Sustainable Groundwater Resource
Management in Changing Climate Scenario:
Satellite Sensing and Geophysics-based
Approach
Dr. P. K. Champati Ray
Group Head, Geosciences and Disaster Management Studies
Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (ISRO)
Dehradun, India
Groundwater resource management in mountainous region has emerged as a
challenge particularly in the vast stretches of Himalaya mainly due to high demand
and changing climate scenario. Monitoring of groundwater fluctuation using the
conventional methodology and space-based observations using GRACE satellites
data brings new paradigm to groundwater resource assessment and drought monitoring. Improvements in proven geophysical techniques like earth resistivity
tomography (ERT) aided by remote sensing (RS) and GIS can significantly contribute in augmenting precious water resources of the mountainous region. In the
present paper, mutually exclusive but complementary techniques are discussed in
the light of efficient groundwater resource estimation and management.
The GRACE twin satellites, launched on 17 March 2002, have made detailed
measurements of Earth’s gravity field and improved understanding of Earth’s water
reservoirs by providing some of the path-breaking observations on terrestrial water
storage changes, ice-mass variations, ocean bottom pressure changes, and sea-level
variations. Several studies have been taken up at IIRS which used observations
derived from GRACE satellite mission and land surface model outputs from the
Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) to show tremendous variations
and decline of the precious groundwater resource, thus making space-based
observation very critical for large-scale monitoring of the groundwater.
Many hill towns like Mussoorie in Himalaya starve for water in peak tourist
season. The springs which had provided water for ages are in a precarious condition, and there is an urgent need to improve recharge of such precious drinking
water sources in hilly areas. Using electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), potential
recharge conduits were identified in some watersheds of Mussoorie, and other
potential spring sheds were identified for augmenting water resources for Mussoorie
based on RS and GIS. Secondly in Mussoorie hilltop/ridge area, it is popularly
xv
Management in Changing Climate Scenario:
Satellite Sensing and Geophysics-based
Approach
Dr. P. K. Champati Ray
Group Head, Geosciences and Disaster Management Studies
Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (ISRO)
Dehradun, India
Groundwater resource management in mountainous region has emerged as a
challenge particularly in the vast stretches of Himalaya mainly due to high demand
and changing climate scenario. Monitoring of groundwater fluctuation using the
conventional methodology and space-based observations using GRACE satellites
data brings new paradigm to groundwater resource assessment and drought monitoring. Improvements in proven geophysical techniques like earth resistivity
tomography (ERT) aided by remote sensing (RS) and GIS can significantly contribute in augmenting precious water resources of the mountainous region. In the
present paper, mutually exclusive but complementary techniques are discussed in
the light of efficient groundwater resource estimation and management.
The GRACE twin satellites, launched on 17 March 2002, have made detailed
measurements of Earth’s gravity field and improved understanding of Earth’s water
reservoirs by providing some of the path-breaking observations on terrestrial water
storage changes, ice-mass variations, ocean bottom pressure changes, and sea-level
variations. Several studies have been taken up at IIRS which used observations
derived from GRACE satellite mission and land surface model outputs from the
Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) to show tremendous variations
and decline of the precious groundwater resource, thus making space-based
observation very critical for large-scale monitoring of the groundwater.
Many hill towns like Mussoorie in Himalaya starve for water in peak tourist
season. The springs which had provided water for ages are in a precarious condition, and there is an urgent need to improve recharge of such precious drinking
water sources in hilly areas. Using electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), potential
recharge conduits were identified in some watersheds of Mussoorie, and other
potential spring sheds were identified for augmenting water resources for Mussoorie
based on RS and GIS. Secondly in Mussoorie hilltop/ridge area, it is popularly
xv