Prediction of future drawdown of water levels of the Pleistocene aquifer system of Wadi El-Assiuti Area, Eastern Desert, Egypt, as a criterion for management and conservation

Abstract

Wadi El-Assiuti designates a remarkable dry drainage basin in Middle Egypt. The Pleistocene groundwater aquifer of this area represents the main water source used for reclamation and domestic purposes. The increasing number of groundwater wells drilled at the entrance of Wadi El-Assiuti in recent years, with its consequent over consumption of the groundwater reservoir, seems to be the clear-cut cause for groundwater levels drawdown and quantity deterioration. The constructed flow net map for the Pleistocene aquifer system sketched a pattern of piezometric pressures and flow directions. The regional water flow is from east–northeast towards west–southwest directions, with some adverse minor directions at the north-central part of the study area. This map declared the areas suffering from over pumping (piezometric lows). However, using empirical formulae and assumptions, the expected drop of piezometric levels of groundwater in the Pleistocene aquifer, as future scenarios, was predicted for 5, 10 and 20 years. These future scenarios reflected the urgent need for a policy or management scheme to decrease the severe drawdown of water level in this important developmental area.