Geospatial Modelling of Groundwater Potential Recharge Zones in the Al Maawil Watershed, Barka Wilayat, Sultanate of Oman

IJEP 46(10): 952-965 : Vol. 46 Issue 10 (October 2026)

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Arunachalam S.1*, Parameswari K.2, Aliya Al Alawi1, Gopalakrishnan. K.1 and G. Shyamala3

1. University of Technology and Applied Sciences, Civil and Architectural Engineering Section, Engineering Department, Muscat 133, Oman
2. Kingtom university, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering and Design, 3903 Riffa, Bahrain
3. S.R. University, Department of Civil Engineering, Warangal – 560 371, Telangana, India

Abstract

Water resource management in arid countries is more complex because these regions receive very little average annual rainfall, leading to shortages of surface and groundwater. In arid zones, streams are wet only during occasional rainfall and most inhabitants depend on alternative sources for their domestic needs, such as stored water in wells, dams and groundwater sources. The present research aims to manage water resources in the Al-Maawil watershed in the Barka governorate, Sultanate of Oman. The study area was selected after a suitable field investigation because it contains numerous agricultural farms and settlements. The objective of the research is to improve groundwater level estimates and delineate groundwater potential zones in the study area by creating thematic layers that represent detailed lithological information. The groundwater recharge potential zones were classified as very low, low, moderate and high, with spatial coverages of 342.14 km2, 251.69 km2, 398.87 km2 and 154.03 km2, respectively. Treated wastewater was used to recharge groundwater and the field study investigated further improvements in groundwater levels.

Keywords

Groundwater recharge, Groundwater potential zones, Remote sensing, Geographic information system, Analytic hierarchy process, Multi-criteria decision analysis, Treated wastewater, Al Maawil watershed, Sultanate of Oman

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