2024 Volume 12 Issue 2 Article ID: 24-27009
The Sudd wetland in South Sudan has been designated a Ramsar site since 2006. Due to high evapotranspiration, Sudd loses water, which causes a poor downstream flow. The downstream countries (Sudan and Egypt) proposed a plan to divert water from the Sudd wetland through the Jonglei Canal. However, there are concerns about the impact of the canal construction on the Sudd surface water area and the environment. Several studies have documented the pros and cons of excavating the Jonglei Canal on the regional climate, environmental changes, and impacts on the local inhabitant's way of life. Nevertheless, there is a lack of sufficient data to estimate the surface water area losses, the effect on the climate system and the hydrology of the river swamps system. Therefore this study aims to evaluate the impact of diverting water from the Sudd wetland on the water surface area of the Sudd by assessing the seasonal surface water extent and analysing the effect of developing the Jonglei Canal on the flooded area extent. To achieve these objectives, satellite images obtained from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) for a period from 2008-2021 will be utilised to estimate the surface water area of the Sudd wetland using the MODIS’s green and short wave infrared bands. The Sudd wetland's water area loss due to diversion was calculated using the linear regression model employing river flow at Mangala station and satellite-derived water surface area. This study considered an area of 68,282 km2 of the Sudd wetland and found that the lowest surface water area was 7,358 km2 in March 2008, while the largest surface water area identified was 19,792 km2 in October 2020. Moreover, the Jonglei Canal construction would lead to a significant decrease (3% - 32%) in the Sudd surface water extent.
