Investigating the Effect of Hydrogeomorphological Factors in the Water Supply and Location of Settlements (Case Study: Miandoab Plain)

Security of water has been one of the most important issues in the world from the early days to present. Water supplies have always been valuable resources used by people. In the current situation with the rising population, agriculture and industrial developments, high demand for water, uncontrolled and unprincipled exploitation, droughts, and climatic fluctuations, the knowledge of the potential capacity in water supplies in each area is an essential factor in making decision for conservation and optimum utilization of water resources. The purpose of this study was to investigate and identify the effective hydrogeomorphological factors on water supply and replacement of settlements in Miandoab plain. To accomplish this, Satellite images - the image of TM, 2011 - were used. Factors like the slope, lithology, land use, distance to fault, distance from river, rainfall, elevation and vegetation were prepared in GIS environment. Then, the layers were weighted by using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The results showed that Analytic Hierarchy Process proved more efficient in determining the effective hydro- geomorphological factors on water supply in area under study. It also showed that the interpretation of the coefficients, distance from river, rainfall and altitude, have an important role in this field.