Abstracto

Assessment of Groundwater Vulnerability in Krishnagiri District, Tamil Nadu, India Using DRASTIC Approach

P. Senthilkumar, J.Nithya, S.Suresh Babu

Assessment of groundwater vulnerability using DRASTIC model in GIS environment has become more widespread for effective groundwater resource management. A study was carried out in Krishnagiri district, Tamil Nadu, India to develop an empirical DRASTIC model to identify the vulnerability owing to groundwater contamination with increasing population, industrialization and agricultural activities. The most important factors that control the groundwater potential are depth of water, rainfall, aquifer media, soil media, topography, impact of vadose zone and hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer. Estimation of DRASTIC Index involves multiplying each parameter weight by its rating corresponding to its study area and summing the total. Based on DRASTIC index values it was observed that the vulnerability in the study area falls between low vulnerability to high vulnerability. The results provide important information for the local authorities and decision making personals for effective management of groundwater resources.