TITLE:
Water Dynamics of the Sefrou Watershed, Northern Tabular Middle Atlas, Morocco
AUTHORS:
Farah El Hassani, Youssef Hattafi, Abderrahim Lahrach
KEYWORDS:
Middle Atlas, Sebou, Sefrou Watershed, Basin Morphology, Water Resources
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.9 No.9,
September
28,
2021
ABSTRACT: The Sefrou watershed, located in the northern part of the Tabular Middle Atlas,
is the primary watershed in the Sebou region. Due to increasing socio-economic development,
the need for a stable water supply is critical. Therefore, this watershed’s physiography
and morphology are studied to aim and facilitate further research in the Sebou region.
We rely on the hydrological regime, frequency analysis of extreme flows, rainfall
volume, and flood periods forecast to enable that characterization. Our findings
determined that the Sebou region is of pluvial type with abundant rainfall, especially
in winters due to floods. Moreover, substratum parameters induce a large volume
of water resources from upstream to downstream. However, the weak structure of the
hydrographic network and the water balance has highlighted
a considerable loss of these resources, which handicaps the irrigation system and
the supply of drinking water to the region’s cities. Finally, the annual modulus
and the different coefficients show hydroclimatic fluctuations of semi-arid climatic
conditions, with a temperate winter. Our results suggest a need to monitor water
runoff and protect surface soils from flooding and rapid erosion (by planting trees).
We also propose installing barriers and a small dam to recharge groundwater and
artificially store surface water in this watershed.