5 Fresh Water    

Introduction and to prevent the drainage of such efflu- ents into waterways. The survival of the human race depends mainly on its ability to manage natural re- It is noteworthy that estimating the cost of sources, to utilize them as efficiently as maintaining water quality represented by possible and to protect them from deterio- pollution-preventing projects, the construc- ration. Water is one of the most important tion of sanitary and industrial drainage natural resources that affect all the aspects treatment plants and conducting periodic of development. Given 's limited monitoring programs of water quality is a share of water, whose main source is the most difficult task. Also, the calculation of River Nile, and in view of the rapid in- the return of providing an environment crease in population, it has become impera- suitable for the growth and procreation of tive to protect the available water resources the various types of living organisms with- from pollution. The Egyptian Government, out damaging biological diversity, while in cooperation with legislative bodies, has guaranteeing water resources suitable for adopted several laws that address the pro- the existing and coming generations, is also tection of waterways and the safeguarding a most tough objective. This is because cer- of their water quality. tain factors do not have specific physical values. Nevertheless, the availability of The Ministry of State for Environmental information about cost and return are most Affairs plays a major role in protecting the important, since development in general quality of water by obliging industrial and dependant upon such data. urban enterprises to treat the effluents re- sulting from (their production processes), 64 Fresh Water

Water Resources and their Uses in ter resources. Presently This quality Egypt irrigates 8 million feddans. This area is expected to increase to 10.9 million The River Nile and its canals and drains feddans by the year 2017. constitute Egypt’s surface waterways, and form an intricate network covering vast 2. Industry requires and consumes about areas. The River Nile is more than 1,200 11% of the available water resources. kilometers long, extending from to the Mediterranean Sea, while the main ca- 3. Potable water and water for domestic nals and drains serving the Valley and the use represent about 6.7% of the avail- Delta are about 50,000 kilometers long able water resources, in addition to the (20,000 kilometers of which are drains). quantities of water needed for river This network distributes water among the shipping and energy generation. various regions of the State, fulfilling the requirements of the social and economic development plans.

The River Nile is the main source of water, Reuse of Reuse of Treated as it provides Egypt with 55.5 billion cubic Rain Water 1.3 Agricultural Sewage Drain Water 7.5 Wastewater 1.4 meters of water annually, representing Groundwater about 96% of Egypt’s renewable water re- From The Seawater Desert & Sinai Desalination 0.2 sources. 0.9

This is in addition to about 6.1 billion cu- bic meters of renewable ground water in Groundwater from The Delta the Nile Valley and the Delta, and around & The Nile one billion cubic meters of non-renewable Valley 6.1 Nile Riv er 55.5 ground water in the Eastern and Western Deserts and the Sinai. Seasonal rainfall Figure (5-1) Direct & Indirect Water Resources provides about 1.3 billion cubic meters of in Egypt (in billion cubic meters) water. Agricultural drainage water in Up- per and Lower Egypt amounts to 9.2 cubic meters of water, the quantity of treated sanitary drainage water is about 1.1 billion Potable cubic meters and 0.2 billion cubic meters Water & River Domestic Shipping are produced from seawater desalination. Uses 6.70% 0.30%

Figure (5-1) describes the distribution of Industry 11% the mentioned resources.

Figure (5-2) details the present utilization of water, which is a mix of direct and indi- rect utilization, covering the following sec- Agriculture 82% tors: 1. Agricultural requirements represent about 82% of the present utilization of Figure (5-2) Water Utilization conventional and non-conventional wa-

65 Fresh Water

Monitoring Surface and Ground monitoring periodically every month Water Quality through the National Network for Monitoring Nile Water Pollutants. This A national network was established to network covers the Nile River from monitor the quality of surface water Aswan and its 2 branches up to Alex- through the measurement of physical, andria, passing through eleven gover- chemical and biological indicators: norates ( - Gharbia – 1. 232 Monitoring locations on the Nile – Assiut – Daqahlia – Menia – Beni River, canals and drains, conducted by Suef – Aswan – – – the Ministry of Irrigation. ) in addition to three new labora- tories in , Monofia and Beheira. 2. 203 Points for monitoring the quality and the variation thereof of ground wa- Water Sample Analysis ter, managed by the Ministry of Irriga- tion. 1. Chemical Analysis 3. 69 Monitoring locations tracked by the Subdivided into analyses that specify the laboratories of the Egyptian Environ- quality of water. These include: mental Affairs Agency (EEAA). Those Color, taste, smell, pH, electrical conduc- monitoring points determine the quality tivity, turbidity level, suspended solids and of the water of the Nile River near dissolved solids (chlorides, sulphates, etc). sources of pollution periodically every Pollution indicator analyses. These in- 3 months. clude: 4. 139 Monitoring locations observing the The concentration of dissolved oxygen, water of the River Nile and its two biological oxygen demand (BOD), chemi- branches. Those include 18 monitoring cal oxygen demand (COD), fully dissolved points in the region cov- salts and nutrients (nitrates, nitrites, ammo- ering the intakes of potable water puri- nia, organic nitrogen, phosphates and sili- fication plants in that region and the cates). inlets to the Damietta and the Analyses for Monitoring Toxic Sub- branches. There are also 67 monitoring stances such as: points in Upper Egypt, including the Phenol, cyanide, residues of pesticides, intakes of potable water purification heavy metals and hydrocarbons. plants, drain outlets, factory drainage

outlets, where they drain in the River 2. Bacteriological Analyses: Nile or the Ibrahimeya Canal. There Bacteriological pollution resulting from are also 54 monitoring points in Lower pollution by sanitary drainage is measured, Egypt, including the intakes of potable especially total coliform and fecal coliform water purification plants, factory dis- bacteria. charge outlets at the points of drainage

in major canals branching from the 3. Biological Inspection: Nile River or any of its branches. The Center for Environmental Monitoring A total count of algae is conducted, espe- and Operational Research of the Minis- cially at the intakes of potable water purifi- try of Health and Population conduct cation plants.

66 Fresh Water

Sources of Pollution on the River with the required parallel expansion in Nile and Its Tributaries as well as sanitary drainage treatment projects was The Main Canals that utilized water is being disposed of by ad hoc methods, such as: 1- Industrial Waste Water Efflu- ent (1) Collection in underground pits, that a. Factory effluent, which is the liquid are usually not lined or connected to drainage from industrial establish- pipes at various depths (caisson), to ments (116 establishments) that drain the water underground. This drain directly into the Nile River, or type is not flushed, and is considered that drain directly or indirectly into a serious source of ground water pol- lution. the neighboring canals or drains, which in turn drain into the Nile (2) The use of lined pits that are flushed River, lakes or seas. periodically every 15 days to one

b. The drainage of effluents of potable month. The drainage is then poured water purification plants. haphazardly in waterways. Also, due to the high cost of flushing, laundry The main pollutants of the above- water is disposed of in front of mentioned sectors are pesticides, organic houses or into nearby waterways, matter, heavy metals, ammonia, nitrites and thus causing ground water pollution phosphates. Those appear in localized areas and subsequently serious environ- at the drainage points of such establish- mental and health problems. ments, mainly during the minimum re- quirement periods (winter blockage). This is in addition to the sanitary drainage Monitoring results indicate the absence of from primary treatment plants, that may significant traces of such pollutants at the receive quantities of water larger than their majority of the monitoring points. treatment capacity. This result in overload- ing the plant and the drainage of untreated excess quantities of water. 2- Sanitary Drainage Water River cruisers are also a source of pollution a. The untreated sanitary drainage of of the Nile River with sanitary drainage treatment plants. water. This is because most of the treat- b. Sanitary drainage from ships and ment units on board such ships do not per- cruising hotels. form efficiently, and also because of the c. The sanitary drainage of villages insufficiency of the number of plants that located on the banks of the river receive sanitary drainage water from those and canals. ships. The number of cruiser hotels in the The expansion in the consumption of water Nile River has increased over the years to for domestic purposes, resulting from the more than 281, operating between Luxor construction of potable water networks in and Aswan. As for the cruisers operating in 95% of the cities and villages all over the Cairo, they are all linked with the city’s country, has lead to the increase of the sanitary drainage network. quantities of wastewater. So, the outcome of the national plans to expand potable wa- ter projects, that were not complemented

67 Fresh Water

3- Agricultural Drainage Water Nubia). The number of groves of greatest a. Agricultural drainage water ac- importance to fishing wealth is 85. 48 counts for a large percentage of the Groves are on the eastern shore, and 37 are water resources available annually on the western shore of the lake.

(about 10%). It includes the require- Various activities take place around the ment of washing off the salts from lake. Activities include tourist enterprises the soil in addition to make-up of by six tourist cruisers, industrial activities the seepage from the irrigation and of fish processing and limited agricultural drainage network and canal dis- activities. Such activities represent sources charges that have not been utilized. of pollution to the lake, since they produce b. Agricultural drainage water contains sanitary drainage, oil pollution, solid waste traces of pesticides, fertilizers, in- and waste water from fish processing.

dustrial effluent, and untreated sani- Due to the importance of Lake Nasser to tary drainage water. This affects its Egypt as a Central Bank for Water, the suitability for irrigating certain agri- quality of its water is monitored, and the cultural crops, as well as the com- variations that occur to it are tracked in patibility of canal water as a source summer and in winter. This tracking is con- of potable water. ducted through the four tracking points be- c. Efforts are coordinated with the longing to the Ministry of Water Resources Ministry of Agriculture to optimize and Irrigation. The Ministry of Health and the use of fertilizers and pesticides. Population monitors the water quality peri- Coordination also with the Ministry odically every month. This is in addition to of irrigation is underway in order the annual monitoring program conducted not to mix agricultural drainage wa- by the Ministry of State for Environmental ter with the water of the canals used Affairs.

as a source of potable water. The monitoring results show that the con- centration of the total dissolved solids 4- Solid Waste does not exceed 165 mg/l, and that the pol- Solid wastes result from disposing of lution indicators are well below the limits building wastes and garbage along permitted by law no. 48/1982. The excep- canal and drain banks passing tion to this is the concentration of the through populated areas. This blocks chemical oxygen demand (COD), which the waterway and prevents the pas- rises during the summer time to 14 mg/l, sage of oxygen to the aquatic living this is 4 mg/l higher than the permitted organisms. (Chapter 11 – Solid Waste limit (10 mg/l). In the meantime, the con- Management). centration of diluted oxygen drops reaches the minimum permissible limit of (5 mg/l). Current Status of Water Quality in The concentration of organic matter de- Egypt creases during wintertime to become 8 mg/l. The concentration of diluted oxy- 1- Lake Nasser gen meanwhile increases to about The lake is about 500 kilometers long, 350 9 mg/l. km of which lie in the Arab Republic of Egypt, while 150 km lie in the Sudan (Lake 68 Fresh Water

2- The Quality of Nile Water from The reason behind this increase in the the Aswan to Cairo to The Damietta Gharbia Governorate may be the industrial and Rosetta Branches and the Ma- effluent by some factories located on the banks of the Rosetta Branch, in addition to jor Canals (Al-Ismailiya and Mah- direct sanitary drainage resulting from the moudiya) absence of a sanitary drainage network. As

Monitoring reports of the year 2005 are for the Domiat Governorate, the cause of issued by the Environmental Monitoring the increase may by referred to the drain- Center affiliated to the Ministry of Health age of the Higher Serw Drain. The results and Population, including the chemical and also indicate the increase of the average bacteriological analyses of water quality. organic load represented in the increase of Those reports cover the main waterway of the chemical oxygen demand (COD) above the river in the governorates of (Aswan – the permissible limit (10 mg/l) at a number Sohag – Assiut – Al-Menia – – of monitoring points on the main water- Cairo – Gharbia), the Rosetta Branch in Al- way. This included the governorates of Gharbia Governorate, the Damietta Branch Greater Cairo, Sohag, the Damiatta Branch in the Daqahlia and Domiat Governorates, in Domiat Governorate, the Rosetta Branch the Ismaileya Canal in the Port Saeed Gov- in Gharbia Governorate and the canals of ernorate and the Mahmoudeya Canal in Ismaileya in and Alexandria. These reports indicate a slight Mahmoudeya (which is considered an ex- increase in the organic load represented by tension of the Rosetta Branch) in Alexan- the increase in the Biological Oxygen De- dria. This is shown in Figure No. (5-4). mand (BOD) above the permissible limits (6 mg/l) at certain monitoring points on the

River Nile and on the Rosetta Branch in the COD Gharbia Governorate. This is in addition to its increase at some monitoring points on 20 22 20 the Damietta Branch in the Domiat Gover- 18

14 13.8 16 norate, as shown in Figure No. (5-3). 13 14 11.5 10 maximum limit 9 12 8 8 10 7.7 7.7

8 gm/liter ml BOD 6 7 8 4 6.7 2 7 0 maximum limit 6 a a 5 ri y a ut g 4.4 aid d e ni i a S beya i h an r As o 5 x Domiat qahl S As wa n a ha Al-M Port Ale D G Be ni Sue f l- 3 3.3 3 4 A Al- Greate Cairo 2.6 2.9 2.3 3 ml gm/liter 2 Figure (5-4) Comparison between COD Averages 0 1 in Some Governorates in the Arab Republic of 0 Egypt t a at a a u n ri i i a m ley s w nd -Minia A rt Said a Do Cairo Sohag As o te Al P lex a Beni Suef A l-G harbey The reason for this may be attributed to: Al-DaqahA Gre • The lifting of agricultural drainage water Figure (5-3) Comparison between The Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) in the Governorates of from the Mazalwa Drain to the Nile fhe Arab Republic of Egypt in 2005 River in the Governorate of Sohag.

69 Fresh Water

• The existence of a number of food proc- A comparison of the results of the year essing plants which have not yet com- 2005 with the results of previous years, plied with Environmental laws and regu- shows a considerable improvement in the lations, in addition to small vessel and quality of the Nile water among the preced- Nile cruiser quays. ing years, as shown in Figures (5-6) and • The Mahmoudeya Canal being fed by (5-7). The exception is the dissolved oxy- the Rosetta Branch, which is considered gen as shown in Figure (5-8).

a polluted waterway. It is polluted by the industrial effluent from Kafr El-Zayyat in addition to the agricultural drainage 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 from the Rahawy and Tala drains. • The existence of a number of sanitary 40 35

drainage pipes draining into the Is- 30

maileya Canal, in addition to environ- 25

mental mal practices by the individuals 20 residing on the banks of the canal, such 15 as the disposal of animal waste, etc. gm/liter) (ml conc. 10 5

0 Results indicate that the concentration of Aswan S ohag Asiut Al-Minia B eni S uef Gr eate Al- Al- Domiat Alexandria Port Said Cairo Ghar beya Daqahleya the Dissolved Oxygen in all Governorates is higher than the level permissible in the Nile River, namely (5 mg/l); Figure (5-5). Figure (5-6) Comparison between The Average Organic Loads Expressed as Biological Oxygen The exception is the Alexandria Gover- Demand (BOD) in The Different Governorates of norate, where it is lower by 0.3% than the the Arab Republic of Egypt permissible limit.

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 DO 30

9 7.9 8 7.6 7.4 8 25 6.9 7 7 6.4 6 7 5.7 4.7 6 20 maximum limit 5 4 15 ml gm/liter ml 3 Mlgm/lit er 2 10 1 0 5 a ia ro f a g ey ni Sue ndr ahleya rb Ca i Mi Asiut e ni - Soha Aswan exa Domiat Al Port Said Da q -Gha Be 0 Al - reat A swan S ohag A siut A l-Minia B eni S uef Gr eate Al- Al- Dom iat Alexandr ia P or t S aid Al Al G Cairo Ghar beya D aqahleya

Figure (5-7) Comparison between the Average Figure (5-5) Comparison between the average Organic Loads Expressed as Chemical Oxygen concentration of Dissolved Oxygen (Do) in the Demand (COD) in the Different Governorates of Governorates of the Arab Republic of Egypt. the Arab Republic of Egypt

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2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 Mlgm/liter 2002 2003 2004 2005

40 102 35 96 90 30 84 78 72 25 66 60 20 54 48 conc.(ml gm/liter) conc.(ml 15 42 36 10 30 24 5 18 12 6 0 0

n g f a a i d a e iro y a siut e y mi at Beginning of Kafr El-Zayyat Kafr El-Zayyat Kafr El-Zayyat Intake of Ca iro Pe trole um sw le o dri Soha A -Minia i Su Ca b h n A l n e a D a A t q x Port S a Be a Rosetta Branch Factory Complex Factory Complex Factory Complex Da lga mon Wa te r Co. re l-Ghar Ale G A l-Da A (Upstream) (Downstream) Project Figure (5-8) Comparison between The Average Results of Dissolved Oxygen (Do) in The Different Figure (5-10) Comparison between The Average Governorates of the Arab Republic of Egypt Results of Organic Load Expressed as Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) at The Monitoring Points on The Rosetta Branch during The Period from In general, the results indicate that the 2002 to 2005 quality of Nile water is generally lower in the Damietta and the Rosetta branches than 2002 in the main waterway from Aswan to MG/liter 2003 Cairo. Nevertheless, the water quality has 30 2004 been improved in the two branches by 25 2005 2005 compared with the preceding years. 20 Permissible Limit 15 This becomes apparent on comparing the 10 findings of the year 2005 with those of the 5 preceding three years. A considerable im- 0

n e h n t t t c ees n n m lkh a Ze ft a la la n la n a a P P provement in the water quality in the two T Sherbi r P r Bra a Kh St a ti on ter te tt y Mit Wa Al-Mansoura Wate Wa s amie r ' ou ta n it D k s branches of Damietta and Rosetta is ob- of s u ma Bosat Kareem eddi a o o g B D l- nin Far A f f e of gin o o k e e a B ke ta k ta Int n n take of Kafr El-ShennawI I In Inta k e of of Kafr Gha rib's Wat er Proj ec t 2002 2003 2004 2005 Mlgm/liter Permissible Limit Figure (5-11) Comparison between The Average 150 140 Results of Organic Load Expressed as Chemical 130 120 110 Oxygen Demand (COD) at The Monitoring Points 100 90 on The Damietta Branch during The Period from 80 70 2002 to 2005 60 50 40 30 20 10 served, as per Figures (5-9), (5-10) and (5- 0 Beginning of Kafr El-Zayyat Kafr El-Zayyat Kafr El-Zayyat Intake of Cairo Petroleum 11). Rosetta Branch Factory Factory Factory Dalgamon Co. Complex Complex Complex Water Project This improvement is attributed to efforts (Upstream) (Downstream) exerted to prevent the drainage of effluents Figure (5-9) Comparison between The Average from the various establishments into the Results of Organic Load Expressed as Chemical Nile River or into waterways in general. Oxygen Demand (COD) at The Monitoring Points The drainage of the industrial effluent of on The Rosetta Branch during The Period from 83 establishments into the Nile River was 2002 to 2005 terminated. This is in addition to the utili- 71 Fresh Water

zation of the major part of treated sanitary concentrations that were detectable drainage water in irrigating forestry. with the instruments used at most Regarding other indicators related to the monitoring points. The highest concen- quality of the Nile Water, the monitoring tration monitored at the Daqahlia moni- results of the year 2005 show that: toring point was that of iron, 0.71 1. The concentration of nutrients were mlgm/liter, (the limit is 1 mlgm/liter). within the permissible limits at most This may have been caused by the sani- monitoring points, where the concen- tary drainage of the Nassereya village. tration of nitrates ranged between 0.002 As for manganese, its highest concen- and 9.4 ml gm / liter, while the permis- tration was 0.30 (the permissible limit sible limit is 45 ml gm / liter. The am- is 0.50 mlgm/liter) at the monitoring monia concentrations were less than the point on the Rosetta branch. This may permissible limits (0.5 ml gm / liter) at have been caused by the effluent of the Edfina company in Metoubes. most monitoring points, but it sur- passed the permissible limits at two As for bacterial pollution, the Ministry of monitoring points on the Damietta Health inspects bacterial pollution at 18 branch. This may be attributed to the locations on the Nile River in the Greater agricultural drainage mixed with sani- Cairo region on a monthly basis. It was ob- tary drainage that flows into the Dami- served that the count of total and fecal coli- etta branch. form bacteria is on the rise all year long. Its highest rate is during the months from May 2. As for the concentrations of non-organic to July. It then starts to recede gradually matter (florides, sulphates, total solids), from the beginning of August as a result of they were within the permissible limits the rise of the water level and the decrease at all monitoring points. Their concen- of pollutant concentrations in general. No- tration ranges were as follows: Fluo- tably, there are no Egyptian bacteriological rides from 0.20 to 0.45 mg/l ,Sulphates criteria for the Nile water quality. from 11.70 to 61.20 mg/l ,and Total Solids from 179 to 338 mg/l, While Canals and Waterways their permissible limits are 0.5, 200 and 500 mg/l respectively. The quality of canal and waterway water

depends mainly on the quality of water in 3. The concentrations of residual pesti- the main Nile River waterway. As a result cides tested for, including 29 pesti- of commingling the agricultural drain wa- cides, were less than the permissible ter, which contains a large quantity of sani- limits for the quality of potable water tary drainage, with canal water, the quality along the river. of water in canals is deteriorating rapidly. The Ministry of Water Resources and Irri- 4. The concentrations of heavy metals gation conducts periodic monitoring of the (iron, manganese, lead, chromium and water quality in canals and waterways in cadmium) were less than the permissi- both Upper and Lower Egypt. The Ministry ble limits for the Nile River water qual- of Health and Population also monitors wa- ity in conjunction with the executive ter quality at certain points in major canals. regulations of Law no. 48 / 1982. The

concentrations were in fact less than the

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The results of pollution monitoring during It thus became clear that organic pollutants 2004, conducted by the Ministry of Water are quite high in all the canals and rayyahs Resources and Irrigation on canals in Up- in the Delta, and exceed the permissible per Egypt including (Bahr Youssef, Al- limits, (10 ppm) by 50% or more, while Ibrahimeya, East Nagaa Hammady, West nitrogenous and phosphate compounds Nagaa Hammady, Al-Kelabeya and Asfoun were within the permissible limit. canals) indicated that the average concen- trations of heavy metals, nitrogenous and Public Drains phosphate compounds and dissolved salts The Ministry of Water Resources and Irri- are within the permissible limits in accor- gation conducts continuous monitoring of dance with Law no. 48/1982. However, the drains, including 29 Upper Egypt’ drains concentrations of organic loads were high (Khour El-Seil in Aswan – Al-Tawansa – in Bahr Youssef, Al-Ibrahimeya, East Na- Al-Ghabah – Abu-Wanass – Mendraw – gaa Hammady, West Nagaa Hammady and Al-Barabrah – Komombo – Fiterra - Khour Al-Kelabeya canals, where concentrations El-Seil – Radissia – Edfu – Hawd Al- ranged between 27 and 36 ml gm / liter, Seba’eya – etc), East-Delta drains includ- which are all surpassing the permissible ing (Bahr Al-Baqar – Bahr Hadous – Up- limits pursuant to the said law (10 ml gm / per Serw – Lower Serw – Faraskour – Al- liter). It is quite probable that the high or- Mahsama – Al-Matareya), Middle Delta ganic load is caused by the direct discharge drains including (Gharbeya-Main – Sobol – of sanitary drainage water by the villages Tala – Al-Qarnein – Nashart – Zaghloul – through which those canals flow. Omar Bek – Teerah – drains no. 1, 2, 7, 8,

The dissolved oxygen is still within the 9, and 11) and the Western Delta drains permissible limits which helps in the self- including: Al-Omoum – , Abu-Qir = Al-Noubareya – and others. cleaning of the canals from organic pollut- ants. The monitoring results indicate that the

As for the Rayyahs and the major canals in majority of drains suffer from excessive the Delta region, including (The Tawfiqy concentration of dissolved salts, in addition Rayyah – Al-Sharqaweya – Al- to considerable increase in the concentra- Mansoureya – Al-Ismaileya – Bahr tion of organic loads. These concentrations vary between winter and summer. Moweis – Al-Bahr Al-Sagheer – Port Said – Bahr Teera – Al-Bagoureya – Bahr She- All drains showed a considerable drop in bin – Al-Mahmoudeya – Al-Noubareya – the concentration of Dissolved Oxygen, Al-Khandak – Al-Hager and Abu Diab), which confirms their saturation with high monitoring results indicate that the concen- concentrations of organic matter, and their trations of heavy metals in all the moni- inability of self-cleaning. It was observed tored canals and Rayyahs had not exceeded that the concentrations of heavy metals 50% of the permissible limits for those ele- vary from one drain to another, and that ments. The concentration of dissolved these concentrations exceed the permissible salts, on the other hand, ranged between limits in the Greater Cairo region. This is 250 and 500 ppm (parts per million), because of intensive metal industries such hence, it is within the permissible limits as foundries and others. The concentrations according to the law (500 ppm). of nitrogenous and phosphate compounds vary from one drain to another, and they 73 Fresh Water

exceed the permissible levels in most of the less than 1,000 ml gm / liter. drains. The interpretation of the monitoring results conducted by the Ministry of Water Re- Ground Water sources and Irrigation in the Nile Valley Groundwater is one of the most important underground reservoir in 2004 indicates a resources of water in Egypt, ranking sec- slight rise in the concentrations of iron and ond after the River Nile. The quality of manganese elements in the Baraqshah re- groundwater depends on two main factors, gion in Al-Minia Governorate, exceeding namely, the origin of the water and the type the permissible levels for potable water in of rocks bearing it. Also, the movement of conformity with the World Health Organi- water and its flow from one point to an- zation standards. Coliform bacterial pollu- other are important factors. tion was also detected in the shallow do- The major feeding sources of renewable mestic wells due to the ad-hoc drainage of groundwater are rainwater seepage, irriga- sanitary drainage water, without complying tion water and sanitary drainage water and with the sound conditions and precautions industrial effluents. Thus, the quality of that are required while constructing domes- groundwater is greatly affected by surface tic sanitary drainage pits. The monitoring activities and their products as well as the results show also that deep wells are not type of water feeding underground reser- polluted with bacteria. Ground-water re- voirs. sources in Egypt still need more programs to develop those resources and optimize There are 6 underground Reservoirs in their utilization. The Law on Irrigation and Egypt, namely: Drainage no. 12/1984 is presently being 1. The Nile reservoir, which covers the amended, concentrating on groundwater Nile Valley region and its desert edges, licensing, the bases of its safe use, the pro- representing 4% of the area of Egypt. cedures for conserving it and imposing 2. The Nubian Sandstone reservoir, lo- more strict penalties on violators. cated mainly in the Western Desert. 3. The Moghra reservoir, covering the de- Lakes

sert area at the edge of the West Delta. Lakes in Egypt occupy special locations on 4. The coastal reservoirs located on the the map of Egypt. They are among the north-western coast. most significant Egyptian natural aspects, 5. The underground reservoir located in and represent an outstanding landmark that the northern region of the Western De- is linked with Egyptian ancient and modern sert. history. They are the landing zones of mi- 6. The underground reservoir in the grating birds, and are the largest wetlands Eastern Desert and Sinai. in the Arab World. Some of them form a protective barrier safeguarding arable lands The salinity of groundwater in Egypt and ground-water against the salinity of ranges between 700 and 3,000 ml gm / li- seawater. They are among the most impor- ter. The salts’ concentration depends on the tant Egyptian environmental resources, and location of the reservoir, and the type of are major sources of fish, birds and salts, water-bearing rocks. Salts’ concentration in which are the source of livelihood of thou- the Nile Valley underground reservoir is sand of Egyptian families. 74 Fresh Water

Egyptian lakes suffer from violation of wealth in these reservations. Examples their surface areas by having parts of them of such reservations are: backfilled, dried and urbanized. This Ashtoum Al- caused a shrinkage of the areas of several in Al-Manzalah Lake of them. Gameel Al-Zaraniq in East Bardawil Lake These lakes also face several environ- mental problems due to their use as drains Al-Borollos in Al-Borollos Lake for industrial effluents, agricultural wastes Qaroun in Qaroun Lake and sanitary drainage water, thus nega- Wadi Al-Alaqy tively impacting on the quality of their wa- in Fayyum ters and accordingly represent a threat to Wady Al-Rayyan fish wealth and salt-extracting industries. 4. Continuous inspection of industrial es- tablishments that discharge their efflu- Table (5-1) Shrinkage in Areas of Lakes ents into agricultural drains that end in those lakes while taking legal action Area / km2 Area / km2 Lake against the violators. Year 1913 Year 1997 5. Issuing environmental conditions and Al-Manzalah 1,710 1,200 standards that need to be fulfilled for building fish baskets, in coordination Al-Borollos 588 430 with the General Authority for the De- Mariout 284 60 velopment of Fisheries as well as with Edku 150 71 the other entities concerned. It shall be prohibited to erect fish ranches on the Efforts to Overcome Environ- Nile River or its two branches or on the mental Problems Relating to Lakes main canals. and Fresh Water 6. Financing environmental projects in these lakes through the Tourist and En- The Ministry of State for Environmental vironmental Service Fund. Affairs exerts favorable efforts to improve the environmental conditions in the Egyp- 7. Implementing pilot projects in these tian lakes, including: lakes, such as the wetland project in Al- Borollos Lake, and the bio-treatment 1. Studying the environmental conditions project using wetland techniques in Al- of those lakes. Manzalah Lake.

2. Conducting continuing programs to The Ministry of State for Environmental monitor the quality of water in the lakes, Affairs also exerts efforts to preserve fresh and deducing indicators about the loads water from pollution through the following and types of pollutants in them. approaches: 3. Creating natural reservations in parts of the lakes, for the purpose of protecting 1. Conducting periodic monitoring of the natural wealth and increasing environ- quality of the Nile water, and exchang- mental awareness among both visitors ing the monitoring data with other enti- and residents. Also conducting scientific ties that conduct similar monitoring. researches and studies on the natural This is aimed at depicting the changes 75 Fresh Water

that may take place in the quality of wa- ing through residential areas to prevent ter, and specifying the suitable scien- the disposal of solid waste into them. tific methods to improve its quality. The 7. Conduct research and studies that deter- effluent from the various establishments mine causes of pollution, so as to evalu- is also monitored through environ- ate the water quality in the various wa- mental inspection programs performed ter bodies in Egypt, such as: on such establishments. a) Studies aimed at in determining the 2. Compiling the main sources of indus- causes of the increase of the concen- trial pollution (116 establishments) tration of ammonia in the Rosetta along the Nile River, and specifying Branch of the Nile River, to identify areas of concentration of industrial pol- the sources of this increase and to lutants that seriously affect the water minimize their polluting effects by quality besides preparing maps pin- taking the necessary steps to stop pointing the sources of pollution. the discharge of the mentioned 3. Evaluating the pollutants produced sources. from each source in order to design b) The study on the implication of mechanisms of environmental reform problems caused by fishing baskets programs bearing in mind their poten- on the Nile water. A report has been tial environmental impacts. issued regarding this problem, and 4. Supporting programs of industrial pol- was discussed by the People’s As- lution control, by providing grants or sembly which issued a decision on soft loans in addition to technical sup- the removal of the mentioned bas- port to industrial establishments assist- kets from the Nile River. ing them to comply with environmental c) The study of the negatively affected regulations. Figure (5-12) crops in the Kafr El-Zayyat region. 5. Conducting inspection on the establish- Irrigation water was behind this ments that still discharge into the Nile negative effect, as polluting sources River, and have them comply with the were identified as industrial facto- criteria enforced by the relevant laws. ries, masonry kilns and the dis- Also, to coordinate with the environ- charge of agricultural drains that mental and water surface police depart- contained pesticides and sanitary ment to conduct snap inspection cam- drainage from the villages on the paigns to control the establishments dis- banks of the drains. charging its waste directly into the Nile 8. Implementing programs for the reuse of River, or indirectly into waterways that treated sanitary drainage water, and in turn discharge into the Nile River. utilizing it in irrigating tree forests. The mentioned campaigns are to ensure Twenty four forests were planted, among that the discharge is within the stan- which are: The Serabium forest in Is- dards set by the relevant laws. maileya, the Sadat forest in Menufia and 6. Continuously coordinating with the the Edfu forest in Aswan, thus conserving Ministry of Water Resources and Irriga- water and protecting waterways from pollu- tion to regularly redress the violations tion. committed on the banks of the river or the canals, and to cover the drains pass- 76 Fresh Water

Figure (5-12) Major Industrial Establishments Located on the Nile’s Banks

(116) Major Industrial Establishments on The Nile Banks

(33) Establishments Have Not Yet (83) Establishments Polluted Discharge Complied into The River Stopped

(7) (26) (57) (26) Establishments Establishments Establishments Establishments Being Are in The Prevented from Have Complied Coordinated Process of Effluent to Discharge

(3) Estab’ts (6) Estab’ts Recycle (10) Estab’ts (38) Estab’ts Discharge Treated Effluent after Modified Processes Transferring Effluents to Drains Treatment & Effluent Their Effluent Instead of The Discharge to River to The S.D. Net- River Stopped work after Treatment

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Future Plan 2007 – 2012 This national plan for water resources is 1. cooperate with the Ministry of Housing based on three main approaches: to expand sanitary drainage networks in a) The development of the existing wa- as many villages as possible, thus pre- ter resources: by increasing the utili- venting direct discharge to waterways. zation of deep groundwater, collect- This is to be implemented according to ing rainfall and floods, cooperation the priorities proposed by the Ministry with the Nile Valley States through of State for Environmental Affairs and the Nile Valley Initiative, in addition the other ministries concerned. A listing to the utilization of non-conventional of sanitary drainage project priorities water resources such as semi-saline has been finalized, and it has been water and seawater desalination. agreed to coordinate with other minis- b) Raising the efficiency of water utili- tries to devise an overall plan, which is zation by taking the necessary meas- to be implemented and funded by ures to minimize the losses in irriga- means of the supplementary fund ap- tion networks and improving the ef- propriated to the Ministry of Housing ficiency of water use on the field (L.E. 20 billion). level in the agricultural sector. As 2. cooperate with the Ministries of Agri- for the measures proposed in the po- culture and Housing in expanding the table water sector, those include: In- planting of tree forests, and the possibil- creased awareness of the importance ity of utilizing part of the treated sani- of water, minimized losses in distri- tary drainage water in agriculture, pro- bution networks and improved me- vided it is in compliance with the Egyp- tering and accounting systems. tian Code. c) Environmental and general hygiene 3. Sustainable development of the North- protection: The plan addresses the ern lakes, in which the environmental handling of pollutants on three lev- dimension is taken into account at each els, namely, (preventing pollutants and every stage of development. from reaching waterways, treating 4. Terminating the discharge of liquids pollutants that cannot be prevented from river cruisers into the Nile River, from reaching the waterways and and transferring such discharge to sani- control of pollutants to minimize tary drainage networks. their harmful effects on general hy- giene and on the environment). The 5. The Ministry of Water Resources and above objectives are to be achieved Irrigation has devised the national plan through incentive measures in the for water resources up to the year 2017. various sectors. The plan was approved by the Cabinet in 2005. Its objective is to secure The cost of the plan is estimated at about Egypt’s water resources at present and L.E. 145 billion distributed among the vari- in the future, taking all economic, so- ous ministries. The share of the Ministry of cial and institutional structural aspects Housing and Urban Development is 63% into consideration. All the entities in- of the total cost. The share of the Ministry volved in water resource management of Water Resources and Irrigation is about have participated in devising this plan. 31.5%, while the share of the private sector will be about 4.5%. The ministers involved 78 Fresh Water

have participated in setting the executive scheme of the national plan in order to fa- cilitate and follow-up implementation proc- esses in addition to the establishment of the technical secretariat committee to support the role of the Supreme Committee for Wa- ter.

6. Climatic changes and their potential im- pacts on Egypt’s water resources: The world is witnessing climatic changes caused by the effects of human activities. Such activities are causing an increase in the quantities of gases such as water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane and fluorocarbons. Many of those gases are produced by the combustion of flam- mable materials used as fuel. This led to a disturbance of natural equilibrium, re- sulting in a greenhouse phenomenon. This phenomenon is extremely danger- ous, and may result in environmental and hygienic catastrophes. This distur- bance may cause a rise in atmospheric temperature, which would in turn start a rise of sea and ocean levels and an in- crease of sea gales, hurricanes and floods. Scientists estimate the changes that will occur during the coming 50 years to be equivalent to the changes that occurred during the last 4 million years due to natural causes.

Currently research is being conducted to study the impacts of climatic changes on the Egyptian coastal zones and on the Nile water. The research aims also at identifying and analyzing the scenarios that may result from those changes in an attempt to tailor the baseline strategy of future water re- source management in Egypt.

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References (1) Ministry of Health and Population: The Annual Report on The Results of The National Network for Monitoring The Pollutants of The Nile River and Its Branches for The Years (2001 thru 2005). (2) Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation: The second Annual Report on The Status of The Quality of Water. (3) Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs: The Annual Report on the Quality of Wa- ter of The Nile River. (4) The Plan of The Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation Regarding The Protection of The Nile River and Its Branches from Pollution. (5) Egyptian National Environmental Action Plan (NEAP) (2002 – 2017). (6) Egypt State of The Environment Report (2004). (7) Executive Regulation of Law 48 / 1982. (8) Recommendation of the World Health Organization on The Permissible Limits for The Quality of Potable Water. (9) Recommendation of The Supreme Committee Regarding The Permissible Limits for The Quality of Potable Water in 1995.

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