Morphometric analysis of lower Enyong creek basin in South Eastern Nigeria; its implications for applied studies

Abstract

The drainage basin analysis is important in any hydrological investigation such as study of hydrologic processes, management of wetlands, flood, erosion and landslides susceptibility studies, assessment of groundwater potential and groundwater management. Also, existing theories and models such as the laws of drainage composition can be verified. In the light of the foregoing, the present paper describes the drainage characteristics of the lower Enyong Creek, which is underlain by varying geologic formations. viz; Asu River Formations e.g the Abakiliki Anticlinorium to the recent alluvium in the south It involved detailed map-based quantitative analyses of two 4th order sub-catchments in the study area. The drainage pattern is mainly dendritic type. It is observed that the drainage density value is low which indicates the basin is highly permeable subsoil and thick vegetative cover. The elongation ratio value reveals that the basin is strongly elongated and stream abstraction process constrained by heterogeneous geologic materials. This study would help the local people to utilize the resources for sustainable development of the basin area.