Submit your papersSubmit Now
For Enquiries: [email protected]
IIARD LogoIIARD

Hydrological Assessment and Discharge Determination of River Jarkwami for Sustainable Water Resources Management in Kwami Local Government Area, Gombe State, Nigeria

Aliyu Musa Wakawa, Wanah B. Bello, Gideon Didams

Abstract

Reliable river discharge information is essential for flood prediction, irrigation planning, reservoir management and sustainable water resource development. However, most tributaries within the Gongola Basin in semi-arid Northeastern Nigeria lack gauging stations. This study characterizes the discharge regime of River Jarkwami, a seasonal tributary of River Morom that drains into Dadin Kowa Reservoir on the Gongola River in Gombe State, using inexpensive staff-gauge and float techniques suited to data-limited developing regions. The upstream catchment was delineated with ArcGIS 10.1 and the SRTM Digital Elevation Model. Field observations of water level, flow velocity and channel breadth were conducted twice daily, at 07:00 and 18:00, from May through October 2023, representing the 2023 hydrological year, at the Jarkwami Bridge gauging station. Flow velocity was estimated using the float method and verified with Manning's equation. Cross-sectional area was calculated as depth × breadth, discharge was obtained using Q = A × V, and a stage-discharge rating curve was established. The results indicate that the upstream catchment covers 225 km2 and has a dendritic drainage network consisting of 70 streams: 57 first-order, 9 second-order, 3 third- order and 1 fourth-order streams. The mean bifurcation ratio is 3.82, drainage density is 1.21 km/km2 and total stream length is 271.8 km. The catchment comprises 25 sub-basins ranging from 0.76 to 59.93 km2, with a mean stream length of 13.73 km. At the gauging station, the channel measures 17.1 m in breadth. Mean float velocity was 0.18 m/s, ranging from 0.07 to 0.37 m/s, with the maximum recorded in September (0.37 m/s) and the minimum in October (0.07 m/s). Monthly water level averaged 21.3 cm, reaching its lowest value in May (1.27 cm) and its highest in September (58.2 cm, with a peak of 85.34 cm on 10th September). Mean instantaneous discharge was 5.76 m3/s, ranging from 0.60 to 20.7 m3/s, while cumulative IIARD International Journal of Geography & Environmental Management seasonal discharge totaled 368.8 m3/s over 64 effective flow days. September accounted for 40.1% of the total seasonal discharge, indicating a single-maximum regime characteristic of tropical continental climates. Discharge was influenced by rainfall intensity and duration, catchment size and elongated form, highly permeable sandy ferruginous soils, undulating terrain (370-670 m), sparse derived savanna vegetation and anthropogenic activities such as open grazing, farming, soil excavation and sand mining. The staff gauge and float techniques were effective, cost-efficient and reliable for small-medium seasonal rivers, exhibiting excellent performance, as demonstrated by the rating curve Q = 0.42h^1.65 (R2 = 0.87). Although turbulence, debris, water surges and limited vertical range presented limitations, these were addressed through strategic site selection. The study establishes baseline information for forecasting inflows into Dadin Kowa Reservoir, scheduling irrigation on the Kwami Fadama lands, issuing early flood warnings, and evaluating affordable techniques for ungauged basins in semi-arid Nigeria.

Keywords

River dischargeStaff gaugeFloat methodJarkwami RiverWater resources managementRating curveKwamiGongola Basin

References

Abashiya, M. I., Abaje, I. B., Iguisi, E. O., Bello, A. L., Sawa, B. A., Amos, B. B., & Musa, I. (2017). Rainfall characteristics and occurrence of floods in Gombe Metropolis, Nigeria. Ethiopian Journal of Environmental Studies & Management, 10(1), 44-54. Adamu, S. J., Sulaiman, M., & Mahmoud, A. B. (2015). An assessment of traditional land use management practices among five communities in Doho District of Kwami, Gombe – Nigeria. Journal of Environmental Sciences and Resource Management, 7(1), 18-29. Adeaga, O. A. (1997). Mapping of Gongola River Basin for water resources development. Unpublished M.Sc. Dissertation. Department of Geography, University of Lagos. Ahmad, B. (2016). Significance of the Morom River basin which River Jarkwami empties its waters into. Unpublished. Barnett, T. P., Adam, J. C., & Lettenmaier, D. P. (2005). Potential impacts of a warming climate on water availability in snow-dominated regions. Nature, 438(7066), 303-309. Berven, K. J. (2012). Causal models as multiple working hypotheses about environmental processes. Comptes Rendus Geoscience, 344, 77-88. Berner, E. K., & Berner, R. A. (2012). Global environment: water, air, and geochemical cycles. Princeton University Press. Bos, M. G. (2015). Discharge measurement structures (3rd ed.). International Institute for Land Reclamation and Improvement. Brown, A. (2016). Catchment area size and its influence on river flow. Journal of Hydrology, 123(4), 567-580. Chow, V. T. (1959). Open-channel hydraulics. McGraw-Hill. Chow, V. T., Maidment, D. R., & Mays, L. W. (1988). Applied hydrology. McGraw-Hill. Dingman, S. L. (2002). Physical hydrology (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall. Ezra, A., Andrew, K. Z., Dávid, L. D., Yakubu, B. N., & Ritter, K. (2023). Assessing the hydrological impacts of climate change on the Upper Benue River Basin in Nigeria: Trends, relationships, and mitigation strategies. Climate, 11(10), 198. Fread, D. L. (2001). Flow routing. In Handbook of hydrology. McGraw-Hill. Garcia, R., & Martinez, J. (2019). Geological and topographical influences on sub-basin formation in the Jarkwami drainage basin. Earth Science Research, 12(2), 189-204. Gravalle, O. (2014). Riparian vegetation and channel stability. Journal of Hydrology. Gray, J. R. (2014). Techniques for measuring discharge. USGS. Gregory, K. J., & Walling, D. E. (1973). Drainage basin form and process: A geomorphological approach. Edward Arnold. Henderson, F. M. (1966). Open channel flow. Macmillan. Herschy, R. W. (2009). Streamflow measurement (3rd ed.). CRC Press. Johnson, P., & Brown, A. (2018). Review of stream discharge measurement techniques. Journal of Hydrologic Engineering. Khodzinskaya, A., Abramova, A., & Kudryavtsev, A. (2022). Influence of soil excavation on infiltration and river discharge. Environmental Geotechnics. Knighton, D. (1998). Fluvial forms and processes: A new perspective. Arnold. Maidment, D. R. (1993). Handbook of hydrology. McGraw-Hill. McCuen, R. H. (2019). Hydrologic analysis and design (4th ed.). Pearson. Mittelbach, H., Lehner, I., & Seneviratne, S. I. (2012). Soil moisture monitoring for climate research. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 16, 399-410. Muktar, H. (2017). Comparative analysis of discharge measurement techniques upstream Kubanni River, Zaria. Unpublished http://M.Sc. Thesis, Ahmadu Bello University. Oyegoke, S. O., & Sojobi, A. O. (2018). Topography and geology significance on river flow. Journal of Water Resources. Pariva, S., et al. (2016). Cost-effectiveness of staff gauge method. Journal of Hydrology. IIARD International Journal of Geography & Environmental Management Roudier, P., Ducharne, A., & Feyen, L. (2014). Climate change impacts on river discharge. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 18, 123-134. Smith, J. (1997). Precipitation and river hydrology dynamics. Journal of Hydrology. Strahler, A. N. (1957). Quantitative analysis of watershed geomorphology. Transactions of the American Geophysical Union, 38, 913-920. Strahler, A. N. (1964). Quantitative geomorphology of drainage basins and channel networks. In Handbook of Applied Hydrology. Tobias, et al. (2001). Water resources allocation. Water Resources Management. Turnipseed, D. P., & Sauer, V. B. (2010). Discharge measurements at gaging stations. USGS Techniques and Methods Book 3, Chapter A8. UNESCO. (2008). Hydrological measurement techniques. UNESCO. Ward, J. V., & Tockner, K. (2001). Biodiversity and floodplain ecosystems. Freshwater Biology. Whiting, P. J. (2003). Subsurface flow and groundwater contributions to river discharge. Water Resources Research. Wlosinski, J. H., & Koljord, K. (1996). Wetland ecosystems and water level fluctuations. Wetlands Ecology. Yusuf, Y. O., Iguisi, E. O., & Bello, A. L. (2007). Comparison of velocity-area and weir methods in River Kubanni discharge. Zaria Geographer. Yusuf, Y. O., Iguisi, E. O., & Abdulsalam, A. (2011). Comparison of current meter and float methods in Samaru stream. Journal of Environmental Sciences. Yusuf, Y. O. (2013). Assessment of sediment delivery into Kubanni reservoir. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, Ahmadu Bello University. Zubairu, S. (2009). Comparison of float and weir methods in River Tukurwa. Unpublished M.Sc. Dissertation. Zwarts, L., Beukering, P. V., Kone, B., & Wymenga, E. (2006). Water resource management during dry season in monsoon regions. Wetlands International.