Water is a critical environmental resource with direct implications for public health, making the understanding of its flow patterns, quantity, and quality essential for effective environmental management. This study focuses on the morphometric analysis of the River Ogbese basin in Ondo State, Nigeria, using geospatial techniques previously unapplied to drainage basin studies in this area. ArcGIS 10.7 software was used alongside ALOS-PALSAR Digital Elevation Model (DEM) data acquired from the Alaska Satellite Facility to analyse the linear, areal, and relief morphometric parameters of the watershed. Key parameters evaluated included stream order, stream length, bifurcation ratio, drainage density, stream frequency, elongation ratio, circularity ratio, form factor, and relief ratio.
Results reveal that River Ogbese is a fifth-order drainage basin comprising 1,179 drainage networks: 598 first-order, 297 second-order, 143 third-order, 106 fourth-order, and 35 fifth-order streams. The average drainage density is 4.25 km/km², and the mean bifurcation ratio is 2.12. The basin exhibits sub-dendritic and dendritic drainage patterns, indicating textural homogeneity and minimal structural control over surface flow. These findings provide valuable insights into the relationships between drainage networks and landscape characteristics, supporting informed decision-making in watershed management, land use planning, environmental conservation and public health safety. The study serves as a useful reference for hydrologists, researchers, and water resource planners. Future studies are recommended to incorporate high-resolution remotely sensed and ground-control data to further advance natural resource management in the basin.
