Groundwater Management for Sustainable Development East of the Nile Delta Aquifer

Due to the progressive increase in land reclamation projects in Egypt, especially east on Nile Delta, efficient water resources management plans and accurate land cover maps are highly vital. In this chapter, the hydrogeological characteristics of the Quaternary groundwater aquifer east of the Nile Delta are presented. This description includes the geomorphology, lithostratigraphy, geological Structure, surface hydrogeology, and the recharge and discharge of the aquifer. The change in land use maps between 1990 and 2004 shows a significant increase in land reclamation which is critical for informing efficient and sustainable policies for groundwater management. MODFLOW software was used to model groundwater flow in three dimensions based on integration with ArcGIS dataset. The stratigraphy of the aquifer was mapped using the solids approach. The groundwater head distribution was calculated in 1990 and between 1990 and 2004 after model calibration for steady and transient states, respectively. The land use for the year 2004 was used to run the predictive transient model to simulate the groundwater flow and budget analysis for the upcoming 8 years (until 2025). Budget analysis results showed that Ismailia Canal and Damietta Branch are the primary recharge components of the aquifer, while the production wells are the main discharge element. Different strategies for well operation can be implemented to control the withdrawal based on the storage capacity and aquifer yield as well as the rising water table in the low elevated lands.