Effects of groundwater over-pumping on the sustainability of the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer in East-Oweinat Area, Egypt

ABSTRACT East-Oweinat area relies on groundwater as the main source for agricultural and domestic purposes. As the abstraction continues to increase at an alarming rate, groundwater is constantly being depleted. The present study showed that the water level declines in the last two decades (2000–2018) to reach 2.34 m/year. The resulted thematic maps show that the cultivated areas increased from 4,968 Feddan (1 Feddan = 4200 m2) in year 2000 to 194,549 Feddan in year 2018 where, in the first decade (2000–2009), the total cultivated land was 51,229 Feddan and the groundwater abstraction was 2.5 billion m3 during this period of time, while in the second period (2010–2018), the groundwater abstraction was 12.6 billion m3 and the total cultivated land reached 194,549 Feddan. The groundwater abstraction in the second period (2010–2018) is about five times of the first period (2000–2009). The plant consumption of groundwater in East-Oweinat area for the cultivated area (194,549 Feddan) is 1.89 billion m3/year and the net annual groundwater abstraction from wells is 2.02 billion m3/year. Consequently, the available groundwater in East-Oweinat area can be used for sustain able development for about 174 years under good management of the present situation