Comparison of the Groundwater Quality in the West Tahta Area, Upper Egypt in 1989 and 2011

Ismail Esam, Faid Abdalla, Niesner Erich, Mauritsch Hermann

Department of Applied Geoscience and Geophysics, Montan University, Leoben, Austria.
National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences (NARSS), Cairo, Egypt.

DOI: 10.4236/jep.2012.311162                

Abstract

Egypt is characterized by arid climate with rare rainfall that means surface water. The River Nile is the main source of water supply. The study area is located in Upper Egypt in the western desert. The area under investigation is subjected to intensive development in the last twenty years, clearly seen in the change of the agriculture and urban areas. The rapid increase of the population in Egypt especially in the upper part leads to an increasing demand for houses on the old cultivated land lead to the migration towards the desert and reclaimed new areas. These new reclaimed areas are depending on the ground water. The extensive use of groundwater and increasing fertilizing system leads to the change of the water table, characterization and quality. In this study we use the analysis of 30 groundwater samples collected and analyzed in 1989 and 28 groundwater samples collected and analyzed in 2011 from the same area to identify the change in the quality of the ground water. According the hydrogeologic data which were collected from the study area in 1989 and 2011 we found a changing water table decreasing, from 1 to 48 m in 1989 and 5 to 60 m in 2011. The water level is decreasing in the same direction towards the River Nile. The sufficient recharge and leaching and dissolution of the aquifer materials due to extensive use lead to increase in TDS which reaching to 4453 ppm in 2011. The water type in the 1989 samples is mainly NaHCO₃ and in 2011 samples Na₂SO₄. Grid classification shows that the water samples collected in 1989 are mainly sodium bicarbonate and sodium chloride extending to sodium sulphate while the water samples collected in 2011 are mainly sodium sulphate and sodium chloride. Most of the 1989 groundwater samples are suitable for drinking purposes while majority of the 2011 groundwater samples are not suitable due to high salinity.

Keywords

Under Groundwater; Withdrawal; West Tahta; Evaluation of Groundwater

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	RIGW & IWACO, “Groundwater Development for Irrigation and Drainage in the Nile Valley,” Groundwater Development in the Area of West Tahta, Technical Note 70, Internal Report 124-89-05, 1989.
[2]	R. Said, “The Geologic Evaluation of the River Nile,” Springer-Verlag, New York, 1981, p. 151.
[3]	R. Said, “The Geology of Egypt,” Balkema Publisher, Rotterdam, 1990.
[4]	Meteorological Authority of Egypt (MAE), “Meteorological Database, Cairo, Egypt,” 2000.
[5]	A. A. Ayman, “Using Generic and Pesticide DRASTIC GIS-Based Models for Vulnerability Assessment of the Quaternary Aquifer at Sohag, Egypt,” Hydrogeology Journal, Vol. 17, No. 5, 2009, pp. 1203-1217. doi:10.1007/s10040-009-0433-3
[6]	A. A. Omran, E. A. Korany and A. A. Abdel-Rahman, “An Integrated Approach to Evaluate Groundwater Potentiality—A Case Study,” Proceeding of the 3rd International Conference of Applied Geophysical, 18-20 March 2006, Cairo.
[7]	A. O. Awad, “Integration of Remote Sensing, Geophysics and GIS to Evaluate Groundwater Potentiality—A Case Study in Sohag Region,” Egypt, 2008. http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa/72005/Papers%20of%20Interest%20Remote%20Sensing/Integration%20of%20Remote%20Sensing,%20Geophysics%20and%20Gis.pdf
[8]	J. D. Hem, “Study and Interpretation of the Chemical Characteristics of Natural Water,” US Geological Survey, Water Supply Paper 2254, 1989, p. 264. http://pubs.usgs.gov/wsp/wsp2254/
[9]	J. D Hem, “Study and Interpretation of the Chemical Characteristics of Natural Water,” US Geological Survey, Water Supply Paper 2254, 1985, pp.117, 120, 264.
[10]	H. M. Ragunath, “Groundwater,” Geological Journal, Vol. 18, No. 3, 1987, pp. 279-280.
[11]	D. K. Todd, “Groundwater Hydrology,” Wiley, New York, 1980, p. 315.
[12]	G. N. Sawyer and D. L. McCarthy, “Chemistry of Sanitary Engineers,” McGraw Hill, New York, 1967, p. 518.
[13]	A. M. Piper, “A Graphic Procedure in the Geochemical Interpretation and Analysis of Water Samples,” US Geological Survey, Water Supply Paper 1454, 1944.
[14]	S. M. M. Atwa, “Hydrogeology and Hydrogeochemistery of the North Western Coast of Egypt,” Faculty of Science, 1979.
[15]	T. A. Bauder, R. M. Waskom and J. G. Davis, “Irrigation Water Quality Criteria,” Extension Fact Sheet No. 0.506, 2007, pp. 1-5. http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/crops/00506.html
[16]	L. A. Richards, “Diagnosis and Improvement of Saline and Alkaline Soils,” US Department of Agriculture Hand Book, Vol. 64, No. 5, 1954, p. 432.
[17]	R. J. Gibbs, “Mechanism Controlling World Water Chemistry,” Science, Vol. 170, No. 3962, 1970, pp. 1088-1090. doi:10.1126/science.170.3962.1088