MAPPING GROUNDWATER POTENTIALS OF BOSSO AND ENVIRONS, NIGER STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The scarcity of water in Bosso Local Government Area of Niger State warrants for a detailed investigation of the groundwater potential characteristics of the area so that an exploration guide as well as sustainable groundwater management strategy can be developed. Therefore, this study assessed groundwater potential mapping using Digital Elevation Model in Bosso Local Government Area, Niger State, Nigeria. Primary data for the study includes collection of GPS points from the field and photographs. The main data used in mapping potential groundwater in the study area was SRTM DEM of 30m spatial resolution was acquired from NASA center distributed active archives (LP DAAC). A total of thirty wells were identified with their coordinates for the groundwater potential mapping in the study area. The finding shows the elevations over the study area with the highest elevation of 452m located at the North eastern part of the study area and 71m as the lowest elevation found at the southwestern part respectively. The high elevation points have low potential of groundwater and low elevation has moderate and high groundwater potential in the study area. As revealed in the study some areas in Bosso, Tudun Fulani, Maitumbi and Chanchaga were within the range of 257 to 452m and this in turn has made the areas low or moderate groundwater potential. As revealed in the study, 48.37% of the entire study area were within moderate convergence index, 27.1% of the study area were within high convergence index and 24.62% of the study area were within low convergence index. The result shows that the Maikunkele, Beji and Garatu areas with very high groundwater potential is characterized by high rainfall, low slope and dominated with cambisols which have a relative high water holding capacity. The Bosso central,Maitumbi and Chanchaga areas with very low ground water potential is characterized by moderate slope, high drainage density and dominated by granite which has low ground water potential. There is the need for precise estimate of the available subsurface resources for the significance of appropriate preparation to ensure the guarantee of accessibility of water.