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Modern Recharge to Fossil Aquifers: Geochemical, Geophysical, and Modeling Constraints ⇑ M

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Modern Recharge to Fossil Aquifers: Geochemical, Geophysical, and Modeling Constraints ⇑ M Journal of Hydrology 403 (2011) 14–24 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Hydrology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jhydrol Modern recharge to fossil aquifers: Geochemical, geophysical, and modeling constraints ⇑ M. Sultan a, , S. Metwally b, A. Milewski a, D. Becker a, M. Ahmed a, W. Sauck a, F. Soliman c, N. Sturchio d, E. Yan e , M. Rashed c, A. Wagdy f, R. Becker g, B. Welton a a Department of Geosciences, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, USA b Desert Research Center, El Matariya, Cairo, Egypt c Suez Canal University, Department of Geology, Ismalia, Egypt d Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA e Environmental Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL, USA f Irrigations & Hydraulics Engineering Department, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt g University of Toledo, Department of Environmental Sciences, Toledo, OH, USA article info abstract Article history: The Nubian Sandstone (NSS) aquifer of northeast Africa is believed to have been recharged in previous Received 21 June 2010 wet climatic periods in the Quaternary Period. While this is largely true, we show using the Sinai Penin- Received in revised form 4 February 2011 sula as our test site that the aquifer is locally receiving modern recharge under the current dry climatic Accepted 22 March 2011 conditions. The validity of the advocated model was tested using geophysical (conventional electrical Available online 3 April 2011 resistivity [ER]) and isotopic (O, H) data, and estimates for modern recharge were obtained using contin- This manuscript was handled by L. Charlet, Editor-in-Chief, with the assistance of uous rainfall-runoff modeling over the period 1998–2007. Interpretations of ER profiles are consistent Philippe Négrel Associate Editor with the presence of unconfined NSS aquifers flooring recharge areas at the foothills of the crystalline basement in Sinai at Baraga (thickness: 20 to >188 m; resistivity: 16–130 X m) and Zalaga (thickness: 18 Keywords: 27 to >115 m; resistivity: 3–202 X m). The isotopic composition (dD: À22.7 to À32.8‰; d O: À4.47 Sinai Peninsula to À5.22‰) of groundwater samples from wells tapping the NSS aquifer underlying recharge areas is con- Recharge sistent with mixing between two endmembers: (1) fossil groundwater with isotopic compositions similar Stable Isotope to those of the Western Desert NSS aquifer (dD: À72 to À81‰; d18O: À10.6 to À11.9‰), and (2) average SWAT modern meteoric precipitation (dD: À9.84‰; d18O: À3.48‰) in Sinai, with the latter endmember being Nubian Aquifer the dominant component. A first-order estimate for the average annual modern recharge for the NSS Geophysics aquifer was assessed at 13.0 Â 106 m3/yr using the SWAT (Soil Water Assessment Tool) model. Findings bear on the sustainable exploitation of the NSS aquifer, where the aquifer is being locally recharged, and on the exploitation of similar extensive aquifers that were largely recharged in previous wet climatic periods but are still receiving modest modern meteoric contributions. Ó 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction portions of eastern Libya, northeastern Chad, and northwestern Sudan (Fig. 1) lies an immense reservoir (>780,000 km3) of fresh- The deserts of Egypt, namely the Eastern Desert (ED), the water in the Nubian Sandstone (NSS) aquifer system (Thorweihe, Western Desert (WD), and the deserts of the Sinai Peninsula (SP) 1990). The aquifer consists mainly of continental sandstones with (Fig. 1), are among the most arid deserts in the world (WD receiv- intercalated shales of shallow marine and deltaic origin, uncon- ing <5 mm/yr; ED: 25 mm/yr; SP: 40 mm/yr); however, the geo- formably overlying Proterozoic basement, and reaching a thickness logic evidence indicates that climate alternated between arid and approaching 3 km in the center of the basin (Hesse et al., 1987). wet periods throughout the Quaternary Period, with the last of The NSS aquifer is believed to contain fossil groundwater that the major wet periods occurring in the Holocene (9500–4500 yr was recharged in previous wet climatic periods by intensification BP). Beneath the surface of the deserts of Egypt and adjacent of paleomonsoons (Sarnthein et al., 1981; Prell and Kutzbach, 1987; Yan and petit-Maire, 1994) or paleo-westerlies (Sultan et al., 1997; Sturchio et al., 2004). The progressive increase in Krypton-81 and Chlorine-36 ages ⇑ Corresponding author. Address: Department of Geosciences, Western Michigan University, 1903 W. Michigan Avenue, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USA. Tel.: +1 269 387 for groundwater from the southwest to the northeast parts of the 5487 (office), +1 269 387 5451, +1 269 387 5446 (lab); fax: +1 269 387 5513. WD of Egypt was interpreted to indicate that local recharge E-mail address: [email protected] (M. Sultan). through intensified regional precipitation over the extensive NSS 0022-1694/$ - see front matter Ó 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2011.03.036 M. Sultan et al. / Journal of Hydrology 403 (2011) 14–24 15 Fig. 1. (a) Location map showing the distribution of Neoproterozoic outcrops, the overlying Phanerozoic rock units, and the Upper Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous Malha Formation outcrops (primary recharge areas for the NSS aquifer) in the Sinai Peninsula (SP). Also shown are the locations of our groundwater samples (solid red triangles), and geoelectric cross sections in Wadi Baraga (Box a) and Wadi Zalaga (Box b). Inset shows the study area (Box c); the areal extent of the NSS aquifer in Egypt, Sudan, Libya, and Chad; and the distribution of deserts in Egypt, namely, the Western Desert (WD: west of the River Nile), the Eastern Desert (ED: east of the River Nile), and the Sinai Peninsula (SP: subtended by the Gulfs of Suez and Aqaba) Desert. (b) N–S trending cross section along line B–B0 plotted on Fig. 1a. aquifer outcrops in southern Egypt and northern Sudan in the observations are at odds with earlier models that advocate that previous wet climatic periods must have played a major role in recharge was accomplished mainly by precipitation over more the recharge of the NSS aquifer (Sturchio et al., 2004). These distant mountains in Chad (e.g., Ball, 1927; Sanford, 1935). 16 M. Sultan et al. / Journal of Hydrology 403 (2011) 14–24 In this manuscript we advocate that in dry climatic periods sim- and structural information (e.g., layer thickness and composition, ilar to that of today, the NSS aquifer in the WD of Egypt (Fig. 1)is faults, folds) extracted from field observations and/or bore hole receiving no local recharge because there is negligible precipita- data (5 wells); (3) published resistivity values (e.g., Sultan et al., tion. That is apparently not the case in the ED and even less so in 2009) for lithologies reported from field and/or bore hole data; the SP. In both areas, precipitation over the mountains is channeled and (4) measured depth to water table (e.g., B.W.1: 65 m, Z.W.1: downstream over the NSS outcropping at the foothills of the Red 2 m, and Z.W.3: 14 m; Fig. 2). Fig. 3c shows two examples, one Sea Hills, providing ample opportunities for groundwater recharge. from Wadi Baraga (VES B4) and the other from Wadi Zalaga (VES In this manuscript we apply an integrated approach to test the Z4), for modeling layer depth, thickness, and apparent resistivity, validity of the advocated model in the SP. Specifically, we set out to and the RMS values for the model. accomplish the following: (1) examine the areal extent and distri- In the Wadi Baraga area, two geoelectrical cross sections were bution at depth of NSS groundwater in recharge areas at the foot- generated, one trending N–S and the other trending NW–SE hills of the basement complex, using geophysical investigations; (Fig. 2a). Along these two cross sections, six geoelectrical layers (2) investigate the origin of, and modern contributions to, the were recognized (Fig. 3a and b). These geoelectrical layers were groundwater in the NSS by comparing the isotopic compositions interpreted as representing three lithologic sub-units in these of groundwater from recharge areas to those of modern precipita- two geoelectrical cross sections. The uppermost unit was inter- tion and fossil precipitation; and (3) estimate to the first order the preted as a highly resistive layer representing dry wadi fill deposits magnitude of modern recharge, applying continuous rainfall runoff (q: 110–4896 X m) having thicknesses (h) ranging from 5 to 47 m. models. The upper highly resistive units are underlain by the water-bearing unit, the NSS. The saturated NSS unit has lower resistivity values (q: 16–130 X m) and ranges in thickness (h) from 20 to >188 m. 2. Site description The NSS is underlain by basement rocks of high-resistivity (q: 210–13432 X m) with varying depths ranging from 3 to Two main groups of rock units crop out in the SP: (1) Neoprote- 122 m below ground surface. rozoic (550–900 Ma) volcano-sedimentary basement rocks in In the Wadi Zalaga area (Fig. 2b), two geoelectrical cross sec- southern Sinai that are part of the Arabian–Nubian Shield Massif tions were generated, one trending N–S and the other NW–SE (Sultan et al., 1988; Stern and Kroner, 1993), and (2) overlying (Fig. 3d and e). Along these two cross sections, six geoelectrical lay- thick Phanerozoic cover (Fig. 1). The major stratigraphic units in ers were observed. These layers were interpreted as representing the SP and their distribution at depth along a N–S-trending cross three lithologic sub-units. The uppermost unit was interpreted as section (B–B0) are shown in Fig.
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