Groundwater development, Kharga Oases, Western Desert of Egypt: A long-term environmental concern

LaMoreaux, Philip E.; Memon, Bashir Ahmed; Idris, Hussein

doi:10.1007/bf02528797

Cited by 33 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The oasis was formed by structural differences and subsequent exposure to wind, and dry and wet seasons. The present prevailing climatic conditions are arid, with strong winds and sand storms in spring and temperatures up to 40 ∘ C in summer; the mean annual rainfall is < 1 mm, but occasionally torrential storms occur (Lamoreaux et al, 1985).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental and statistical study of saturated hydraulic conductivity and relations with other soil properties of a desert soil

Gamie

Smedt

2017

European J Soil Science

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Agricultural expansion in the Kharga Oasis, in the western desert of Egypt, depends strongly on irrigation. Soil hydraulic conductivity is therefore a key property for reclaiming desert land and planning irrigation schemes. Soil samples collected at 10‐m intervals in a 120 m by 120 m plot were analysed for hydraulic conductivity together with 12 other basic physical and chemical soil properties. The resulting data were analysed statistically using Pearson correlation, principal component analysis and linear regression. The hydraulic conductivity values varied over four orders of magnitude and, because of the saline–sodic nature of the soil, were about two orders of magnitude smaller than what is generally reported in the literature for similar soil textures. Results showed that the hydraulic conductivity was correlated significantly with soil variables that relate to soil structure, such as wilting point, field capacity and SAR, and less to variables that relate to soil texture, such as silt and clay fractions. Pedotransfer functions for hydraulic conductivity were derived by stepwise multiple linear regression and fitted by residual maximum likelihood. The first model was based directly on soil properties, whereas the second model was based on principal components. Both models showed that part of the variation in hydraulic conductivity encountered in the field could be explained, but with large uncertainty probably resulting from sampling and measurement errors, randomness and soil heterogeneity, or other soil properties that were not observed. The most significant predictors for the first model were wilting point, SAR and silt fraction. The second model used the first two principal components of the soil variables as predictors, the first one related to soil structure and the second to soil texture. Highlights We analysed relations between saturated hydraulic conductivity and other basic soil properties. Principal component analysis showed that the variation in hydraulic conductivity is related to soil structure. A pedotransfer function predicted hydraulic conductivity from wilting point, sodium adsorption ratio and silt fraction. A pedotransfer function was derived from principal components one and two related to structure and texture, respectively.

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Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental and statistical study of saturated hydraulic conductivity and relations with other soil properties of a desert soil

Gamie

Smedt

2017

European J Soil Science

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“…At Umm El Dabadib, a Pharaonic outpost later fortified by the Romans (1st to 4th centuries A.D.), Admiral Scylox developed an elaborate irrigation system with aqueducts and subterranean water collecting systems (kanats or qanats) around Ϸ 2500 B.P. (Lamoreaux et al, 1985). Today, hand-dug pits can reach the watertable, which has been high enough to irrigate a feddan (i.e., a "homestead" parcel issued by the government) following rare rainfalls (Beadnell, 1909;Harding-King, 1913).…”

Section: Descriptions Of Localities Studiedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Petrogenesis of artifact-bearing fossil-spring tufa deposits from Kharga Oasis, Egypt

1999

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Petrographic and geochemical study of artifact‐bearing fossil‐spring tufas in stratigraphic contexts associated with Upper Acheulean and Middle Stone Age‐to‐historic artifacts provides a basis for characterizing and comparing Quaternary tufa deposition and diagenesis across the Kharga Oasis region of south‐central Egypt. Analysis of tufa deposits at Refûf Pass, Midauwara Pass, A‘in ‘Amur, and Umm el Dabadib suggest that the low Mg‐carbonates were precipitated by similar inorganic and biogeochemical processes operating within freshwater spring‐fed alkaline stream environments throughout Quaternary time. Detailed petrographic studies suggest that the tufas are relatively pristine, with the original rock textures well preserved with minimal postdepositional alteration. Microstratigraphic details indicate that a variety of interformational facies were present within the former stream environments; understanding these contexts is valuable for interpreting prehistoric human activities. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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“…Thickness of Nubian Sandstone aquifer beneath Kharga Oasis ranges from 300m up to 1000m in some places 1), 7) .…”

Section: (2) Hydrogeologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Groundwater Flow Analysis at Arid Areas With Limited Data by Using Geo-Statistics and Genetic Algorithm

Mahmod

Watanabe

2013

J. JSCE

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Groundwater management at many arid areas in the world has been difficult to be properly performed due to the limited availability of hydrogeological data. Recent development of Kharga Oasis, as an arid area located at western desert of Egypt, has been mainly depended on groundwater of Nubian Sandstone Aquifer. During the last two decades, the excess pumping of groundwater at Kharga Oasis brought about a significant drawdown of groundwater table. To implement an optimal groundwater management, temporal and spatial variation of groundwater table should be investigated first as an indispensable factor in groundwater flow analysis. In the current study, temporal change of groundwater pore pressure for arbitrary target points is analyzed using Geo-statistics and Genetic Algorithm models. It was found that Genetic Algorithm technique produces good performance compared with Geo-statistics model and can be available to analyze the temporal change of groundwater table with limited data.

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Groundwater development, Kharga Oases, Western Desert of Egypt: A long-term environmental concern

Cited by 33 publications

References 16 publications

Experimental and statistical study of saturated hydraulic conductivity and relations with other soil properties of a desert soil

Experimental and statistical study of saturated hydraulic conductivity and relations with other soil properties of a desert soil

Petrogenesis of artifact-bearing fossil-spring tufa deposits from Kharga Oasis, Egypt

Groundwater Flow Analysis at Arid Areas With Limited Data by Using Geo-Statistics and Genetic Algorithm

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