Carbon Resources Conversion, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crcon.2020.05.001.

Vrba, J. and van der Gun, J., 2004. The world’s groundwater resources. Contribution to, pp.2004-1.

Xuelong, W. (2019). Application of Grey Relational Analysis Theory to choose Higj Reliability of the Network Node, IOP Conf..Series: Journal of Physics: Conf.Series 1237(2019) 032056, do: 10.1088/1742-6596/1237/3/032056.

Yakubu, I., Ziggah, Y. Y., and Peprah, M. S. (2018). Adjustment of DGPS Data using artificial intelligence and classical least square techniques. Journal of Geomatics. 12 (1), 13-20.

Zhang, X., Chen, M., Guo, K., Liu, Y., Cai, W., Wu, H., Chen, Z., Chen, Y., and Zhang, J. (2021). Regional Land Eco-security Evaluation for the Mining City of Daye in China Using the GIS-Based Grey TOPSIS Method. Land 2021, 10,118. https://doi.org/10.3990/land10020118.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.37591/rrjophy.v12i2.3783

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.