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Spatio-temporal evaluation of water balance components using WetSpass model: in the case of Ataye watershed, Middle Awash Basin, Ethiopia

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Abstract

The water balance components are essential to determine the area’s hydrological process and groundwater resource management. This study aims to characterize the water balance components over the Ataye watershed using the WetSpass model. The WetSpass model can simulate water balance components’ spatial and temporal variation, mainly evapotranspiration, surface runoff, and groundwater recharge. The input data for the WetSpass model are land use/land cover, elevation, slope, soil texture, temperature, potential evapotranspiration, wind speed, and groundwater depth. Those spatial datasets were prepared in the raster format and transformed into ASCII file format using GIS spatial analysis techniques. As a result, the findings of this study confirmed that the mean evapotranspiration values of the Ataye watershed in the winter, summer, autumn, spring, and annual seasons were 33.6 mm, 117.35 mm, 100.98 mm, 158.96 mm, and 410.88 mm, respectively. Besides, the computed surface runoff values of the Ataye watershed in the winter, summer, autumn, spring, and annual seasons were 15.30 mm, 376.24 mm, 43.74 mm, 59.89 mm, and 495.16 mm, respectively. Similarly, the mean groundwater recharge values of the Ataye watershed in the summer, autumn, winter, spring, and annual seasons were 148.47 mm, 29.83 mm, 5.62 mm, 13.73 mm, and 197.65 mm, respectively. This study’s findings can be a reference for water resource specialists and policymakers to develop and manage various water resource-related projects in the present study area.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology, College of Natural Sciences, Wollo University, P.O. Box1145, Dessie, Ethiopia

    Zeleke Simachew Anteneh

  2. Department of Remote Sensing Research and Development, Entoto Observatory and Research Center, Ethiopian Space Science and Technology Institute, P.O. Box33679, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

    Berhan Gessesse Awoke

  3. Department of Geology, College of Natural Sciences, Arba Minch University, P.O. Box21, Arba Minch, Ethiopia

    Talema Moged Reda & Muralitharan Jothimani Ramasamy

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  1. Zeleke Simachew Anteneh
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  3. Talema Moged Reda
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Correspondence to Zeleke Simachew Anteneh.

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Anteneh, Z.S., Awoke, B.G., Reda, T.M. et al. Spatio-temporal evaluation of water balance components using WetSpass model: in the case of Ataye watershed, Middle Awash Basin, Ethiopia. Arab J Geosci 16, 207 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-023-11252-0

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