Using data of remote sensing and arc-swat model to assessment water availability and generation surface runoff of the abbasan watershed in northeastern of Iraq

Abstract EN

The surface runoff is a very significant component of the hydrological cycle.

The main objectives of this study the employed Soil and Water Assessment Tools (SWAT) model to assess the surface runoff and water balance in the Abbasan watershed (864 Km2) in the northeastern of Iraq.

The remote sensing data were used as the primary input for the SWAT model.

This data included digital elevation model (STMR); Land Used Land Cover (LULC) map generated from the Landsat 8 classification for the year 2019.

The climate data were collected from Prediction of Worldwide Energy Resource (POWER) project funded by the NASA Earth Science.

The map soil was sourced from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The results revealed that about 32 % and 48% of the annual precipitation is lost by percolation and evapotranspiration respectively.

The annual runoff volume for the period 1991-2019 was estimated at about 38 million m3.

These results demonstrated that the SWAT model can estimate the runoff volume and description all water balanced elements.

Also, it has been found that the LULC and soil classes have an important impact in generated the surface runoff.