The Suitability of Satellite Remote Sensing and GIS Technologies for Mapping, Monitoring and Managing Water Resources in the Middle East

Abstract

The Middle East is an area of low precipitation and high evapotranspiration and has few large rivers, namely The Tigris, Euphrates and the River Jordan, which originate in neighbouring countries. Overall, the water supply to the Middle East is falling and this trend is liable to continue. Whilst the demand for water consumption is increasing to meet the demands for expanding industrialisation, agriculture, population growth and the increase in living standards, the upstream countries have ambitious plans for using larger amounts of the river water which will reduce the flow into the Middle East. Consequently, water resource managers are required to make operational, management and strategic decisions to cope with and manage the use of this limited and precious resource. However, the shortage of accurate and up-to-date information on water resources presents a real challenge to decision makers in the region. This Chapter seeks to illustrate the potential and impediments of employing Satellite Remote sensing and GIS technologies to collect, handle and analyse the necessary spatial and temporal data sets as well as highlighting the necessary processes, at the appropriate scales, for managing water resources in Middle East. Evidently, the more information managers have about water resources in the region, the better they are able to make decisions in terms of effectively allocating available water at specific times for consumption, industrial use, irrigation, power generation and recreation. The outcomes show that these technologies can be successfully used to provide the necessary capabilities for decision makers through mapping, monitoring and managing Water Resources and ultimately to optimize the use of available water resources. This study is important and timely for sustainably managing available but plummeting water resources in the Middle East for three main reasons. First, the region is experiencing a fast rate of development and the demand for water can outpace supply. Secondly, climate change will have a noticeable impact on water shortages in the region. Thirdly, the Middle East is likely to be faced with a unique water shortage scenario in the future due to activities in the neighboring countries.