Groundwater resources in Morocco’s arid Moulouya Basin are vital for all sectors but are severely threatened by over-extraction and climate change, with natural recharge rates at a low 44 mm/year. This study addresses the critical need for augmenting these resources through Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR). The primary aim is to delineate optimal zones for Artificial Groundwater Recharge (AGR) by integrating Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Remote Sensing (RS), and a Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (Fuzzy AHP) multi-criteria decision-making approach. This study incorporates seven thematic layers: drainage density, rainfall, slope, land use/land cover, elevation, lithology, and groundwater depth. The Fuzzy AHP method was used to assign weights to these criteria, accounting for the inherent uncertainty in expert judgment. Our findings reveal that 7.45% (1,167.75 km 2 ) and 2% (313.3 km 2 ) of the basin are classified as having ‘high’ and ‘very high’ potential for AGR, respectively, with the Missour plain identified as a priority area. The model’s reliability was validated using groundwater recharge data from 157 wells, yielding an Area Under the Curve (AUC) of 0.71, indicating good predictive performance. This research provides a scientifically robust and replicable framework that serves as a crucial decision-support tool for policymakers, enabling strategic planning for sustainable groundwater management in arid regions. The novelty lies in the application of the Fuzzy AHP model to this data-scarce, critical basin, offering a more nuanced assessment of recharge potential than traditional AHP methods.
Amiri et al. (Tue,) studied this question.
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