A GIS-based morphometric prioritization of watersheds for soil erosion planning: a case study

Morphometric analysis is essential for determining soil erosion-prone areas in drainage basins. In the present study, identification and prioritization of 19 watersheds in the Upper Bhima basin was done using areal, shape, and landscape parameters of watersheds. Some uncertainty was observed with morphometric variables of watersheds in previous prioritization methods. A geographic information system was used to identify critical sub-watersheds in the study area. A newly developed weighted sum approach technique was used to rank each sub-watershed based on weightages derived from morphometric parameters. The 19 watersheds were classified into five categories based on their final priority ranking: very high, high, medium, low, and very low. According to the findings of this analysis, 30.00% of the total area was highly vulnerable with sub-watersheds (4D7H4, 4D7H5, 4D7H7, 4D7G4, 4D7G7) require immediate attention to provide soil and water conservation measures. This study proposed morphometric analysis with a geographic information system and the novel weighted sum approach technique to help decision-makers make technically and economically effective decisions for proper water resource planning and management.