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Ground‐Water Assessment of Sinai, Egypt
Author(s) -
Mills Andrew C.,
Shata Abdu
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
groundwater
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.84
H-Index - 94
eISSN - 1745-6584
pISSN - 0017-467X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1745-6584.1989.tb01043.x
Subject(s) - geology , aquifer , groundwater , sedimentary rock , cretaceous , rift valley , quaternary , hydrology (agriculture) , water quality , geological survey , geochemistry , paleontology , geotechnical engineering , ecology , biology
A ground‐water assessment of Sinai, Egypt, was performed by Dames & Moore for the Egyptian Ministry of Development from 1980 to 1983 as a part of the Sinai Development Study. The basic data included existing stratigraphic data from 69 wells and 57 columnar sections, and hydrologic data for 716 water points (wells and springs). Statistical analysis of the data for total dissolved solids (TDS) and for yields from the water points by ground‐water province and by geologic unit showed that the Southern Mountain Province generally has the best quality ground water and the Suez Rift Province the worst. Among all the geologic units, the crystalline rock, the Middle Cretaceous sequence, and the Quaternary deposits yield water of the lowest total dissolved solids. The mean TDS value of ground water from all water points in Sinai for which data were available is 2,800 mg/1. Of all the geologic units, the highest mean yield (200 m3/day, or about 37 gpm) was from Quaternary deposits in the vicinity of El Arish in the north and in the El Qaa plain along the southwest coast. Regional ground‐water flow in the sedimentary aquifers, such as the Lower Cretaceous (and older) sandstone, tends to be strongly influenced by large‐scale folds and faults. In this aquifer, regional flow occurs generally northward and northeastward toward the Arava valley and the Dead Sea in Israel, but another component of flow occurs toward the Gulf of Suez on the western side.