Evaluation of Quaternary aquifer for agricultural purposes in northwest Sinai, Egypt

Northwest Sinai is characterized by a semiarid climate and due to insufficient surface water resources; Quaternary aquifer is the main water supply. The Quaternary groundwater exists under free water table conditions with water level ranges between -3.7 m and 10 m. The groundwater flow is concentric around El-Salam Canal as a result of its closure and over-pumping of groundwater. In order to evaluate the suitability of Quaternary aquifer for irrigation purposes, the chemical characteristics have been investigated in fifty samples collected from tube wells and dug wells. The total dissolved solids (TDS) range from 692 mg/l to 9384 mg/l; indicating fresh to saline water classes. Sodium, chloride and sulphate ions display a nearly linear increase with increasing salinity. The main groundwater genetic types are CaCl2 and MgCl2, reflecting the marine water affinity. Such waters are mostly unsuitable for irrigation under a normal condition and further action for salinity control is required in remediating such a problem. Also, the poor irrigation water can be managed by improving irrigation management technologies and using salt tolerance plants.

[Abd-Alrahman A.A. Embaby and Samah M.A. El-Barbary. Evaluation of Quaternary aquifer for agricultural purposes in northwest Sinai, Egypt. Journal of American Science 2011;7(3):344-361]. (ISSN: 1545-1003). http://www.americanscience.org. Keywords: Quaternary; aquifer; Sinai; Egypt; evaluation; agriculture