PRIORITIZATION OF SOIL EROSION RISK MANAGEMENT IN THE BUNSURU WATERSHED OF KATSINA STATE USING INTEGRATED MORPHOMETRIC ANALYSIS AND WEIGHTED SUM APPROACH
DOI:
https://doi.org/10/3303/jees.2026.0301/036Keywords:
Soil erosion, Morphometric analysis, Katsina State, Bunsuru WatershedAbstract
The Bunsuru watershed, one of the largest in Katsina State and the primary inflow source for the Zobe Reservoir, is vulnerable to erosion owing to its semi-arid climate and land use pressure. This underscores the need for a comprehensive strategy to prioritize erosion management within the watershed. Previous studies employed the compound factor method, which is inherently biased in weighting individual morphometric parameters. This study utilized SRTM-DEM data, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and a novel weighted sum approach (WSA) to characterize and prioritize sub-watersheds. According to the WSA approach, the sub-watersheds were classified into very high, high, moderate, low, and very low erosion risk categories. The study found that 3 sub-watersheds covering 31.8% of the watershed area had a very high erosion risk, 20 sub-watersheds occupying 28.1% of the area had a high erosion risk, and 21 sub-watersheds covering 27.6% of the area had a moderate erosion risk. Meanwhile, 12.5% were low- and very low-erosion risk areas. The study recommends implementing urgent conservation measures, specifically afforestation and strict land-use enforcement, especially in the high-risk zones, to protect the downstream Zobe reservoir.
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