A Satellite Remote Sensing Approach to Estimate the Lifetime Span of Aswan High Dam Reservoir

Abstract

Aswan High Dam Reservoir (AHDR) is vital to Egypt. It is the main source of freshwater for Egypt. The main objectives of the present study are to assess the sedimentation rate and to determine the reduction in the reservoire storage capacity for the live and dead zones of AHDR using remote sensing (RS) and geographic information systems (GIS). These results will be used to compute the lifetime span (LTS) of both the dead and live storage zones. The computed values using RS and GIS are compared with those of the cross-section method computed adopted by the Aswan High Dam Authority (AHDA). The present study indicated that the annual sediment deposition rate in the AHDR is 147.29 × 106 m3/yr of which 65.49 × 106 and 81.80 × 106 m3/yr in dead and live storage zones, respectively. This implies that the annual reduction rates in the dead and live storage capacities of this reservoir are 0.208% and 0.121%, respectively. Moreover, the results showed that the computed value of LTS of the dead zone is 482 years while the LTS of the live zone is 830 years. As a consequence, the sediment trap (dead zone) efficiency of AHDR will be decreased by 20.75% every 100 years of operation of the AHD. Furthermore, the AHDA estimated that the dead storage and live storage zones would be filled with sediments in 487 and 835 years, respectively. This indicates that the results of the present study and the AHDA approach are very close.