Environ Geol (2005) 48: 158–170

DOI 10.1007/s00254-005-1284-4 ORIGINAL ARTICLE

S. Anbazhagan
S. M. Ramasamy
Remote sensing and GIS for artificial
S. Das Gupta recharge study, runoff estimation and
planning in Ayyar basin, Tamil Nadu, India

Received: 23 September 2004

Abstract This paper focuses on Conservation Service curve number
Accepted: 7 March 2005 artificial groundwater recharge method. The land use/land cover,
Published online: 11 June 2005 study in ‘Ayyar basin’, Tamil Nadu, hydrological soil group and storm
Ó Springer-Verlag 2005 India. The basin is covered by hard rainfall data in different watershed
crystalline rock and overall has poor areas were used to calculate the
groundwater conditions. Hence, an runoff in the watersheds. The
artificial recharge study was carried weighted curve number for each
out in this region through a project watershed is obtained through spa-
sponsored by Tamil Nadu State tial intersection of land use/land
Council for Science and Technology. cover and hydrological soil group
The Indian Remote Sensing satellite through GeoMedia 3.0 Professional
S. Anbazhagan (&) Æ S. Das Gupta 1A Linear Imaging Self Scanning GIS software. Artificial recharge
Department of Earth Sciences, Sensor II (IRS 1A LISS II) satellite planning was derived on the basis of
Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, imagery, aerial photographs and availability of runoff, aquifer
Powai, Mumbai, 400076, India geophysical resistivity data were dimension, priority areas and water
E-mail: [email protected] used to prioritize suitable sites for table conditions in different water-
Tel.: +91-022-25767255
Fax: +91-022-25723480 artificial recharge and to estimate sheds in the basin.
the volume of aquifer dimension
S. M. Ramasamy
Center for Remote Sensing,
available to recharge. The runoff Keywords Artificial recharge Æ
Bharathidasan University, water available for artificial recharge Remote sensing Æ GIS Æ Runoff
Tiruchirappalli, 620023, India in the basin is estimated through Soil estimation Æ Curve number Æ India

Introduction Tamil Nadu state, India (Fig. 1). The aerial extent of the
basin is 1,167 km2 and it incorporates two administra-
Replenishing the groundwater aquifers through artificial tive taluks called Musiri and Thuraiyur. Approximately
recharge was carried out in various parts of the world one-fifth of the area is covered by hilly terrain (Kolli and
for the last six decades (Babcock and Cushing 1942; Pachamalai hills). Geologically, the basin is predomi-
Barksdale and Debuchanne 1946; Beeby-Thompson nantly covered by gneissic and charnockitic rock types.
1950; Buchen 1955; Todd 1959). However, the impor- The majority of the irrigated land in the basin is being
tance of artificial recharge was realized in India only cultivated with the help of groundwater augmented from
about four decades ago (Karanth 1963). In the recent dug wells and bore wells to the maximum possible ex-
years, many studies concentrated on application of tent. In this circumstance, aquifer replenishment
remote sensing and GIS for artificial recharge (Sharma through artificial recharge is necessary for this region.
1992; Anbazhagan 1994, unpublished PhD thesis; The Central and State governments are spending a
Ramasamy and Anbazhagan 1997, Anbazhagan and considerable amount of money for construction of
Ramasamy 2001). artificial recharge structures like percolation ponds and
The study area ‘Ayyar basin’ is a sub-basin of the check dams. However, detailed scientific analysis needs
major ‘Cauvery’ river basin in Tiruchirappalli district,
 159

Fig. 1 Location map of Ayyar

basin

to be done before, construction of such structures. average of 500-mm rainfall in the southern part and
Hence, a comprehensive research work was carried out more than 790-mm rainfall in the central and northern
in this region with the help of the Tamil Nadu State parts of the basin. In the third phase, the volume of
Council for Science and Technology (TNSCS&T). The surface runoff available in the basin for artificial re-
research work comprises four phases: selection of suit- charge was estimated through an SCS curve method
able sites, identification of site-specific mechanisms, (Anon 1973). In the final stage, artificial recharge plan-
surface runoff estimation and prioritization of artificial ning was done on the basis of availability of runoff,
recharge practices based on different criteria. aquifer dimension and water table conditions in different
The suitable sites for artificial recharge were identified watersheds in the basin.
by analysis of geological, geomorphological, subsurface
geological and water-level fluctuation data through
thematic as well as statistical modeling (Ramasamy and
Anbazhagan 1997; Anbazhagan and Ramasamy 2001, Methodology
2005). In the second phase, various methods of artificial
recharge were identified based on different controlling The current study has been focused on artificial recharge
terrain parameters. Desiltation of existing tanks, flood- site selection process and runoff estimation through re-
ing and dendritic furrowing, percolation ponds, en- mote sensing and GIS techniques. The digitally pro-
echelon dams, injection wells and subsurface dams were cessed IRS 1A LISS II (Indian Remote Sensing satellite
recommended in the priority areas (Ramasamy and 1A Linear Imaging Self Scanning Sensor II) satellite
Anbazhagan 1996). Before implementing any artificial data and aerial photographs were used for the genera-
recharge schemes, it is necessary to estimate the avail- tion of various thematic maps on geology and geomor-
able precipitation and runoff in the basin. The analysis phological parameters. The thematic maps include
of 16 years, rainfall data in the basin has shown an pervious and impervious lithology, rock-soil contact,
160

lineament, lineament density, structure, fluvial and de- geological parameters. Under geology, thematic maps
nudational geomorphology. on rock–soil contact, folded structures, lineaments and
In addition, the Survey of India (SOI) topographic soil types were generated. In aerial photographs, the
maps, geophysical resistivity and field investigation data barren and vegetative rock exposures normally show
were used for generation of geological, geomorphologi- light tone and medium to coarse texture, high peaked
cal, subsurface geological and hydrological database. hills and features with relief, whereas the soil-covered
Followed by thematic map generation, thematic map zones exhibit medium to darker tone, fine texture and
integration was performed through manual as well as moderate drainage patterns.
statistical analysis, from which the watershed wise vol- The structural trend lines like fold axis, orientation of
ume of the aquifer dimension was estimated. the hills, soil tonal variations, the bedding planes or the
Satellite data were mainly used to generate land use foliations exhibiting linear and curvilinear lines were
and land cover information. Such land use and land interpreted from both satellite imagery and aerial pho-
cover detail, hydrological soil group and storm rainfall tographs. The broad third-dimensional configurations of
data were used for calculating the runoff through the the structural trends were determined on the basis of
SCS method. After estimating the volume of runoff shadow and breaks in slope observed in the aerial pho-
available in each watershed, the artificial recharge tographs. In addition, the strike and dip measured
planning was carried out. The methodology adopted in during field visits were used for structural trend line and
the study is demonstrated in Fig. 2. fold mapping. The final fold map has a series of anti-
clines and synclines with a general trend of NE–SW to
E–W direction in the basin.
Artificial recharge site selection
In hard rock terrain, lineaments act as better con-
duits for groundwater movement and accumulation.
Most of the artificial recharge studies focused on selec-
The major lineaments were interpreted from IRS 1A
tion of suitable sites for aquifer replenishment (Johnson
False Colour Composite (FCC) and also from the fil-
and Sneigocki 1967; Warner and Moreland 1972; Vec-
tered image. The FCC of Ayyar basin is shown in
chioli et al. 1974; Cochran 1981; Murakami 1982; Cook
Fig. 3. Linearity in soil tonal contrast, straight drain-
and Walker 1990, Sharma 1992; Ramasamy and An-
age courses and vegetation linearities are the key ele-
bazhagan 1997; Anbazhagan and Ramasamy 2001). In
ments used in interpreting the lineaments from the
the recent years, the role of remote sensing and GIS has
FCC image. The minor lineaments were interpreted
received much attention in artificial recharge studies.
from black and white panchromatic aerial photo-
The geological, geomorphological, subsurface geological
graphs. The lineaments interpreted from satellite
and hydrogeological data were analyzed in the process
imagery and also from aerial photographs were inte-
of suitable site selection for artificial recharge.
grated together and the final lineament map was pre-
pared. From lineament, the lineament density map was
Database prepared. Soil type is one of the important parameters,
which directly controls the infiltration condition in
The database generated for identifying the suitable sites an area. A soil map was prepared with the help of
for artificial recharge can be grouped into geological, data collected from the Soil Survey and Land use
geomorphological, subsurface geological and hydro- organization.

Fig. 2 Methodology
 161

Fig. 3 False Color Composite

of Ayyar basin

In geomorphology, slope, drainage density and de- landforms were interpreted from digitally processed IRS
nudational geomorphology were studied in detail. The 1A satellite data. Mostly three types of fluvial landforms
slope of a terrain reveals the runoff and infiltration identified in the study area are piedmont zone, colluvial
condition in a basin. The area of a lesser slope favors fills and floodplains. All these landforms are expected to
high infiltration and is suitable for aquifer replenish- have high amounts of unconsolidated sediments, and
ment. In Ayyar basin, the slope varies from less than 2% hence, must have a higher rate of infiltration and
to more than 20%. The drainage pattern is the best favorable areas for artificial recharge (Fig. 4).
indicator of the porosity and permeability of a terrain. If The subsurface geology is equally important in the
the drainage density is less in an area, then it can be selection of suitable sites for artificial recharge. Hence, the
inferred that the rock type may be porous and possess subsurface geology like the thickness of soil, thickness of
high infiltration. However, the high drainage density weathered zone, thickness of fractured zone and depth to
indicates the zone of impervious lithology. The SOI bedrock were measured through detailed well inventory
topographic maps were used for the generation of and geophysical resistivity survey. The water level and
drainage density maps. water-level fluctuations are equally important in artificial
The pediments and pediplains are the denudational recharge and considered site selection procedure.
landforms suitable for artificial recharge as the rocks are
comparatively weathered in condition. The pediments,
which are deeply weathered, are called weathered pedi- Data integration and prioritization
ments. Such weathered pediments were selected from
satellite imagery and obviously suited for artificial re- Data integration and prioritization were performed
charge. The fluvial geomorphic landforms are better through manual thematic map integration (Ramasamy
rechargeable areas owing to their highly enriched and Anbazhagan 1997) and statistical analysis (Anbazh-
unconsolidated sediments. The fluvial geomorphic agan and Ramasamy 2005). In this process, every
162

Fig. 4 Fluvial geomorphology

thematic map represented certain zones as favorable for Followed by thematic map integration, more refined
artificial recharge. In thematic map integration, the geo- statistical terrain analysis was carried out (Anbazhagan
logical, geomorphological, subsurface geological and and Ramasamy 2005). For this statistical analysis, a
hydrogeological data were analyzed separately and inte- numerical database was created for 63 sampling points
grated. For example, soil-covered areas from rock–soil on water level, lineament density, slope, drainage den-
contact, synclinal structures from fold map, high linea- sity, soil types, thickness of soil, thickness of weathered
ment density zones and pervious soil types were integrated zone, thickness of fractured zone and depth to bedrock.
together and wherever all parameters coincided, they were Through this process, based on number of loading fac-
demarcated as suitable areas for artificial recharge, as far tors, areas were prioritized for artificial recharge of
as the geological component is concerned. Similarly, groundwater in the basin (Fig. 5).
suitable areas were identified from geomorphology, and
subsurface geological components. Finally, the suitable
areas identified from geology, geomorphology, subsur- Estimation of aquifer dimension
face geology and water-level data were superposed one
over the other. In such thematic integration, suitable areas Ayyar basin was divided into five watersheds; Uppili-
identified from water-level components were considered yapuram, Puliyansolai, Thuraiyur, Tattaiyangarpettai
as the mandatory parameter as deeper water-level zones and Tirumanur (Fig. 5). To effectively practice the artifi-
are prerequisite condition for artificial recharge. cial recharge in the basin, it is necessary to estimate the
Depending upon the number of controlling terrain aquifer dimension available for recharge. Estimated
parameters, the suitable areas were demarcated as priority aquifer dimension in each watershed will further facilitate
area one, two and least priority areas. to prioritize the watershed for artificial recharge
 163

Fig. 5 Watershed-wise priority

areas for artificial recharge

implementation. The aquifer dimension is estimated with

the help of data collected during field visit and geophysical Runoff estimation
resistivity survey. To begin, the unsaturated zone avail-
able for artificial recharge was estimated. The average An artificial recharge project does not stop with the
depth of water level in a watershed is considered as the detection of suitable sites, but yet another important
average thickness of the unsaturated zone. For example, factor is the estimation of available water (as runoff) for
the average thickness of the unsaturated zone in the Tat- such artificial recharge work. Hence, in the next phase of
taiyangarpettai watershed is 13.43 m. The lowest value study, an analysis was performed to estimate the runoff
falls in Puliyansolai watershed, i.e. 7.65 m. If average available in each watershed in Ayyar basin. Followed by
thickness of the unsaturated zone is 13.43 m, the maxi- runoff estimation, watershed areas were prioritized for
mum of 11.43-m water storage is possible. If we recharge artificial recharge based on available volume of water
more than 11.43 m, the water level arises within 2-m zones and aquifer dimension in each watershed. The following
from the ground level, which affects the root-zone growth database: aerial coverage of different land use and land
of cultivation and creates problems. Hence, the unsatu- cover, hydrological soil group and rainfall are required
rated thickness is reduced by 2 m by allotting the 2-m zone for estimating runoff in the watershed areas.
as the root-growth zone. Next, the aerial extent of priority
area one and priority area two in different watersheds was Database
calculated. The volume of the unsaturated zone available
for artificial recharge in each priority zone was calculated Land use/land cover
by multiplying the aerial extent and thickness of the
unsaturated zone in each watershed (Table 1). The final The land use/land cover is an important characteristic of
output has shown that the available volume of aquifer the runoff process that effects the infiltration, erosion
dimension in million cubic meter (only unsaturated zone) and evapotranspiration. The infiltration, evapotranspi-
in each watershed for artificial recharge. ration and runoff vary from one land cover to another.
164

Table 1 Available aquifer

Watersheds Average Thickness Area of unsaturated Volume of unsaturated zone
dimension for artificial recharge of unsaturated zone in priority in priority
in different watersheds
zone (m)
Area 1 Area 2 Area 1 Area 2
(km2) (km2) (million m3) (million m3)

Puliyansolai 5.65 12.4 11.47 70.06 64.81

Uppiliyapuram 7.83 15.43 70.81 120.82 554.44
Thuraiyur 7.92 – 50.88 – 402.97
Tattaiyangarpettai 11.43 124.99 79.94 1428.64 913.71
Tirumanur 9.23 3.61 132 33.32 1481.70

For example, the area covered by forest comprises in- texture. The knowledge of soil cover and subsoil con-
creased infiltration and reduced runoff components. The ditions is essential for prediction of runoff or recharge
loose soil structure, good aeration and high organic condition in a basin. Based on infiltration rate, texture,
content in the soil enhances the function of infiltration in depth, drainage condition and water transmission
a forested catchment. The runoff yield is increased capacity, soils have been classified into different hydro-
gradually from forest cover, grassland, farmland, barren logical soil groups: A, B, C and D. The criteria adopted
land and urban built-up land (Yannian 1990). In the for such classification is illustrated in Table 3 (Chow
present study, the remote sensing method was adopted et al 1988; Viessman et al. 1989). In Ayyar basin, for
for interpreting various land use/land cover in the basin. generation of the database on the hydrological soil
Several studies have been conducted to demonstrate the group, soil data were collected from the Soil survey and
feasibility of interpreting the land-use categories from Land Use Organization. There are 11 soil series in Ayyar
remotely sensed data and further used as input data in a basin and each series has been grouped into a particular
hydrologic modeling for estimating the runoff (Ragan hydrological soil group. The area under a different
and Jackson 1980; Slack and Welch 1980; Kathryn et al. hydrological soil group in each watershed was estimated
1986; Jackson et al. 1996). In the present study, the and is shown in Table 4. Overall, the hydrological soil
various land-use and land-cover units were interpreted group ‘B’ occupies the major portion of the basin
from IRS 1A LISS II FCC satellite imagery. In the FCC (Fig. 7). Thus, this indicates that the Ayyar basin has
imagery, the forest cover shows thick red color with high moderate runoff potential.
relief. On the other hand, the forest plantation in the flat
terrain exhibits a brownish red color with a defined
boundary. The wet crop area identified all along the Rainfall
floodplain and drainage courses with thick red tonal
contrast. Scrublands are manifested with yellow to red- The daily rainfall data for 4 years from 1998 to 2001
dish green colors which are typically associated with were collected from the Groundwater Department for
uplands and rocky outcrop areas. Dry crops are rela- three rain gauge stations, namely Tattaiyangarpettai,
tively associated with pediment zone, in yellow tonal Thuraiyur and Musiri. For calculating the area of
contrast. Barren rocky outcrops were interpreted with influence of a particular rain gauge station in a wa-
the help of sharp boundaries, smooth or coarse texture, tershed, Thessien polygons were drawn. The initial
associated with poor vegetation and structural orienta- abstractions (Ia) were calculated for each watershed
tion. Fallow lands are pale to dark green in color in the (explained under the Soil Conservation Services (SCS)
FCC image. In total, eight land-use and land-cover units curve method). If a storm event is less than the initial
were interpreted from the satellite imagery and later abstraction value, there is no runoff available for that
grouped into four categories as dry crop, wet crop, rainfall event. Hence, for a period of 4 years, the storm
natural vegetation and barren/built-up land. The land- events, which are higher than the initial abstractions in
use/land-cover categories interpreted from satellite data each watershed, were considered for further runoff
were scanned and imported to Geomedia 3.0 Profes- estimation.
sional GIS software (Fig. 6). The area under different
land-use and land-cover categories in each watershed SCS curve number for runoff estimation
were calculated (shown in Table 2).
In earlier decades, the runoff was estimated as a per-
Hydrological soil group centage of storm rainfall, where the percentage of
runoff increases with the increase in rainfall (Linsley
The initial infiltration and transmission of surface water et al. 1958). The SCS has developed a widely used
into an aquifer system is a function of soil type and its runoff curve number procedure for estimating the
 165

Fig. 6 Land-use/land-cover
map of Ayyar basin—inter-
preted from IRS 1A satellite
data

Table 2 Area of different land

Watersheds Land-use and Land-cover type
use and land cover in
watersheds Barren and Dry crop Natural Wet crop
built-up area (km2) vegetation (km2)
(km2) (km2)

Puliyansolai – 24.19 162.92 27.62

Uppiliyapuram – 94.08 95.92 44.791
Thuraiyur 9.64 126.52 85.82 86.15
Tattaiyangarpettai 24.55 77.89 49.61 79.11
Tirumanur 20.2 162.6 34.85 128.44

runoff, in which the effect of land use and land cover,

ðP
0:2SÞ2
various soil cover and antecedent moisture condition Q¼ ; ð1Þ
were considered. If more than one land use or soil P þ 0:8S
cover occurs in a basin, the composite curve number where, Q direct flow volume expressed as a depth, P
method was adopted (Anon 1973; SCS). The basic total rainfall, S potential maximum soil retention, CN
assumption of the SCS curve number is that, for a curve number value used to estimate potential maximum
single storm event, potential maximum soil retention is soil retention (S)
equal to the ratio of direct runoff to available rainfall.
This relationship, after algebraic manipulation and 25; 400
S¼
254 ðwater depth expressed in mmÞ: ð2Þ
inclusion of simplifying assumptions, results in the CN
following equations (USDA-SCS 1985), where, curve
The CN values were tabulated according to the Na-
number represents a convenient representation of po-
tional Engineering Handbook for various land covers
tential maximum soil retention (Ponce and Hawkins
and soil textures. These values were developed from
1996).
166

Table 3 Criteria for classification of hydrological soil group

Character Hydrological soil group

A B C D
Infiltration rate High Moderate Slow Very slow

Texture Sand / Gravel Moderately coarse Moderately fine Clay

to moderately fine to fine
Depth Deep Moderately deep Moderately deep Shallow over an
to deep impervious layer
or clay pan or high
water table
Drainage Well to excess Moderately well Moderately drained Very slow
drained to well to slow
drained
Water High Moderate Slow Very slow
transmission
Remarks Low runoff Moderate runoff Moderate runoff High runoff potential
potential potential potential

annual flood rainfall–runoff data from the literature for Weighted curve number
a variety of watersheds generally less than one square P
km in area (USDA-SCS 1985). For runoff estimation in ðCN1  a1 þ CN2  a2 þ ::: þ CNn an Þ ð3Þ
¼ P ;
a basin, the results: curve number (CN), potential a
maximum soil retention (S), initial abstraction (Ia) and
antecedent moisture condition are required. where, CN1 curve number for particular land unit 1, a1
area for that particular land unit 1, Ra sum of total area
The weighted curve number for different watersheds
Spatial intersection and derivation of curve number in the basin is given in Table 6.
After calculating the weighted curve number, the
The advantage of Geographic Information Systems potential maximum soil retention (S) was calculated for
(GIS) is spatial analysis through intersection and each watershed by using the following formula:
manipulation. Therefore, to obtain a weighted CN for 25; 400
each watershed, it is necessary to intersect the land use/ S¼
254:
CN
land cover and hydrological soil group in each wa-
tershed. The areas under different land use/land cover The potential maximum soil retention for different
and hydrological soil group are already shown in the watershed units is given in Table 6. Followed by po-
Tables 2 and 4, respectively. For spatial intersection, the tential maximum soil retention estimation, the initial
Geomedia Professional (3.0) GIS software developed by abstractions (Ia) are calculated. Initial abstractions are
Intergraph is used. The spatial intersections were carried water losses, e.g. plant interceptions, infiltration and
out for five watersheds, in the basin. The combined surface storage which occur prior to runoff and are then
output with different land use/land cover, hydrological subtracted from the total runoff (USDA-SCS 1985). The
soil group and corresponding curve numbers (CN) for standard assumption is that
Puliyansolai watershed is shown in Table 5.
Ia ¼ 0:2S
Once the curve numbers were identified for different
land units, the weighted curve numbers were calculated If rainfall is greater than .2 S, then there is a possi-
for each watershed area in the following manner. bility of runoff. Otherwise, if rainfall is less than 0.2S,
runoff will be zero. Hence, the rainfall events, which are
Table 4 Area of different hydrological soil groups in watersheds more than 0.2S, were considered for further runoff
estimation. The initial abstractions for different water-
Watersheds Hydrological soil group
sheds are given in Table 6.
A (km2) B (km2) C (km2) D (km2)

Puliyansolai – 177.06 15.26 22.41

Uppiliyapuram 45.911 124.3 8.52 56.06 Estimation of antecedent moisture condition
Thuraiyur 26.55 168.84 1.48 111.26
Tattaiyangarpettai 69.59 56.22 9.55 95.8 The curve number varies for different antecedent field
Tirumanur 65.68 49.95 82.51 147.95 conditions. To estimate the antecedent moisture condi-
 167

Fig. 7 Hydrological soil groups

in different watersheds

tion for each storm event, five previous day’s daily Table 6 Watersheds and their weighted CN, retention parameter
rainfall data values were added. Based on total rainfall and initial abstraction
value and the USDA-SCS method, the antecedent
Watersheds Weighted Retention Initial
moisture conditions were calculated (Table 7). With the curve number parameter—S abstraction—Ia
help of these antecedent moisture conditions, the (mm) (mm)
weighted curve numbers were adjusted. If the antecedent
moisture condition is I (dry), the curve number is ad- Puliyansolai 63 151 30
justed down by using the following formula Uppiliyapuram 70 111 22
Thuraiyur 74 89 18
Tattaiyangarpettai 73 92 18
Tirumanur 79 67 13
Table 5 Spatial intersection and derivation of curve number for
Puliyansolai watershed

Land-use/land-cover type Soil type Area (km2) Curve number

CN ¼ 0:39  CN  expð0:009  CNÞ ð4Þ
Dry crop B 6.25 81
Dry crop C 10 88 and if the antecedent moisture condition is III (wet), the
Dry crop D 6.25 91
Dry crop B 4.47 81
curve number is adjusted up by using the following
Natural vegetation B 148.89 55 equation.
Wet crop B 1.02 71
Wet crop B 15 71 CN ¼ 1:95  CN  expð
0:00663  CNÞ ð5Þ
Wet crop C 3.53 78
Wet crop C 1.73 78
Wet crop B 1.71 71 Suppose the antecedent moisture condition is II
Wet crop D 15 81 (damn), the same weighted curve number is used for
Wet crop B 0.88 71 runoff estimation.
168

Table 7 Antecedent moisture condition classification Recharge planning

Antecedent moisture condition Rainfall range (mm) From runoff estimation, it was inferred that about
I (dry) <36
110.17 million m3 runoff per annum is available for
II (normal) 36–53 artificial recharge in Ayyar basin. The available aquifer
III (wet) >53 dimension for artificial recharge in the priority area is
Source : USDS-SCS, 1985 4718.29 million m3 . Hence, enough volume of unsatu-
rated aquifer zone is available in each watershed area.
Among the five watersheds, the Tirumanur watershed
Runoff estimation for different watersheds has the highest average runoff per annum. The available
aquifer dimension is comparatively higher than the
After calculating the curve number (CN), potential available runoff in each watershed. Therefore, the runoff
maximum soil retention (S), initial abstraction (Ia) and water can be utilized in the respective watershed. Arti-
antecedent moisture condition, runoff was calculated for ficial recharge planning can be suggested in the following
each watershed in the basin (Table 8). For example, the ways: on the basis of availability of volume of runoff or
volume of runoff for Uppliyapuram watershed is cal- on the basis of priority areas/aquifer dimensions in the
culated as follows: the number of storm events 55 and watersheds. On the basis of runoff availability, the
46, respectively, for Thuraiyur and Tattaiyangarpettai artificial recharge implementation can be prioritized in
rain gauge stations considered for a 4-year period. From the following sequences: 1. Tirumanur 2. Thuraiyur 3.
such storm events, the rainfall in millimeter was calcu- Tattaiyangarpettai 4. Uppliyapuram 5. Puliyansolai
lated for each station and the weighted curve numbers (Table 9). If the aquifer dimension is followed, the se-
were adjusted according to the antecedent moisture quence is as follows:
conditions available in the watershed. Then, using Eq. 1,
the direct flow volume was calculated for each storm 1. Tattaiyangarpettai priority area 1
event and those were added up for both the rain gauge 2. Uppliyapuram priority area 1
stations separately. Through Theissen polygon, the area 3. Puliyansolai priority area 1
of influence of each rainfall station had already been 4. Tirumanur priority area 1
calculated. The total runoff volume in a watershed was 5. Tirumanur priority area 2
calculated by multiplying the aerial coverage of respec- 6. Tattaiyangarpettai priority area 2
tive rain gauge stations and direct flow volumes. The 7. Uppliyapuram priority area 2
total volume of runoff available in Uppliyapuram wa- 8. Puliyansolai priority area 2
tershed was calculated as follows. Direct flow volume for 9. Thuraiyur priority area 2
Thuraiyur station = 326.16 mmDirect flow volume for The watershed area can be prioritized on the basis of
Tattaiyangarpettai station = 199.31 mmArea of influ- percentage of volume of runoff water when compared to
ence of Thuraiyur rain gauge station = 98.92 km2Area total volume of available aquifer dimension: 1. Thur-
of influence of Tattaiyangarpettai rain gauge station = aiyur, 2. Puliyansolai, 3. Tirumanur, 4. Uppliyapuram,
117.47 km2 5. Tattaiyangarpettai (Table 9).
Volume of runoff in Uppliyapuram Artificial recharge requirement is first needed for
the watershed where there is high water table deple-
¼ 326:16  10
3  98:92  106 þ 199:31 tion. Hence, artificial recharge practices can be prior-
 10
3  117:47  106 m3 itized on the basis of water table conditions in the
watershed area. Accordingly, the watersheds can be
¼ 55; 624; 450 m3 ¼ 55:6 million m3 prioritized as follows: 1. Tattaiyangarpettai, 2. Tiru-

Table 8 Rainfall and estimated runoff in different watershed, Ayyar basin

Watersheds 1998 1999 2000 2001 Average Average

rainfall runoff
Rainfall Runoff Rainfall Runoff Rainfall Runoff Rainfall Runoff (mm) (million m3)
(mm) volume (mm) volume (mm) volume (mm) volume
(million m3) (million m3) (million m3) (million m3)

Puliyansolai 388 10.02 171 1.24 478 10.8 362.4 7.59 349.85 7.41
Uppiliyapuram 667.2 27.49 342.66 5.52 556.28 11.47 451.74 11.19 504.47 13.92
Thuraiyur 906.01 75.98 521.92 14.79 599.73 15.52 550.28 23.08 644.48 32.34
Tattaiyangarpettai 528.23 20.1 330.98 9.63 594.7 22.59 554.86 12.58 502.19 16.22
Tirumanur 377.27 52.7 556.23 49.14 525.36 19.06 607.84 40.22 516.68 40.28
 169

Table 9 Artificial recharge planning in different watersheds, Ayyar basin

Watersheds Priority Aquifer Total volume Average runoff Percentage runoff Priority based
areas dimension of aquifer dimension (million m3) with reference to on available
(million m3) (million m3) aquifer dimension runoff

Puliyansolai 1 70.05 134.83 7.41 5.5 5

2 64.78
Uppiliyapuram 1 120.82 675.15 13.92 2.06 4
2 554.33
Thuraiyur 2 50.88 50.88 32.34 63.56 2
Tattaiyangarpettai 1 1428.72 2342.48 16.22 0.69 3
2 913.76
Tirumanur 1 33.26 1514.95 40.28 2.66 1

manur, 3. Thuraiyur, 4. Uppliyapuram and 5. Puli- weighted curve number (CN) in each watershed. It is
yansolai. When compared to other planning, prioriti- essential to calculate the runoff potential prior to
zation based on water-level conditions is an implementing an artificial recharge project in a water
appropriate method. Depending upon fund availabil- table depleted area. In addition to estimation of vol-
ity, implementation can be started with priory areas ume of runoff, the available aquifer dimensions were
one in the watersheds. also estimated for all watersheds in the basin. In this
study, watershed areas were prioritized on the basis of
available runoff, available aquifer dimension, percent-
Conclusions age of runoff with total area and watershed condi-
tions. Prioritization of watershed on the basis of water
The remote sensing based integrated terrain analysis is table conditions is a realistic approach for artificial
useful for identifying and prioritizing the suitable sites recharge implementation. In future, prioritization of
for artificial recharge. Further, the land-use and land- watersheds including socio-economic factors will give a
cover information interpreted from satellite data is more refined procedure for artificial recharge imple-
used as one of the main input parameters for esti- mentation.
mating runoff through the SCS curve method. The
GIS technique is useful in spatial intersection of dif- Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge the Tamil Nadu
State Council for Science and Technology for sponsoring the re-
ferent land use and land cover with various hydro- search project. The authors also acknowledge the Soil Survey and
logical soil groups in the watershed areas. The results Land Use Organization and the Groundwater Department for
of spatial intersection were used for calculating the providing soil and rainfall data, respectively.

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