The Hydrogeological conditions and characteristics of the groundwater occurrences in Ras Shukeir area, Suez Gulf, Egypt (Review) (original) (raw)
Related papers
Sinai Peninsula represents one of the main prospective areas for energy recourses including water, oil. natural gas, coal and some others. Groundwater is an important natural resource for investment such as south El Teina plain. It lies on low relief and is dominated by extensive sand accumulation alluvial deposits and sabkhas. The average ground elevation ranges from 20 to 31m. above the mean sea level. The Quaternary deposits are exposed in the study area and consist from sand dunes, graded sand, clayey sand, sandy clay and clay. The Pleistocene deposits represent the main aquifer in the eastern part of the study area. It formed of sand, gravely sand, clayey sand, sandy clay and sand with clay intercalations. A total of 18 of Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) stations were carried out in the study area as a grid pattern. The quantitative interpretation of the field curves revealed that the geoelectrical succession is formed of a number of layers, which are grouped together in three main layers. The first layer is surface layer “A” and layer “B” is dry layer, while the lower layer “C” represents the water bearing formation which consists of sand with clay intercalation. The percentage of clay increases downwards. It is divided into three successive parts (C1, C2, C3). The first part "C1" represents resistivity values ranging from 4.5 33.1 Ohm.m. and a thickness from 2-4m, acting as brackish water zone. The second part "C2" represents resistivity values ranging from 1.99 – 4.1 Ohm.m and a thickness from 13 – 22.5m acting as saline water zone. The last one "C3" represents resistivity values not exceeding 2 Ohm.m., acting as more saline zone. Generally, the depth to water as recorded from the drilled wells and the interpreted from the geoelectrical study ranges between 1.9 m and 5m. Vertically, it is noticed that the salinity of water bearing formation increases downwards in the study area due to the effect of the sea water intrusion. It is recommended to exploit the brackish water layer which is considered as the strategic water supply to the area and has a suitable saturated thickness reaching to about 4m. Thus, wells should not penetrate the saline water to prevent a local rising of interface of brackish – saline water interface due to continuous discharge from water well. The safe yield is demonstrated, according to the hydrological condition in the study area. The wells can be dug by hand where the total depth should not exceed 10m. The total safe yield of every hand dug well varies from 28.28 to 42.42 m3/day.
This study focused on investigating the impact of geomorphological features and geological setting on the groundwater occurrences in arid area to the south of eastern Desert in Egypt. It aimed, in one hand, identification of geomorphological elements, some geological parameters and hydrogeologic situation. And from the other hand, to proposed different sites for future groundwater exploration that could be suitable to endue new environments for effective use of the groundwater by practicing some kinds of irrigated agriculture or rangeland enhancement, as an example. Remote sensing, meteorological, geomorphological, morphometrical, structural, permeability and hydrogeological studies as well as geographic information system were used for selection the proposed sites. Six geomorphic units are recorded in the study area namely; high mountains, isolated hills, piedmont plain, alluvial fans and coastal plain as well as hydrographic basins. The morphometric parameters of the wadis indicate that they have reduced flooding ability and good chance for groundwater recharge. NE, NW, E-W and N-S are the main fault systems that well controlled the main wadis and their tributaries, and the highly deformated rocks are metavolcanics and metasediments. The dominant heavy minerals of the Quaternary sediments are amphiboles, biotite, epidotes, pyroxenes and garnet arranged in a decreasing order of abundance. There are three main groundwater aquifers namely; Quaternary, Nubian sandstone and fractured basement. Quaternary aquifer is widely distributed especially in the eastern part. Three hand dug wells are recorded in the aquifer with salinities ranging from fresh (418 ppm) to brackish water (2444 ppm). Nubian sandstone aquifer is recorded at the upstreams of Sifeira and Shab wadis, but there is no water points due to lack of drilling. On the other hand, fractured basement aquifer occupies the western portion. All groundwater wells in the aquifer are dry due to the long period of drought facing the area for eight years without replenishment, except Meisah well in wadi Meisa that has salinity 2161.4 ppm (brackish water). The variation of the groundwater salinities are attributed to the difference of the size of watershed area, the closeness to recharge sources, lithology of the surrounding rocks, density of fractured systems, rate of leaching process, and the effect of direct evaporation of shallow groundwater. Different sites for future groundwater exploration are proposed that are divided into four priority sites according to the thickness of groundwater saturation, size of the watershed area, rate of recharge and water quality. Different types of geophysical studies must be done in these sites for purification followed by test and production wells to determine the hydrological properties.
Groundwater in Egypt’s Deserts, 2021
No doubt that groundwater is an essential source of water resources in many regions in the world particularly in arid desert areas as in the case of Egypt. Egypt’s deserts rely on groundwater where no other reliable source is available. The rapid growth of the population and the need for food at a reasonable price lead Egypt to extend its agricultural expansion to the deserts where 1.5 million feddans (1 Feddan = 4200 m2) are entering the plan for cultivation. This book focuses on the groundwater in Egypt’s deserts, its availability, quantity, quality, uses, and the future agricultural expansion. The book consists of 17 chapters in five parts. Part “Introductory Section” is an introduction and contains two Chaps. “Intro-duction to “Groundwater in Egypt’s Deserts”” and “An Overview of the Egyptian Deserts’ Resources”. Part “Groundwater Occurrence and Ecosystem Services”. Part “Groundwater Exploration, Quantity, Quality, and Their Management” deals with Groundwater Exploration, Quantity, Quality and their Management in 8 Chap-ters . On the other hand, the topic (Transboundary groundwater management issues in the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System (NSAS) is covered in Chap. “Transboundary Groundwater Management Issues in the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System (NSAS)” The last Part of the book is to conclude the book with a chapter titled (Update, Conclusions and Recommendations of the Groundwater in Egypt’s Deserts”.
Egyptian Journal of Pure and Applied Science, 2015
The present work aims to study the hydrogeological settings of the topmost aquifers along the area lying West of Samalot (El-Minia Governorate). To achieve this target, the field geomorphologic features, the geologic exposures and structures are investigated. The subsurface successions are detected through the collected data of the drilled wells from the rigs of the Arab Contracting drilling Company (ECDC) during the field investigations. In addition, the archival data as well drilling reports and well log charts from the office of this company. The groundwater level in these wells and along the nearest eastern irrigation water canal is recorded. Pumping and recovery tests are carried out on six wells. Thirty three groundwater samples are collected and are subjected to chemical analysis. The Middle Eocene (Samalot Formation) fractured limestone is the available water bearing rocks in the investigated area. The maximum penetrated thickness reaches 225 m. It occurs under free water table conditions. The geometry of the aquifer is controlled by the fracture density, caving and fissuring. The depth to water ranges between 109.43 m to the West and 14.30 m to the East. The groundwater flows to the east and northeast towards Abo Edahab irrigation canal which acts as a discharging area rather than recharging one. An annual drop in water level occurs. It ranges between 0.5 m and 2.45 m. The aquifer transmissivity ranges between 4394.9 m 2 /d and 3515.929 m 2 /d (high potentiality) along the eastern parts. However, it ranges between 274.68 m 2 /d and 15.13 m 2 /d (moderate potentiality) in the western parts. Most of the analyzed groundwater samples are of sodium chloride and some of sodium sulphate water types. Some recommendations are given in order to best use of the available groundwater wells and the future exploration for new occurrences.
Journal of Water Resource and Protection, 2014
The area to the southeast of the Western Desert of Egypt has been subjected to considerable development activities over the last few years. The development includes the cultivation of about 2260 km 2 of the desert lands "the well-known Toshka Project". The hydrogeological conditions of the area are subjected to detailed investigation based upon the construction of the water table maps, hydrologeologic cross-sections, pumping tests, aquifer geometry, and recharge-discharge relationship. The study revealed that the Quaternary and the Nubia sediments are the main water bearing layers in the area. The Quaternary aquifer is of limited potential and made of mixed sand with clay deposit ranges in thickness between 5 to 10 m. The Nubia aquifer is the oldest sedimentary formation and the main groundwater resources in the area. It is represented by multilayered of sand and silt exists generally under artesian conditions. It is composed of three water bearing horizons partially separated by two confining horizons and extends in thickness ranges between 70 and 230 meters. The thickness increases away from the high dam lake. The analysis of pumping tests of the aquifer indicated that its potentiality is increasing north of the High Dam Lake (HDL) whereas it decreases in the other direction. This is due to high hydraulic conductivity and aquifer thickness in the area northeast of Khor Toshka and at west of Garf Hussein. The hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer ranges between 12.73 and 0.9 m/day. The review of the changes in groundwater levels in the area showed that there is a drop in ranges between 1 and 14 meters in the last few years indicating that the extraction from the groundwater is much more higher that the replacement rate. Also, the analysis of the fluctuation of water levels of the HDL and the groundwater level indicated that the influence of water on groundwater level in the area is observed only at a distance less than 10 km from the lake shore line. Seepage from the HDL is estimated as 238.13 × 10 6 A. A. Abdel Moneim et al. 382 m 3 /year. The geo-environmental impacts of the development on the surface water and groundwater in the area are evaluated.
International Journal of Engineering Research and Technology (IJERT), 2021
https://www.ijert.org/assessment-of-groundwater-potentiality-in-the-west-wadi-el-natrun-north-western-desert-region-egypt https://www.ijert.org/research/assessment-of-groundwater-potentiality-in-the-west-wadi-el-natrun-north-western-desert-region-egypt-IJERTV10IS060124.pdf Groundwater is considered as the main source of water for the desert development in Egypt. The North western desert region, especially the area located between Wadi El Natrun-Alamein road and El Dabaa road, in the vicinity of West Nile Delta Region is considered as one of promising desert areas for land reclamation activities in Egypt mainly based on groundwater. To achieve an integrated development plan for this area, adetailed hydrogeological investigations and evaluation groundwater potential of existing aquifer systems are required. The detailed hydrogeological investigations include geophysical survey, well inventory, groundwater sampling, implementation of pumping/recovery tests on some selected wells and integration assessment of these data to evaluate the groundwater potential of the existing aquifer. The interpretation of the geologic, geophysical and hydrogeological data revealed recognition of six geo-electrical (Hydrogeological units) with definite characteristics. Through GIS the collected and interpreted data were used to construct geoelectric cross sections and detailed specialized hydrogeological contour maps comprising depth to groundwater, groundwater level, salinity, as well as groundwater potentiality. The present study concluded that, the existing aquifer within the study area belongs to the Moghra aquifer where its depth ranging from 106 m to 196 m from ground surface, depth to groundwater varies from 70 m to 170 m and the main flow direction is from northwest to southeast. Groundwater salinity varies from 1250 ppm to5000 ppm. The integration of processed data was used to evaluate the groundwater potentiality within the study area. Groundwater potential could be classified as high (at the southern east part) to low potential (at the northwest part) of the study area. The findings of this study could be considered as the base for formulating groundwater development plan for the study area.
Groundwater Assessment for Agricultural Irrigation in Toshka Area, Western Desert, Egypt
Toshka area is located southeastern of the Western Desert. In 1997, Egypt established a development project to irrigate 216,000 ha (540 feddan) by 2017 through pumping surface water from High Dam Lake as a part of the mega project " Developing Southern Egypt. " Currently, the Egyptian government plans to extend the project by about 100,000 feddan depending on surface water irrigation and 25,000 feddan depending on groundwater (through 102 wells) as a part of the recent mega project called " 1.5 Million Feddan Project. " Egypt is now fully utilizing its annual share of the Nile waters 55.5 km 3 from the Nile, and it has a shortage of water estimated at 20 km 3. The present chapter aims to evaluate the groundwater conditions to determine the sustainability of the groundwater resource, the expected changes in groundwater levels, the amount of recharge and the suitable discharge from the groundwater for irrigation of 25,500 feddan through 100 years, and the changes in water quality. The hydrochemical analysis was carried out using 38 productive wells and 1 surface sample from Aswan High Dam Lake (AHDL) for major ions. The present study was carried out in Toshka using 102 groundwater wells located west of AHDL using static, dynamic water levels, well depth, discharge, and pumping tests to determine the hydraulic parameters of the aquifer system in the study area and building the groundwater model. Visual MODFLOW 2011.1 1 software was used to estimate the expected drawdown in the groundwater levels using four different scenarios. A conceptual model was constructed to simulate water flow system of the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer through 100 years. The safe water use of groundwater for 100 years is 1,007 m 3 /day from each well working 8.4 h/day at 120 m 3 /h, to provide 1,500 m 3 /feddan/year for a total of 25,000 feddan. The expected lowering in the groundwater level after 100 years is 15 m. The salinity ranges from 480 to 1,200 ppm with an average of 648.5 ppm. It increases with increasing distance from AHDL.
Hydrogeology Journal, 2011
The effect of separation by aquitard layers on the distribution of saline groundwater in coastal aquifers has been demonstrated in two Israeli coastal aquifers: the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea aquifers. There is vertical separation in the Dead Sea area, even where the clayey aquitard layers are <1m thick, exhibited by large differences in hydraulic head (2-5m), salinity (TDS of 50-340g/L) and chemical composition (e.g. Na/Cl range 0.28-0.55). Similar features are found in the Mediterranean coastal aquifer, where the separating aquitard layers are thicker (∼5-10m). Here, the different subaquifers host fresh and saline groundwater of different ages (tritium and 14 C ages range from tens to thousands of years), as well as different chemical compositions. This high resolution of results can be obtained only by drilling without fluids; otherwise, the spatial information may lead to incorrect representation of the studied aquifer. This is especially important in saline systems where only partial flushing occurs and, thus, large variations in salinity and chemical composition are expected. The main factors controlling the salinity of groundwater in subaquifers in coastal aquifers are their connection to the sea or saline lakes, existence of brines, salinization and flushing rates, and separation by aquitard layers. a The first number in the name denotes the strip number in which the drilling is located (from south to north). The second number denotes the depth of the drilling, where numbers 1 and 2 denote the deeper drilling, probably to subaquifers D or C and numbers 4 and 5 denote subaquifers A and B. b Average value from
Salinity Functions for Groundwater at Safwan, South Iraq
2019
Function type between electrical conductivity and total dissolved solids is polynomial and the exponential which are taken according to the water quality classification for irrigation. These functions relate the EC in ds/m to the salinity in term of part per million or to the half salinity in equivalent per million directly or in form of logarithmic transformation. A statistical test for best fit is considered for the selection of the type of a representative function. The irrigation salinity classification is taken as index of grouping extended to moderately sensitive vegetable crop tomato as salinity tolerance rating up to 15 ds/m groundwater salinity used for irrigation at Safwan area of arid climate. All fitted type of functions is programmed within a flow model computer of basic language by which the output from of both methods is an average final value. Thus the coast of analysis is reduced. This type of functions is standard for groundwater and so designed to involve the wate...
Exploring The Groundwater Possibilities In Wadi West Komombo-The Desert Fringes Of Aswan Governorate
The West Komomboarea lies among Sahal El-Galaba which considers an important part of the Egyptian 1.5 million feddan national reclamation project. This area attracted the investors for reclamation and development of new settlements. The groundwater is the only water source for such integrated development. The main objectives of the present work are exploring and studying the groundwater aquifers in this area by some geophysical techniques.To achieve the aim of study, seven Vertical Electrical Sounding (VESes) carried out along one profile crossing the area and 18 electromagnetic stations (TEM) were done through a grid pattern across the study area. Interpretation of the field data revealed that the groundwater in the study area find in two water-bearing layers separated by a huge thickness of sandy clay layer. The first water-bearing layer has a low potentiality and small thickness (ranges from 10to 29m.) and its electricalresistivity ranges from 7 to 21 Ohm.m. The second water-bearing layer (main aquifer in this area) is found at depth varies from 150 to 300m and has a suitable thickness ranges from 100 to 130 m and a resistivity rangefrom 6.2 to 14 Ohm.m. This aquifer is capped with a thick layer of clay. The first priority class is the most suitable sites to drill new productive water wells. It characterized by considerable resistivity values, large thickness and has low depths from the ground surface. It located at the southern part of the study area and it represented by stations P4V3 and P4V2. The total depths of the proposed wells must full penetrate the second waterbearing layer and reached to the clay layer.Drilling new water wells in the study area should be under control to avoid the aquifer deterioration due to the over pumping processes.