Irrigation water consumption and its impact on the groundwater aquifer of Wadi Uranah, Makkah, Saudi Arabia using remote sensing techniques

• Published in: The Egyptian journal of remote sensing and space sciences 2020-08, Vol.23 (2), p.167-180
• Main Authors: Gabr, Safwat S., Farg, Eslam F., Habeebullah, Turki M., Arafat, Sayed M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Groundwater; Vegetation irrigation; Wadi Uranah; Water resources
• ISSN: 1110-9823; 2090-2476
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ejrs.2018.10.001

Saudi Arabia is of a limited water resources due to its sporadic and limited rainfall. During the last two decades, the rapid development of the country, together with increased population and living standards, resulted in drastic changes in water needs with irrigated agriculture consuming the highest amount of water (about 88%). The current study uses a prototype system to monitor crop water consumption at Wadi Uranah area, Makkah. The study relies on the use of the available satellite images (Landsat 8 and Sentinel-2) to extract the required parameters needed to calculate the water consumption for the different crops for one year. Results indicate that the area is mostly cultivated with vegetables which consumes a vast amount of water for irrigation. The calculated water consumption for the vegetated areas is about 112,670,088 m3/m2/year. These results indicate that the irrigation water recorded value at Wadi Uranah is about 7-folds the amount of the estimated annual recharge from rainfall water, which is estimated to be 14.2 Million m3. The currently used irrigation methods contribute to even more loss in the groundwater than the currently calculated. Results from this study indicate that the groundwater aquifer in Wadi Uranah, Makkah, is at critical levels. Certain law enforced measures (type of cultivated crops, irrigation methods, areas being cultivated, etc.) must be applied to preserve and maintain the water resources in the area.