Modeling sedimentation rates of Malilangwe reservoir in the south-eastern lowveld of Zimbabwe

Abstract

Modelling the sedimentation rates using the Wallingford (2004) equations with the aid of NDVI (remote sensing) to assess land degradation was carried out for Malilangwe reservoir catchment in the south eastern lowveld of Zimbabwe. Siltation life of the reservoir was determined from rate of incoming sediment, trap efficiency and reservoir capacity using the Wallingford method. The average rainfall of the study area was about 560 mm while runoff from the catchment ranged from 0.3 mm (minimum) to 199 mm (maximum) with an overall average runoff of 50.03 mm. Results showed that the overall mean annual sediment concentration was approximately 2,400 ppm. The reservoir capacity to inflow ratio was estimated at 0.8 with a sedimentation rate of 120.1 tkm-2 year-1. Calculated probability of the dam filling is 26.8 %. Results also showed that the siltation life of the reservoir was [100 years according to the Wallingford method. The Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) showed progressive decline (p\0.05) of the vegetation health from 2000 to 2009. While acknowledging the limitations of techniques used, this study demonstrates in part the effectiveness of sedimentation modelling and remote sensing as a tool for the production of baseline data for assessment and monitoring levels of land degradation in the Malilangwe reservoir catchment.