Biography:

• Head of Water Risk Center, Zagazig university
• Supervisor at the Academy of Science and Technology, E. Nile Delta branch
• Egyptian PI of EU project-FP7 "Global Climate Induced on Groundwater Resources in the Nile Delta and the North Coast, Egypt"
• Egyptian PI for Italy-Egypt joint venture co-operation "Global Climatic Changes and Their Impacts on South Italy and the North Coast of the Nile Delta".
• Supervised many Rain Water Harvesting and Ground Water Recharge projects in India, Sri lanka, and Ethiopia .
• Member of board of many projects with the NARSS dealing with the study of hydrodynamic systems of aquifers in the Nile Delta, New Valley, and North Sinai.
• UNESCO expert in the field of Development of Running Rivers in the Czech and Slovakia Republics.
• Supervising on thousand of drilling water wells and many water stations of treatments and desalination in Sudan, W.D Egypt, Ethiopia, and Afghanistan, Nile Delta, and Desesert Belt.
• Member of board and advisor in NAWSAD for evaluating all reports of engineering effects on ground water and dewatering systems.

Abstract:

"Global Climate Induced on Water Resources on the Northern Coast of the Nile Delta, Egypt-CLIMB, FP7"

The CLIMB project aims to study and analyze the impacts of climate change on water resources and infrastructure in a region spanning from the coast line of Greater Alexandria to the central Nile Delta region.

It is investigated as to which extent to enhance negative impacts on deltaic and coastal ecosystems and human health, food availability, water access and utilisation as well as the operation of water infrastructure, such as irrigation systems, which are of greatest importance in the Nile Delta to sustain the regions agricultural productivity as well as other key strategic sectors of regional economies. The activities are focused on the following working items:

1-Assessing the impacts of rising sea levels and adjunct coastal erosion and flooding as a significant threat to water resources, especially near important coastal aquifers, which are seriously affected by salt water intrusion and thus endue and propagate contamination of groundwater resources (today reaching far inland to the Gharbia region).

2-Ongoing monitoring from intense field campaigning reveals that this effect results from eustatic sea level rise, strong near-coastal subsidence due to anthropogenic activity (extensive withdrawal of groundwater, diminishing river sedimentation), and natural geological processes.

3-Studying the problematic soils where strong subsidence can be related to the interaction of intruding sea water with compressible clay and peat soils which is causing increasing damage to the existing infrastructure in Greater Alexandria. A rehabilitation program has been initiated, extensive structural repair is being performed and technical mitigation measures are being taken to strengthen existing infrastructure. However, as this subsurface destabilization process must be expected to continue, especially under the enhanced natural and socioeconomic conditions, adaptation options are being analyzed and must be evaluated in a science-stakeholder dialogue. It shall ensure mutual problem definition and understanding, joint mitigation and adaptation strategy development, and effective implementation, e.g, by means of new technologies to barrier sea water intrusion, to contribute to infrastructure stability and thus civil security.

4- Remote sensing methods (Differential Interferometric SAR) are currently being applied to identify regions of pronounced related effects and to thus identify the 'hotspots' of land subsidence.

5-Data is being collected and processed to support a coupled modeling approach to the land surface hydrological model WaSiM-ETH and the hydrogeological model MODFLOW to simulate and project the future impact of CC on the above mentioned problems. The land surface hydrology scheme is needed to provide a dynamically changing upper boundary condition for the subsurface model. A climate model audit has been performed to determine the most appropriate model projections for the region. Translations of climate projections into hydrological impacts confirm intensified threats to water security. Increasing potential evaporation (in response to increasing temperature) in combination with decreasing water levels in the Nile river, reduced precipitation and groundwater recharge and deteriorating groundwater quality, imposes great challenges to ensure the supply of drinking water and irrigation. Current irrigation strategies are highly inefficient and must be replaced by new and adapted systems. Based on the results of the coupled modeling approach, various scenarios can be evaluated and recommendations for best irrigation practices and groundwater protection shall be provided.

6-On the stakeholder interaction and dissemination level (CLIMB's WP7), specific questionnaires for water users and water managers have been developed and local workshops have been organized to acquire the current level of understanding and expectation among stakeholders about the impacts and how these relate to potential local, regional, and transboundary conflicts.