Hydrological Sciences Journal

ISSN: 0262-6667 (Print) 2150-3435 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/thsj20

Assessment of reservoir sedimentation using

remote sensing and recommendations for
desilting Patratu Reservoir, India

Ashish Pandey, U.C. Chaube, S.K. Mishra & Dheeraj Kumar

To cite this article: Ashish Pandey, U.C. Chaube, S.K. Mishra & Dheeraj Kumar (2016)
Assessment of reservoir sedimentation using remote sensing and recommendations for
desilting Patratu Reservoir, India, Hydrological Sciences Journal, 61:4, 711-718, DOI:
10.1080/02626667.2014.993988

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/02626667.2014.993988

Accepted author version posted online: 02

Dec 2014.
Published online: 03 Feb 2016.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 1026

View Crossmark data

Citing articles: 5 View citing articles

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=thsj20
HYDROLOGICAL SCIENCES JOURNAL – JOURNAL DES SCIENCES HYDROLOGIQUES, 2016
VOL. 61, NO. 4, 711–718
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02626667.2014.993988

Assessment of reservoir sedimentation using remote sensing

and recommendations for desilting Patratu Reservoir, India
Ashish Pandey, U.C. Chaube, S.K. Mishra and Dheeraj Kumar
Department of Water Resources Development & Management, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee 247667, Uttarakhand, India

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

This study describes the assessment of reservoir sedimentation of the Patratu Reservoir using Received 11 October 2013
Accepted 25 November
Satellite Remote Sensing (SRS). The sedimentation assessment was carried out using satellite data
2014
and reservoir water level data from 2006 to 2012. Water spread area was analysed from satellite
data. The Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) has been used to delineate open water EDITOR
features and to enhance the presence of water surface in satellite imagery of the Patratu D. Koutsoyiannis
Reservoir. Water spread area of the reservoir at a particular elevation on the date of the passing
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
of the satellite was used to develop an elevation-area curve. For the present case, fluctuation of S. Kanae
water level was found to vary from 387.096 to 406.152 m. The linear interpolation/extrapolation
technique has been employed to assess the water spread area of Patratu Reservoir at different KEYWORDS
elevations. Further, these areas were used to compute the live storage capacity of the reservoir satellite data; reservoir;
between two elevations by the Prismoidal formula. From the study, it was found that due to sediment; desilting; live
sedimentation, the live storage capacity of Patratu Reservoir has reduced from 101.95 to storage capacity; Patratu
89.96 hm3, thus showing capacity loss of 11.76% in a span of 44 years. To increase the live
storage capacity of the reservoir it is proposed to adopt manual and mechanical digging
combined with flushing for desilting of the deposited sediment.

Introduction Sedimentation processes related with watershed activ-

ities, river characteristics and reservoir design are low-
The sedimentation process is very complex, especially
ering the water storage capacity and threaten reservoir
deposition in reservoirs. The sediments carried through
functionality (Bunyasi et al. 2013). It is estimated that
the fluvial system are primarily settled in a reservoir
0.5–1% of the existing storage volume in the world is
due to the lowering in velocity because of a sudden
lost each year due to sedimentation (Walling 2006).
increase in cross-sectional area of a stream. As sedi-
This phenomenon of sedimentation, progressively
ments are accumulated in the lake, its water storage
impairing the utility of the reservoir needs attention
capacity is reduced (Hasan et al. 2011). The reduction
not only at the project planning stage but also during
in storage capacity with sediment deposition in a reser-
the operation stage. Depending upon the shape of the
voir over a period of time can be correlated with the
reservoir, mode of reservoir operation, sediment inflow
reduction in water spread area at different elevations.
rates and grain size distribution, the incoming sedi-
Reservoir construction may currently exert the most
ment will be deposited in different zones of the reser-
important influence on land–ocean sediment fluxes
voir. In the Central Asian region, the primary source
(Walling and Fang 2003). The transport of sediment
for irrigation is the surface flow from rivers and man-
is a fundamental feature of the morphology and bio-
made reservoirs (Rakhmatullaev et al. 2010). Hence,
chemistry of rivers (Vörösmarty et al. 1997, 2003).
systematic sedimentation assessment during the opera-
Possible changes in the sediment transportation are
tion stage is essential to have an up-to-date knowledge
important since sediment trapping in the reservoir
of the sedimentation process going on in the reservoir,
may have large impacts on the downstream ecosystems
in order to plan reservoir operation for the optimum
(Kummu and Varis 2007). Changes in the natural
utilization of water.
sedimentation action through human activities such
In India, the Central Board of Irrigation and Power
as reservoir construction have largely changed sedi-
(CBIP) started systematic surveys in 1958 and under-
ment flow processes as well as the river morphology
took a major reservoir sedimentation surveys scheme
and ecosystem in different ways (Kummu et al. 2010).

CONTACT: Ashish Pandey ashisfwt@gmail.com

© 2016 IAHS
712 A. PANDEY ET AL.
and 28 major reservoirs were covered (CBIP 1981).
With the widespread use of remote sensing technology,
it has turned out to be economical and convenient to
evaluate the reservoir sedimentation rate.
Out of the methods presently in use for assess-
ment and prediction of sediment deposition in reser-
voirs such as Satellite Remote Sensing, Hydrographic
Survey, Stream flow analysis and Area Reduction
method, the Satellite Remote Sensing (SRS) techni-
que provides a relatively cost and time effective
method for assessing reservoir sedimentation during
the operation stage. In the recent past, the availabil-
ity of multispectral satellite data using remote sen-
sing is receiving broader application for capacity
surveys of reservoirs. Remote sensing and geographi-
cal information systems (GIS) have capabilities for
reducing the cost, time and workload for reservoir
sedimentation studies (Rakhmatullaev et al. 2011).
Remote sensing in conjunction with GIS provides
temporal changes in water spread area and evaluates
the sediment deposition pattern of a reservoir
through its spatial, spectral and temporal attributes
(Goel et al. 2002, Kiruthika et al. 2011) and this
technology allows a fast and accurate estimation of
the live storage capacity loss due to reservoir sedi-
mentation (Jain et al. 2002).
Soil erosion leads to siltation, which is a major
problem for lake and reservoir management (UNEP
1994, Keller et al. 2000). Depending on the rate of
sedimentation, the outlet works may be clogged and
the storage of the reservoir would reduce. Reservoir
siltation has direct negative economic and environ-
mental consequences, since water availability for irriga-
tion, water supply and flood control is reduced (Jebari
et al. 2010).Therefore, an appropriate measure to pro-
tect the reservoir from sedimentation is essential.
Nalkari River (a tributary of Damodar River
upstream) flow in the monsoon season and particularly
flood water usually contain high sediment concentra-
tion due to rain induced soil erosion from the catch-
ment of Patratu Reservoir. If there are no effective
measures undertaken, the useful volume of the
Patratu Reservoir will be lost. There is a strong need
to limit sediment accumulation in the Patratu
Reservoir or make a suitable plan for the removal of
the deposited sediment in order to ensure the sustain-
able use of reservoir.
In the past, several researchers have conducted
remote sensing based studies for reservoir sedimen-
tation (Manvalan et al. 1991, Gupta 1999, Jain et al.
2002, Mukherjee et al. 2007). Many studies are con-
ducted for modelling the soil erosion employing
remote sensing and GIS (Pandey et al. 2007, 2009).
Looking to the aforementioned problems, the present
study is carried out with the specific objective of the
assessment of reservoir sedimentation using remote
sensing technique and a desilting plan for Patratu
Reservoir, Jharkhand State, India.
Material and methods
Study area
The Patratu Reservoir is located between Latitude
23°36ʹ13ʹʹN to 23°36ʹ18ʹʹN and Longitude 85°16ʹ50ʹʹE
to 85°18ʹ54ʹʹE and lies in the catchment of Tenughat
dam in the upper Damodar valley (Fig. 1). The catch-
ment area at the Patratu Dam site is 212.38 km2. The
reservoir was commissioned in the year 1968 and its
average annual inflow is 101.95 hm3. The gross and
dead capacities of the reservoir are 110.73 hm3 (full
reservoir level (FRL) = 406.152 m) and 8.8 hm3
(minimum draw down level, MDDL = 387.096 m)
thus creating live storage of 101.95 hm3. The designed
sedimentation rate of the Patratu Reservoir is
11.73 ha-m/year or 0.11733 hm3 /year and trap effi-
ciency is 96%.
The available elevation–capacity curve (1968) was
taken as base in this study and is presented in Table 1
and Fig. 2. To date, a hydrographic survey has not been
carried out for this project. In order to study the sedi-
mentation pattern since the impoundment of the reser-
voir, the capacity of the reservoir in the year 2012 was
estimated using satellite remote sensing data (SRS).
Data used
For the quantification of the volume of sediment
deposited in the reservoir, the satellite data were used
to extract basic information, i.e. water spread area at
different water surface elevations. The data for reser-
voir water levels were collected from project authori-
ties. The selection of water year for analysis is from
consideration of maximum variation in reservoir levels
(ideally FRL to MDDL) and availability of images. It is
generally desirable to carry out remote sensing based
reservoir sedimentation analysis from the highest to
lowest reservoir level chronologically. In this study,
due to non-availability of satellite data, lower elevation
images have been taken from the year 2006–2007 while
high elevation images have been taken from the year
2011–2012. This is one of the limitations of the present
analysis.
The multispectral data of IRS-P6 satellites for
LISS-III Sensor (Payload: LISS-3; Swath (km) = 141;
Spectral bands: 0.52–0.59 (Blue); 0.62–0.68 (Green);
 HYDROLOGICAL SCIENCES JOURNAL – JOURNAL DES SCIENCES HYDROLOGIQUES 713

Figure 1. Index map of the study area.

Table 1. Elevation–area–capacity of Patratu Reservoir. Area capacity

10 0
Elevation Elevation Difference in Area Area Cumulative
(ft) (m) elevation (m) (Acre) (km2) capacity (hm3) 20
8
1223 372.75 0.00 0 0.00 0.0
1240 377.93 5.18 25 0.10 0.3 40

Capacity, hm3
6
Area,k m2

1250 380.98 3.05 131 0.53 1.2

1260 384.03 3.05 300 1.21 3.9 60
1270 387.08 3.05 504 2.04 8.8 4
1272 387.69 0.61 553 2.24 10.1 80
1280 390.12 2.44 689 2.79 16.3 2
1290 393.17 3.05 852 3.45 25.8 100
1300 396.22 3.05 1225 4.96 38.6
1310 399.27 3.05 1567 6.34 55.8 0 120
370 375 380 385 390 395 400 405 410
1320 402.32 3.05 1932 7.82 77.4
1330 405.36 3.05 2290 9.27 103.4 Elevation (m)
1332.5 406.13 0.76 2450 9.91 110.7
Figure 2. Original elevation–area–capacity curve of Patratu
Reservoir.

0.77–0.86 (Red); 1.55–1.70 (Near Infra-Red) were avail-

able for the analysis period and these data were used in
this study. The Patratu Reservoir water spread area was
covered in one scene of path 105 row 55 of IRS P6
(LISS-III) satellite.
Analysis of daily reservoir water levels and
other field data
The original elevation–area–capacity curves and the
reservoir water levels on the date of the passing of the
satellite were obtained from the Water Resources
Department, Jharkhand. After comparing the availabil-
ity of imageries for different dates of pass with water
level variation for different dates collected from the
dam site, it was observed that there were few imageries
for one single year which could show the maximum
fluctuation (FRL to MDDL) in reservoir water levels.
Therefore, the imageries for the period from 2006 to
2012 were collected in order to show variation from
near FRL to MDDL. It was found that the satellite dates
near to FRL (406.152 m) and close to MDDL
(387.096 m) were 29 October 2011 and 22 April 2006,
respectively (Table 2).
714 A. PANDEY ET AL.

Table 2. Satellite data for different dates of pass for the Patratu ● Maximise the high reflectance of NIR by terres-
Reservoir w.r.t. water levels. trial vegetation and soil features.
Date of satellite Satellite/Sensor/ Path Row Water level The NDWI value ranges from −1 to 1 and zero is the
pass Scene (m)
22 April 2006 IRS P6/LISS -III 105 55 390.876
threshold (McFeeters 1996). As suggested by McFeeters
16 January 2006 IRS P6/LISS -III 105 55 393.878 (1996) if, NDWI > 0, cover type is water and if, NDWI
14 May 2011 IRS P6/LISS -III 105 55 397.596 ≤ 0 cover type is non-water. According to McFeeters
27 March 2011 IRS P6/LISS -III 105 55 398.877
21 December 2010 IRS P6/LISS -III 105 55 400.629 (1996), “If the digital number (DN) value is near-IR
8 May 2012 IRS P6/LISS -III 105 55 403.342 spectral region, the DN value of water pixels is appreci-
2 February 2012 IRS P6/LISS -III 105 55 405.216
29 October 2011 IRS P6/LISS -III 105 55 405.902 ably less than the DN value of Band 2 and Band 3, then
it must be classified as water, otherwise not”.
In the near-IR spectral region, the absorption of
Estimation of water spread area and capacities electromagnetic radiation by water is maximum and
at different elevations using satellite data the DN of water pixels are significantly lower than
the other land uses. Even if the water depth is very
The basic output from the remote sensing analysis is
shallow, the increased absorption in Band 4 will
the water-spread area on the date of satellite pass. For
restrict the DN value to be less than Band 3 and
delineation of water-spread area, there are two techni-
Band 2. If the soil is exposed and saturated at the
ques of remote sensing data interpretation, viz. visual
surface, the reflectance will be as per the soil signa-
and digital are practised. The normalized difference
tures, which increases with wavelength. Therefore,
water index (NDWI) is a new method that has been
water pixels were clearly separated from the neigh-
adopted to delineate open water features and enhance
bouring pixels (Jain et al. 2002).
their presence in remotely-sensed digital imagery.
The original water spread areas at different levels
The NDWI makes use of reflected near-infrared radia-
were obtained from the original elevation–area curve
tion and visible green light to enhance the presence of
received from the project authorities. The submer-
such features while eliminating the presence of soil
gence area corresponding to FRL was 9.91 km2 in the
and terrestrial vegetation features. The NDWI was
Patratu Reservoir and water spread area at river bed
derived using principles similar to the normalised
difference vegetation index (NDVI). In NDVI (the level was assumed as zero. To know the capacities at
different elevations, the Prismoidal formula was
comparison of differences of two bands, red and
applied to solve simultaneous equations. In the
near-infra-red (NIR)), the presence of terrestrial vege-
tation and soil features is enhanced while the presence masks, isolated water pixels within and near the per-
iphery of the reservoir which show no hydraulic con-
of open water features is suppressed because of the
nectivity were removed. Similarly, water pixels
different ways in which these features reflect these
wavelengths (McFeeters 1996). downstream of the reservoir were not a part of the
reservoir, hence were removed. The areas of islands
The NDVI index is calculated as follows:
present in the reservoir were deducted from the total
ðNIR  RedÞ water spread area from all the imageries. After apply-
NDVI ¼ ing corrections for clouds, vegetation, islands, tail and
ðNIR þ RedÞ
discontinuous pixels, the actual water spread areas
If the equation is reversed and the green band is used were obtained through remote sensing technique and
in place of the red, then the result would also be it was compared with the original areas. The water
inverted, the vegetation suppressed and the open spread areas extracted from false colour composite
water features enhanced (McFeeters 1996). The equa- (FCC) images of Patratu Reservoir near FRL and
tion for NDWI is: MDDL are presented in Figs 3 and 4. NDWI maps of
the Patratu Reservoir near MDDL and near FRL are
ðGreen  NIRÞ also presented at Figs 3 and 4.
NDWI ¼
ðGreen þ NIRÞ After applying the above corrections, the actual
water spread area was obtained as detailed in Table 2.
The selection of these wavelengths maximises the Estimated water spread areas for different dates (dates
reflectance properties of water as follows: of satellite pass) obtained by digital analysis of satellite
● Maximise the typical reflectance of water features data corresponding to different elevations were plotted
by using green wavelengths; to generate an elevation–area curve. The
● Minimise the low reflectance of NIR by water remote-sensing technique is limited to providing
features; and water spread area mostly in a live storage zone. In the
 HYDROLOGICAL SCIENCES JOURNAL – JOURNAL DES SCIENCES HYDROLOGIQUES 715

Figure 3. (a) False colour composite of Patratu Reservoir (22 Figure 4. (a) False colour composite of Patratu Reservoir (29
April 2006) near MDDL, (b) extracted water spread areas of October 2011) near FRL, (b) extracted water spread areas of
Patratu Reservoir near MDDL (22 April 2006), and (c) NDWI map Patratu Reservoir (29 October 2011) near FRL, and (c) NDWI
of Patratu Reservoir near MDDL (22 April 2006). map of Patratu Reservoir (29 October 2011) near FRL.

present study, variations of minimum and maximum technique was used to assess these areas. The overall
water level were 387.096 to 406.152 m, respectively. reduction in capacity between the lowest and the high-
Water spread areas below MDDL and at FRL are not est observed water levels was obtained by adding the
available. The linear interpolation/extrapolation reduced capacities at all levels.
716 A. PANDEY ET AL.

The reservoir capacity between two elevations was SRS Capacity Base Capacity
110
computed by the Prismoidal formula using the water
100
spread areas obtained above:
90
pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
ΔhðA1 þ A2 þ A1  A2 Þ 80
ΔV 12 ¼

Capacity (hm3)
70
3 60

where, ΔV 12 is the volume between elevations E2 and 50

E1 (E2 > E1); A1 ; A2 are the water spread areas at
elevations E1 and E2 respectively; and Δh = E2 − E1.
Estimation of sediment deposition
The water spread area of the Pataratu Reservoir was
calculated using satellite data. The gross storage capa-
city of the Patratu Reservoir was found to be 110.7 hm3
at FRL 406.152 m. In order to calculate loss in storage
and to know the sedimentation rate, a capacity survey
by remote sensing technique was carried out for the
years 2006–2012 in the zone of fluctuation between
387.096 and 406.152 m. The difference between the
cumulative capacities of the original (base year = 1968)
and latest (2012) surveys gave loss in storage in the live
storage zone as shown in Table 3. The comparative
capacity elevation curves for the above periods are
shown in Fig. 5.
Discussion
Using the Prismoidal formula, the revised capacity
between the maximum (406.152 m) and minimum
(387.096 m) observed levels were obtained. The loss
in live storage capacity since the base period (year
1968) to the recent remote sensing survey in 2012
was 11.99 hm3, which was 11.76% of the original
live storage capacity. Based on the SRS survey the
annual sedimentation rate is 0.4720 hm3/year and
seems to be quite high against the designed sedi-
mentation rate of 11.73 ha-m/year or 0.11733 hm3.
The gross, dead and live storage capacity of the
40
30
20
10
0
370 375 380 385 390 395 400 405 410
Elevation (m)
Figure 5. Comparison of elevation–capacity curves of Patratu
Reservoir.
Patratu Reservoir for the base year (1968) was
found to be 110.73, 8.78 and 101.95 hm3, respec-
tively. The original live storage capacity of the
Patratu Reservoir (101.95 hm3) reduced to
89.96 hm3, i.e. by 11.76% to date. In the study,
SRS survey could be done for the available ima-
geries of live storage zone only. Therefore, it is
recommended to carry out hydrographic survey for
dead storage zone and SRS survey for live storage
zone to provide more accurate sedimentation
deposition volume and rate with an integrated
system.
The results show that the estimation of sedimenta-
tion by remote sensing is highly sensitive in determin-
ing the water spread area, water level information and
original elevation–area–capacity table (Fig. 5). The
major constraint of remote sensing technique is that
the sedimentation below the lowest observed level and
above the highest observed level cannot be ascer-
tained. However, this limitation is not important
since the zone of interest of sedimentation analysis
from the operation point of view is the live storage

Table 3. Patratu Reservoir capacity loss estimation due to sedimentation.

Elevation (m) Elevation WS area (106 m2) Capacity (hm3) Cumulative capacity (hm3) Sediment deposition (hm3) Remarks
difference (m) Base year 2012 (SRS) Base year 2012 (SRS) Base year 2012 (SRS) 2012 (SRS)
387.096 0.000 2.05 2.040 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 MDDL
390.876 3.780 2.95 2.332 9.40 8.26 9.40 8.26 1.14
393.878 3.002 3.80 3.213 10.10 8.29 19.50 16.55 2.95
397.596 3.719 5.58 5.181 17.33 15.46 36.83 32.01 4.82
398.877 1.280 6.16 5.666 7.52 6.94 44.35 38.95 5.40
400.629 1.753 7.00 6.246 11.52 10.43 55.87 49.38 6.49
403.342 2.713 8.31 7.394 20.74 18.48 76.61 67.86 8.75
405.216 1.875 9.20 8.091 16.40 14.50 93.01 82.36 10.65
405.902 0.686 9.72 8.115 6.49 5.56 99.50 87.92 11.58
406.152 0.250 9.91 8.220 2.45 2.04 101.95 89.96 11.99 FRL
FRL: full reservoir level, MDDL: minimum draw down level, SRS: satellite remote sensing.
 HYDROLOGICAL SCIENCES JOURNAL – JOURNAL DES SCIENCES HYDROLOGIQUES
zone. Further, if sedimentation assessment is required
for the whole reservoir, then the hydrographic survey
for the water spread area at the lowest observed eleva-
tion can be accomplished.
Measures against reservoir sedimentation
There is a strong need to limit sediment accumulation
in reservoirs in order to ensure their sustainable use.
Several measures against reservoir sedimentation have
been proposed in the past but not all of them are
sustainable, efficient and affordable. Sediment manage-
ment is not limited to the reservoir itself; it begins in
the catchment areas and extends to the downstream
river (Asthana et al. 2007).
As suggested by Asthana et al. (2007), generally two
methods, hydraulic and mechanical, are used for
removing deposited sediment from reservoirs.
Hydraulic methods comprise flushing and siphoning
and mechanical methods comprise excavation and
dredging. Sometimes combinations of the two types
are used to improve efficiency.
Recommendation for desilting of Patratu
Reservoir
Satellite-based reservoir sedimentation study of the
Patratu Reservoir revealed that the amount of silting
which has occurred in the live storage zone is about
12 hm3. It is proposed to de-silt the reservoir by adopt-
ing the following measures:
(a) Mechanical/manual excavation, transportation and
dumping of the excavated material to low lying
areas downstream of the dam and the distance of
transportation shall be about 1 km. It is assumed
that 50% of the 12 hm3 silt deposit shall be exca-
vated and transported to the downstream by dum-
pers. Manual excavation work will provide
employment to the local workforce.
(b) Mechanical/manual excavation, dredging of the
material to deeper portion near sluices (within the
reservoir) for hydraulic flushing during flood per-
iod. It is assumed that 50% of the 12 hm3 silt
deposit shall be excavated and hydraulically flushed
through the sluices.
Manual and mechanical digging combined with
flushing is recommended for the desilting of the
Patratu Reservoir. Earlier digging and flushing opera-
tions in Kundah Palam Reservoir in Tamil Nadu
(India) were employed to remove the deposited sedi-
ment (Stephen 1999). During non-monsoon season,
the deposits are mechanically excavated and dozed in
the deep pool near the scour sluices in the dam.
717
Excavation can be planned to start after the mon-
soon season. Water level in the reservoir is at its
highest level (near to or equal to FRL) at the end
of the monsoon season. Then it gradually decreases
exposing areas along the periphery. As the water is
withdrawn from the reservoir for the thermal power
plant and other purposes, more and more reservoir
area is exposed to drying up. Thus instead of waiting
until the start of the summer season, excavation
work can start much earlier.
Dredging is an ancient art and has been practised to
maintain waterways and reclaim land. In the year 2012,
Water Resource Department, Jharkhand had a propo-
sal to the Drinking Water and Sanitation Department
to carry out desilting of Getalsud Dam. Excavation
work can be done manually or mechanically. The
Patratu Reservoir is located in an under-developed
region of Jharkhand state. Central and state govern-
ments are implementing several social welfare pro-
grammes in under-developed regions all over the
country; such as food for work programme, drought
area protection programme, rural area development
works, etc. Therefore it is suggested that the local
work force be involved in manual excavation work
and paid for in cash or kind. Coal and/or electricity
can be provided to the labourers at a subsidized rate for
the manual labour done. The excavated material can be
mechanically transported to a safe disposal place down-
stream. During the flood season, loose material can be
flushed downstream through sluices. There is plenty of
monsoon runoff in Patratu River as compared to the
capacity of the reservoir. Sluices can be effectively
utilized to flush the excavated material along with the
flood runoff. The Drinking Water and Sanitation
Department, Jharkhand was of the view that desiltation
is the only way to save the water bodies from becoming
completely dry even before the onset of summer.
Conclusion
From the satellite remote sensing survey of Patratu
Reservoir, it was found that the live storage capacity
of the reservoir was reduced to 89.96 hm3 from 101.95
hm3 showing an 11.76% loss in its original capacity. On
the basis of analysis of a SRS survey, the sedimentation
rate in the Patratu Reservoir seems to be on the higher
side. Moreover in order to get true picture of sediment
deposition in the reservoir, an integrated survey by
carrying out a hydrographic survey below MDDL and
multispectral analysis from MDDL to FRL would be
more appropriate. Manual and mechanical digging
combined with flushing is recommended for desilting
of the Patratu Reservoir.
718 A. PANDEY ET AL.
Acknowledgements
The authors would also like to thank the anonymous referees
and Dr Shinjiro Kanae, Associate Editor, for contributing
insightful remarks and useful suggestions which led to a
substantially improved manuscript.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Funding
The authors are grateful for the financial support provided
by the PFC Consulting Limited, New Delhi.
References
Asthana, B.N., 2007. Sediment management in Water
Resources Projects. In: G.N. Mathur and A.C. Gupta,
eds. Sediment management in Water Resources Projects.
New Delhi: Central Board of Irrigation and Power.
Bunyasi, M.M., Onywere, S.M., and Kigomo, M.K., 2013.
Sustainable catchment management: assessment of
sedimentation of Masinga Reservoir and its implication on
the dam’s hydropower generation capacity. International
Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 3 (9), 166–179.
CBIP (Central Board of Irrigation and Power), 1981,
Sedimentation studies in reservoirs. Tech. Report no. 20, (vol.
2). New Delhi: CBIP (Central Board of Irrigation and Power).
Goel, M.K., Jain, S.K., and Agarwal, P.K., 2002.
Assessment of sediment deposition rate in Bargi
Reservoir using digital image processing. Hydrological
Sciences Journal, 47 (supp 1), S81–S92. doi:10.1080/
02626660209493024
Gupta, S.C., 1999, Status paper on reservoir sedimentation
assessment using remote sensing techniques. In:
Proceeding national workshop on reservoir sedimentation
assessment using remote sensing data. National Institute of
Hydrology, Roorkee, India.
Hasan, Z.A., Yusoff, M.S.B., and Talib, S.H.B.A. 2011. Bukit
Merah reservoir sedimentation assessment. In: Proceedings of
international conference on environment science and engi-
neering (ICESE 2011), 1–3 April, Bali Island. Nibong Tebal,
Penang: Universiti Sains Malaysia, River Engineering and
Urban Drainage Research Centre, 86–90.
Jain, S.K., Singh, P., and Seth, S.M., 2002. Assessment of
sedimentation in Bhakra Reservoir in the western
Himalayan region using remotely sensed data.
Hydrological Sciences Journal, 47 (2), 203–212. doi:10.1080/
02626660209492924
Jebari, S., et al., 2010. Spatial soil loss risk and reservoir siltation
in semi-arid Tunisia. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 55 (1),
121–137. doi:10.1080/02626660903529049
Keller, A., Sakthivadivel, R., and Seckler, D., 2000. Water scarcity
and the role of storage in development. Colombo: International
Water Management Institute, IWMI Research Report 39.
Kiruthika, A.M., et al., 2011. Silt sediment analysis for
Devarabelekere Reservoir using remote sensing and GIS.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering, 04
(01), 24–30.
Kummu, M., et al., 2010. Basin-wide sediment trapping effi-
ciency of emerging reservoirs along the Mekong.
Geomorphology, 119, 181–197. doi:10.1016/j.
geomorph.2010.03.018
Kummu, M. and Varis, O., 2007. Sediment–related impacts
due to upstream reservoir trapping, the Lower Mekong
River. Geomorphology, 85, 275–293. doi:10.1016/j.
geomorph.2006.03.024
Manvalan, P., Rajegowda, G.E., and Srinivas, M.V., 1991,
Capacity evaluation of Ghatprabha Reservoir using digi-
tal analysis of 1RS L1SS-II data. Bangalore, India:
Regional Remote Sensing Service Centre, Project report
no. B/003/91.
McFeeters, S.K., 1996. The use of the Normalized Difference
Water Index (NDWI) in the delineation of open water
features. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 17 (7),
1425–1432. doi:10.1080/01431169608948714
Mukherjee, S., et al., 2007. Sedimention study of Hirakud
Reservoir through remote sensing techniques. Journal of
Spatial Hydrology, 7 (1), 122–130.
Pandey, A., Chowdary, V.M., and Mal, B.C., 2007.
Identification of critical erosion prone areas in the small
agricultural watershed using USLE, GIS and Remote
Sensing. Water Resource Management, (Springer). 21 (4),
729–746. doi:10.1007/s11269-006-9061-z
Pandey, A., et al., 2009. Soil erosion modeling of a Himalayan
watershed using RS and GIS. Environmental Earth Sciences,
59 (2), 399–410. doi:10.1007/s12665-009-0038-0
Rakhmatullaev, S., et al., 2011, Sedimentation of reservoirs in
Uzbekistan: a case study of the Akdarya Reservoir,
Zerafshan River Basin. In: Proceedings of the ICCE
Workshop, Hyderabad, IAHS Publ. 349, pp. 1–11.
Rakhmatullaev, S., et al., 2010. Groundwater resources use
and management in the Amu Darya River Basin (Central
Asia). Environmental Earth Sciences, 59, 1183–1193.
doi:10.1007/s12665-009-0107-4
Stephen, A., 1999, The control of silting in power reservoirs-
A pragmatic approach. In: Proceedings 1st international
conference on silting problems in hydropower plants. New
Delhi: CBI&P.
UNEP, 1994. The pollution of lakes and reservoirs (UNEP
Environment Library). Kenya: UNEP/Nairobi.
Vörösmarty, C.J., et al., 1997. The storage and aging of
continental runoff in large reservoir systems of the
world. Ambio, 26, 210–219.
Vörösmarty, C.J., et al., 2003. Anthropogenic sediment reten-
tion: major global impact from registered river impound-
ments. Global and Planetary Change, 39, 169–190.
Walling, D.E., 2006. Human impact on land–ocean sediment
transfer by the world’s rivers. Geomorphology, 79, 192–
216. doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2006.06.019
Walling, D.E. and Fang, D., 2003. Recent trends in the
suspended sediment loads of the world’s rivers. Global
and Planetary Change, 39, 111–126. doi:10.1016/S0921-
8181(03)00020-1