Bewässerungs- und Entwässerungssystemtechnik

Irrigation Land Suitability Assessment of Sibilu River Catchment using Geographic Information System.

Abstract

Deme Betele Hirko*, Sifan Bekele, Fekadu Fufa, Mekonen Ayana and Walabuma Oli

It is critical to assess land suitability for irrigation to make efficient and effective use of limited resources for agricultural production that is sustainable. Using a geographic information system, the researchers determined the physical irrigation suitability of the Sibilu River watershed. The most suitable land was determined using a weighted overlay of irrigation suitability characteristics such as slope, soil, and land use land cover. A double mass curve was used to check for inconsistencies in the data, and the normal ratio approach was used to fill in the missing metrological data. The final irrigable land was found by weighting the elements of appropriateness, which were categorized based on the food and agricultural organization standard for land evaluation into highly suitable, moderately suitable, marginally acceptable, and not suitable classifications. According to the irrigation suitability analysis parameters, 56.5 percent of the slope, 19.3 percent of soil, and 89.82 percent of land use/cover area were all extremely suitable for surface irrigation. Overall, the weighted overlay analysis of these characteristics revealed that 57.53 percent of the research region was extremely favorable for irrigation development, whereas 0.42 percent was deemed to be unsuitable. In terms of adaptability parameters, the Sibilu River is very ideal for surface irrigation. However, because only 133 hectares could be irrigated, dry flows should be augmented or groundwater should be developed and water conserved to meet irrigation potential.