Modeling of Groundwater Potential Zones in Semi-Arid Areas Using UAV, GIS and Multi-Criteria Decision Making

Today, groundwater potential zones (GWPZ) modeling based on scientific principles and modern techniques is a major challenge for scientists around the world. This challenge is even greater in arid and semi-arid areas. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), geographic information system (GIS) and multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) are modern techniques used in various fields of application, particularly in groundwater exploration. This study attempts to use a workflow for modeling the GWPZ using UAV technology, GIS and the MCDM in semi-arid zones. Aerial survey produced a high-resolution DEM of 4 cm. Six influencing factors, including elevation model, drainage density, lineament density, slope, flood zone and topographic wetness index were considered for the delineation of the GWPZ. Four classes of groundwater potential were identified, high (4.64%), moderate (23.74%), low (18.2%) and very low (53.42%). Three validation methods were used, namely, borehole yield data, receiver operating characteristic-area under the curve (ROC-AUC), and principal component analysis (PCA) and gave accuracies of 82.14%, 65.4% and 72.49%, respectively. These validation indicate satisfactory accuracy and justifies the effectiveness of the approach. The mapping of GWPZ in semi-arid zones are very essential for the availability, planning of water resources management and help in sustainable development.