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Investigation of groundwater potential zones in hard rock terrains along EGMB, India, using remote sensing, geoelectrical and hydrological parameters

  • Research Article - Hydrology
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Abstract

The research region is located in hard rock terrains of the Eastern Ghats mobile belt in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh state, India, and it occupies an area of 2645.3 sqkm. The rocks of this region are complex granite gneiss and khondalites. The people living this region are facing sever water problem. The objective of this research is to investigate the location of groundwater potential zones (GWPZs) as the region is hard rock terrain, and weathering or fracturing of rocks is the only source of groundwater. Electrical resistivity values alone may not be sufficient for locating the GWPZ. Therefore, in order to locate GWPZ of the study area precisely, remote sensing and Dar-Zarrouk parameters are more useful. From the analysis of remote sensing imageries, surface geomorphological features and lineaments have been identified. These features control the storage and movement of groundwater in complex hard rock terrains. Dar-Zarrouk characteristics have been used to explore hydrodynamic parameters (hydraulic conductivity and transmissivity), which determine the aquifer potentiality of an area. Based on the values of transmissivity together with lithologic data, the study area has been divided into four categories of groundwater potential as high, moderate, low, and negligible. In most of the study area, the availability of groundwater is moderate (Transmissivity—50–500 m2/day). At a few locations (about 46) of the hard rock region, the transmissivity is high (> 500 m2/day). However, almost all the locations surveyed in sedimentary formations are found to be good potential of groundwater.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Andhra Pradesh Groundwater and Water Audit Department for providing a few vertical electrical soundings resistivity data of the study area. The first author gratefully acknowledges the financial assistance from University Grants Commission through Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship in New Delhi.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Andhra University, Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India

    Palavai Venkateswara Rao, Mangalampalli Subrahmanyam & Bakuru Anand Gajapathi Raju

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  1. Palavai Venkateswara Rao
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  2. Mangalampalli Subrahmanyam
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  3. Bakuru Anand Gajapathi Raju
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Contributions

PVR collected the field data and processed the data under the guidance of the second author and was involved in the preparation of the manuscript draft and finalization. MS wrote the first draft of the manuscript and finalized the final manuscript. BAR involved in the data acquisition and remote sensing image analysis.

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Correspondence to Mangalampalli Subrahmanyam.

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Edited by Dr. Senlin Zhu (ASSOCIATE EDITOR) / Dr. Michael Nones (CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF).

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Rao, P.V., Subrahmanyam, M. & Raju, B.A.G. Investigation of groundwater potential zones in hard rock terrains along EGMB, India, using remote sensing, geoelectrical and hydrological parameters. Acta Geophys. 71, 1867–1883 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11600-022-00916-2

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