Author(s)

Y. O. Yusuf & F. Yusuf

Abstract

The Jibia dam was completed in 1991, under the Sokoto Rima River Basin Development Authority (SRRBDA) with support from Katsina state government, with its head work constructed across River Gada for two purposes; water supply and irrigation. The study was conducted at the onset of the rainy season of the year 2011, to determine the current depth of the reservoir, to estimate the rate at which the reservoir is being silted and to examine the factors that gave rise to the level of sediments. The level of sedimentation was determined by measuring the depth of the reservoir from its surface to its bed at different grid points. Finally a contour map was developed using the sediment depth and the coordinates derived using a Global Positioning System (GPS). To compute sediment deposition and the current water holding capacity, average depth was used. The results obtained show that Jibia dam is rapidly silting up with the initial depth of 21m reduced to 13.43m indicating that 7.57m has been lost to sediment accumulation. The reservoir is being silted at the rate of 0.379m annually. The Useful life of the reservoir is threatened because 36% of the storage capacity is already lost leaving 65.95% storage capacity and by the year 2046, the dam will be completely silted up. This implies that there are serious implications for future water supply in Jibia town and its surrounding villages and conscious efforts have to be made to reduce the siltation rate in order to prolong the useful life of the reservoir. Keywords: Jibia dam, River Gada, sediments, reservoir depth, siltation rate, contour map.

Keywords

Keywords: Jibia dam, River Gada, sediments, reservoir depth, siltation rate,contour map.