Conservation of Raiwada Reservoir, Devarapalli Village, Visakhapatnam District, Andhra Pradesh, India: A Geospatial Approach

Abstract

Optimum utilization of water resources is a key to sustaining the future economy. In this context, the importance of water has been recognized, and emphasis is being laid on its better economic use and management. Raiwada Reservoir, covering an area of 9.34 sqkm in Devarapalli village, between 82⁰59” E, 18⁰ 1'12"N with a capacity of 2360 TCM, supplying pure drinking water to the nearby Visakhapatnam city, has been taken for the study. The area falls under Visakhapatnam and Vizianagaram mandals, and the survey of India's topographical sheets 65 J/16; 65 N/4 65 K/13 65O/1 on a 1:50000scale

The upstate of the reservoir is a densely mixed jungle with open deciduous scrubs, mostly teak and bamboo, predominating in the heavily forested area of Peddakota, Anantagiri, Sankaram Mariki, Sankaram, Valabu and Nallakonda in order of expanse. The degraded forest with shrubs and bushes falls under scrub forest with a combination of open and dense scrub. There is degradation on the steep slopes of the Anantagiri hills. Multispectral remote sensing can be an effective tool for conservation and management with the help of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) in protecting vegetation cover, reservoir banks, sediment trapping, and runoff regulation while equally protecting water quality. The preparation of the thematic layers and the change detection using NDVI will serve as a basis for the planning and developing a sustainable basin area.