Papers by Mohamed Elshemy
Water Quality Assessment of Lake Burullus, Egypt, utilizing Statistical and GIS Modeling as Environmental Hydrology Applications
GIS is a very powerful tool for analyzing huge amount of data and connecting them with the geogra... more GIS is a very powerful tool for analyzing huge amount of data and connecting them with the geography, moreover recently there is great advancement in the field. The main objective of this study is to assess the water quality (WQ) and trophic status (TS) conditions of Lake Burullus, Egypt, using statistical modeling (PCA/FA & CA), WQ index (L-WQI) and trophic status index (Carlson TSI & TRIX) approaches, in addition to using GIS tools for building models able to automatically calculate the various indices and producing color coded maps for the lake. The results indicated that PCA/FA grouped the twenty-four WQ parameters into nine principal components explaining 72.6% of the total variance, domestic and agriculture pollution were dominant. CA divided the twelve sampling stations into most and least polluted groups. The lake WQ was classified as a “Very Poor”, according to L-WQI. Moreover, the results of the Carlson TSI and TRIX indices were coincided and classified the eutrophication ...
Assessment of agricultural drainage water reuse for irrigation in El-Behira Governorate, Egypt
Water Science, 2021
ABSTRACT Agriculture sector and food security of Egypt are under stresses due to the shortage of ... more ABSTRACT Agriculture sector and food security of Egypt are under stresses due to the shortage of freshwater budget. Agricultural drainage water reuse can be considered as the most appropriate solution to overcome the irrigation water shortage. Quality of the reused drainage water is of concern, particularly in arid regions, such as Egypt, due to salinity problems. Therefore, water quality assessment for reuse projects is essential. The objective of this work is to assess three different drainage water reuse projects in El-Behira Governorate, Egypt, based on experimental records and water quality index approach. Thirty-six water samples were seasonally collected from three different projects during 2017. Drainage water, freshwater and blended water were evaluated according to the Egyptian and international (FAO) guidelines for drainage and irrigation water. Moreover, CCME-WQI and NSF-WQI were applied to assess the drainage and irrigation water according to the Egyptian standards. Most the recorded parameters for drainage and irrigation water exceeded the permissible limits. The results confirmed the “Poor” and “Marginal” water quality status of all studied drains (drainage water) according to the Egyptian standards. The water quality status of all studied canals (blended water) was classified as “Bad” according to NSF-WQI. These results confirm that current drainage and blended water in the study are shouldn’t be used. To avoid deterioration of the soil, crops, food security elements and health protection, treatment systems for drainage water are urgently recommended. Drainage water reuse projects should be carefully installed, and water quality assessment should be accompanied with these projects. This study is the base for an ongoing pilot project of using a low-cost drainage water improvement technology which can be considered as a supplemented tool to drainage water reuse.
Springer Water, 2020
Lake Burullus is the second largest coastal lagoon in Egypt, its ecosystem has been deteriorated,... more Lake Burullus is the second largest coastal lagoon in Egypt, its ecosystem has been deteriorated, due to its central location inside the Nile Delta. The lake receives most of the drainage water of the Nile Delta region through eight agricultural drains. The drainage water which discharged into the lake is mostly nutrient-rich fresh water, polluted with agricultural fertilizer and heavy metals from industry. Lake Burullus is classified as hypereutrophic with bad to very bad environmental conditions. The main objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility of applying different water quality management scenarios to improve the lake ecosystem. A calibrated hydrodynamic and water quality model for the lake was developed using a two-dimensional, vertically averaged, finite difference hydrodynamic and ecological code, MIKE21. This developed model was calibrated with measured field data collected during the period (June 2010-July 2011). Three hydrodynamic parameters and five water quality parameters of the lake were chosen to present the study results. These parameters are: water levels, water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, nitrate, Ammonia and ortho-phosphate. Three enhancing water quality scenarios for the lake were investigated: an additional artificial outlet, treatment plants for drains discharge and constructing of radial channels in lake bed. The study results verified that, economically, treatment plants scenario for the two most polluted drains is highly recommended. Constructing of an additional outlet will increase the average lake salinity and is considered as the most effective scenario for enhancing the DO concentrations in the lake. A water quality management strategy is urgently required for the lake ecosystem.
Evaluating remote sensing approaches for mapping the bathymetry of Lake Manzala, Egypt
Euro-Mediterranean Journal for Environmental Integration, 2021
Lake Manzala is considered the largest lagoon in Egypt. The lake has significant economic and env... more Lake Manzala is considered the largest lagoon in Egypt. The lake has significant economic and environmental impacts that should be managed based on management models. The bathymetry of this lake, which is time consuming and laborious to obtain in the field, is one of the key input files for developing hydrological models of the lake. Remote sensing technology is used to determine satellite bathymetric maps with reasonable accuracy. The objective of the present work was to utilize Landsat 8 satellite imagery to determine the bathymetry of Lake Manzala. Generalized linear model (GLM), artificial neural network (ANN), decision tree, bagging (BAG, an ensemble regression algorithm), least-squares boosting fitting ensemble (LSB), and support vector machine (SVM) approaches were used in this study to process the images and manage the database of each image. The Landsat images were corrected for atmospheric conditions and the sunglint effect. Then values from the logarithms of corrected reflectance bands (coastal, blue, green, and red) and their ratio logarithms at locations corresponding to GPS surveys were extracted. Two assessing metrics, root mean square error (RMSE) and correlation (R), were used to calibrate the derived logarithm values for the model using observed data for the lake. The results show that the BAG and decision tree approaches perform well for Lake Manzala. Such methodologies should be applied for bathymetry determination, especially for shallow lakes, to save monitoring effort and costs. This approach facilitates the development of management models for lakes.
Evaluation of Wastewater Treatment-via-Dilution for Tala Drain, Nile Delta, Egypt
Towards Water Secure Societies, 2021
Agricultural drainage water reuse is well developed in the Nile Delta region in Egypt. The freque... more Agricultural drainage water reuse is well developed in the Nile Delta region in Egypt. The frequently applied treatment practice is the treatment by dilution. This practice consists in mixing fresh water with drainage water. The Rosetta Branch is one of two main Nile Delta branches. It is also the main fresh water resource for the Nile Delta governorates. However, the fresh water quality of this branch is frequently affected by the Tala Drain which transports discharge from agricultural drainage into Rosetta Branch. The wastewater in the Tala Drain is mostly treated by dilution. Hence, this study aims at assessing the impact of this treatment practice on the water quality in the Tala Drain and Rosetta Branch. We defined three water quality indicators to quantify the treatment for Tala Drain and the pollution for Rosetta Branch. This was done based on using seasonal water quality records for one year and two water quality indices. The results indicated that the treatment-via-dilution...
Seepage Through Earth Dams
Dams are among the largest and most important projects in civil engineering. About thirty-five pe... more Dams are among the largest and most important projects in civil engineering. About thirty-five percents of earth dams failed because seepage through and under dam bodies. In December 4, 1991, the left side embankment of west Nubaria drain at Zawiat Abdoul Kadder village, Egypt, was failed. That failure which may be returned to the blockage effect through the dam material and/or through the filter material on the seepage forces through the embankment. In this study the effect of blockage on seepage characteristics through earth dams has been studied numerically, using a finite element based model (SWICHA), and experimentally, using a viscous flow model (Hele-Shaw), for three cases of earth dams as follows: 1-Earth dam without filter, 2-Earth dam with horizontal blanket filter, and 3-Earth dam with rock-toe filter. The position and the dimensions of the block have been studied. The obtained numerical results are agreed with the experimental ones. The soil blockage in earth dams is con...
Environmental and Climatic Implications of Lake Manzala, Egypt: Modeling and Assessment
The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, 2017
Lake Manzala, the greatest Egyptian coastal lakes, is considered as one of the most valuable fish... more Lake Manzala, the greatest Egyptian coastal lakes, is considered as one of the most valuable fish sources in Egypt. Recently, the water quality status of the lake has been sharply deteriorated due to the excessive discharge of industrial, agricultural, and municipal wastewater. Moreover, the lake is considered vulnerable to the impacts of future climatic changes, which will affect its hydrodynamic and water quality characteristics. This study has two main objectives: assessing the lake water quality status and quantifying the future climatic change impacts on the hydrodynamic and water quality characteristics of the lake. A comprehensive water quality assessment of the lake, based on water quality index (WQI) and trophic status index (TSI) approaches, has been presented to spatially assign the lake water quality conditions. A calibrated hydrodynamic water quality model (MIKE21 modeling system) and future projected estimates of the climatic changes have been used to investigate the impacts of climate change on the lake characteristics. The results revealed the critical and very bad water quality status and the high and very high trophic conditions, particularly in the southern and eastern zones due to the drainage of the polluted drains. The developed model results closely mimic the measured profiles of the simulated parameters. Severe spatial changes of the lake water temperature, water depth, and salinity due to future climatic changes are noticed. Based on the study results, an urgent water quality management strategy should be implemented for the lake, and an adaptation plan for the Egyptian coastal lakes should be investigated.
Review of Technologies and Practices for Improving Agricultural Drainage Water Quality in Egypt
The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, 2017
Water quality plays an important role in water resources management plans, particularly for arid ... more Water quality plays an important role in water resources management plans, particularly for arid and semiarid regions, where water scarcity has become a real issue. Agricultural drainage water can be reused separately/or in conjunction with fresh water. However, the water quality status of drainage water is concern in reuse implementation strategies. Moreover, the water quality degradation of natural water body that receives the drainage water can be effected. Thus, implementation of water quality treatment practices and technologies is essential. In this chapter, available drainage water treatment practices and technologies, such as controlled drainage, wetlands, bioreactors, and two-stage open ditch, will be discussed in detail. The pilot studies of implementing drainage water treatment systems in Egypt were reviewed and will be described in this chapter. It is recommended to experiment with some low-cost applicable technologies, such as in-stream control structures and treatment systems, and to implement constructed wetland treatment systems on major Egyptian drains.
Water Quality Assessment of Aswan High Dam Reservoir
The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, 2016
Egypt is highly dependent on the River Nile as the main source of freshwater. The Aswan High Dam ... more Egypt is highly dependent on the River Nile as the main source of freshwater. The Aswan High Dam (AHD) was constructed to control the River Nile. AHD reservoir was formed due to the construction of the dam; it is considered as one of the largest man-made lakes in the world. There is currently rising awareness regarding the water quality status of River Nile and in particular the AHD reservoir, the sole reservoir in Egypt. In this work, a comparative study to assess the water quality and trophic state of the southern part of AHD reservoir, Lake Nubia, has been done during low flood periods of 3 successive years (2006–2008). Two water quality indices (NSF WQI and CCME WQI) and two trophic status indices (Carlson TSI and LAWA TI) were used. The results show that the water quality status of Lake Nubia ranges from excellent (according to the Egyptian water quality standards for surface fresh waterways) to good, while the trophic status of the reservoir is eutrophic. A spatial change in results can be noticed due to the morphological and hydrological characteristics of the reservoir. It is recommended that the reservoirs’ different zones should be assigned to different water uses based on comprehensive water quality studies.
Hydrological Sciences Journal, 2015
Coastal areas will be exposed to increasing risks over coming decades due to climate change and s... more Coastal areas will be exposed to increasing risks over coming decades due to climate change and sealevel rise. Our study focuses on the Vistula Lagoon located in the south Baltic, whose water regime and ecological status are highly dependent on the river inflow coming from its catchment. Changes in climate may cause variations in water quantity and quality in the rivers and affect the ecological and socioeconomic potential of the lagoon. The climate impact study in this catchment containing more than 20 rivers is challenging as only a few of them are gauged. The impacts were modelled, using the ecohydrological model SWIM, and applying a set of 15 climate scenarios from the ENSEMBLES project. Scenario analysis revealed a projected overall increase in precipitation, as well as in temperature, for the Vistula Lagoon catchment, which cause diverse changes in discharge, water temperature, dissolved nutrient concentrations and loads coming from the rivers.
CLEAN - Soil, Air, Water, 2014
The main objective of this study was to determine the impact of current point and nonpoint pollut... more The main objective of this study was to determine the impact of current point and nonpoint pollution loads on the water quality of Lake E girdir. For this purpose, hydrodynamics and water quality status of Lake E girdir were investigated by using the Delft3D model. The monthly monitoring of pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), and forms of nitrogen and phosphorus was carried out, as was the seasonal monitoring of total organic carbon. In all, seven different sampling points were chosen from the lake and influent streams in order to monitor the lake during the period from December 2010 to November 2011, with the aim of calibrating the model. The performance of the dynamic water quality model was evaluated using the relative root mean square error (RRMSE) values for both the calibration and the validation periods. The results of the model showed that the DO had the lowest, and Chl-a had highest associated RRMSE value. The simulation results showed that Segments 1 and 7 of the system had relatively high concentrations of almost all the pollutants. It was also found that increasing the nonpoint nutrient loads from agricultural sources has a greater effect than increasing the nonpoint nutrient loads from the inhabited areas around the lake.
Water quality monitoring of Lake Burullus (Egypt) using Landsat satellite imageries
Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2020
Lake Burullus is one of the most important coastal lakes in Egypt, as it participates with a cons... more Lake Burullus is one of the most important coastal lakes in Egypt, as it participates with a considerable amount of fish yield in Egypt. Despite its importance, it is considered as a vulnerable lake, since it is subjected to significant environmental changes caused by various anthropogenic activities. Severe deterioration of its water quality status, as well as a decrease in its water area, has been noticed throughout the last four decades. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the ability of remote sensing for assessing the water quality status of the lake for the period from August 2010 to August 2013. Remote sensing technique was used to retrieve and predict the lake water quality parameter records through the assessment period (August 2010 to August 2013). Stepwise multi-linear regression technique was used to correlate between the field measurements of water quality parameters and the reflectance of remote sensing imageries, and then the derived models were validated. The results revealed the critical status of water quality conditions of the lake, particularly of its southern and southeastern parts. The results showed also that some water quality parameters (Chl-a, TSS, pH, Fe, Zn, Cr, and NH4) can be retrieved from remote sensing imageries with reasonable accuracy (R2 = 0.86, 0.67, 0.65, 0.63, 0.62, 0.61, and 0.6, respectively), while the water quality parameters, which can be predicted, based on calibrated and validated regression models are TSS and Chl-a, with acceptable accuracy (R2 = 0.6 and 0.43, respectively). Lake Burullus needs urgent plans and strategies to protect its water quality from the potential hazards of human activities. The study proved the ability of remote sensing as an effective technique to monitor the changes in water quality conditions of shallow coastal lagoons and to predict with some water quality parameters without field measurements; therefore, it is highly recommended to be used by decision makers.
Assessment of agricultural drainage water reuse for irrigation in El-Behira Governorate, Egypt
Water Science, 2021
ABSTRACT Agriculture sector and food security of Egypt are under stresses due to the shortage of ... more ABSTRACT Agriculture sector and food security of Egypt are under stresses due to the shortage of freshwater budget. Agricultural drainage water reuse can be considered as the most appropriate solution to overcome the irrigation water shortage. Quality of the reused drainage water is of concern, particularly in arid regions, such as Egypt, due to salinity problems. Therefore, water quality assessment for reuse projects is essential. The objective of this work is to assess three different drainage water reuse projects in El-Behira Governorate, Egypt, based on experimental records and water quality index approach. Thirty-six water samples were seasonally collected from three different projects during 2017. Drainage water, freshwater and blended water were evaluated according to the Egyptian and international (FAO) guidelines for drainage and irrigation water. Moreover, CCME-WQI and NSF-WQI were applied to assess the drainage and irrigation water according to the Egyptian standards. Most the recorded parameters for drainage and irrigation water exceeded the permissible limits. The results confirmed the “Poor” and “Marginal” water quality status of all studied drains (drainage water) according to the Egyptian standards. The water quality status of all studied canals (blended water) was classified as “Bad” according to NSF-WQI. These results confirm that current drainage and blended water in the study are shouldn’t be used. To avoid deterioration of the soil, crops, food security elements and health protection, treatment systems for drainage water are urgently recommended. Drainage water reuse projects should be carefully installed, and water quality assessment should be accompanied with these projects. This study is the base for an ongoing pilot project of using a low-cost drainage water improvement technology which can be considered as a supplemented tool to drainage water reuse.
Springer Water, 2020
Lake Burullus is the second largest coastal lagoon in Egypt, its ecosystem has been deteriorated,... more Lake Burullus is the second largest coastal lagoon in Egypt, its ecosystem has been deteriorated, due to its central location inside the Nile Delta. The lake receives most of the drainage water of the Nile Delta region through eight agricultural drains. The drainage water which discharged into the lake is mostly nutrient-rich fresh water, polluted with agricultural fertilizer and heavy metals from industry. Lake Burullus is classified as hypereutrophic with bad to very bad environmental conditions. The main objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility of applying different water quality management scenarios to improve the lake ecosystem. A calibrated hydrodynamic and water quality model for the lake was developed using a two-dimensional, vertically averaged, finite difference hydrodynamic and ecological code, MIKE21. This developed model was calibrated with measured field data collected during the period (June 2010-July 2011). Three hydrodynamic parameters and five water quality parameters of the lake were chosen to present the study results. These parameters are: water levels, water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, nitrate, Ammonia and ortho-phosphate. Three enhancing water quality scenarios for the lake were investigated: an additional artificial outlet, treatment plants for drains discharge and constructing of radial channels in lake bed. The study results verified that, economically, treatment plants scenario for the two most polluted drains is highly recommended. Constructing of an additional outlet will increase the average lake salinity and is considered as the most effective scenario for enhancing the DO concentrations in the lake. A water quality management strategy is urgently required for the lake ecosystem.
Evaluating remote sensing approaches for mapping the bathymetry of Lake Manzala, Egypt
Euro-Mediterranean Journal for Environmental Integration, 2021
Lake Manzala is considered the largest lagoon in Egypt. The lake has significant economic and env... more Lake Manzala is considered the largest lagoon in Egypt. The lake has significant economic and environmental impacts that should be managed based on management models. The bathymetry of this lake, which is time consuming and laborious to obtain in the field, is one of the key input files for developing hydrological models of the lake. Remote sensing technology is used to determine satellite bathymetric maps with reasonable accuracy. The objective of the present work was to utilize Landsat 8 satellite imagery to determine the bathymetry of Lake Manzala. Generalized linear model (GLM), artificial neural network (ANN), decision tree, bagging (BAG, an ensemble regression algorithm), least-squares boosting fitting ensemble (LSB), and support vector machine (SVM) approaches were used in this study to process the images and manage the database of each image. The Landsat images were corrected for atmospheric conditions and the sunglint effect. Then values from the logarithms of corrected reflectance bands (coastal, blue, green, and red) and their ratio logarithms at locations corresponding to GPS surveys were extracted. Two assessing metrics, root mean square error (RMSE) and correlation (R), were used to calibrate the derived logarithm values for the model using observed data for the lake. The results show that the BAG and decision tree approaches perform well for Lake Manzala. Such methodologies should be applied for bathymetry determination, especially for shallow lakes, to save monitoring effort and costs. This approach facilitates the development of management models for lakes.
Evaluation of Wastewater Treatment-via-Dilution for Tala Drain, Nile Delta, Egypt
Towards Water Secure Societies, 2021
Agricultural drainage water reuse is well developed in the Nile Delta region in Egypt. The freque... more Agricultural drainage water reuse is well developed in the Nile Delta region in Egypt. The frequently applied treatment practice is the treatment by dilution. This practice consists in mixing fresh water with drainage water. The Rosetta Branch is one of two main Nile Delta branches. It is also the main fresh water resource for the Nile Delta governorates. However, the fresh water quality of this branch is frequently affected by the Tala Drain which transports discharge from agricultural drainage into Rosetta Branch. The wastewater in the Tala Drain is mostly treated by dilution. Hence, this study aims at assessing the impact of this treatment practice on the water quality in the Tala Drain and Rosetta Branch. We defined three water quality indicators to quantify the treatment for Tala Drain and the pollution for Rosetta Branch. This was done based on using seasonal water quality records for one year and two water quality indices. The results indicated that the treatment-via-dilution...
Climate change impacts on water security elements of Kafr El-Sheikh governorate, Egypt
Agricultural Water Management, 2022
Water quality monitoring of Lake Burullus (Egypt) using Landsat satellite imageries
Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2020
Lake Burullus is one of the most important coastal lakes in Egypt, as it participates with a cons... more Lake Burullus is one of the most important coastal lakes in Egypt, as it participates with a considerable amount of fish yield in Egypt. Despite its importance, it is considered as a vulnerable lake, since it is subjected to significant environmental changes caused by various anthropogenic activities. Severe deterioration of its water quality status, as well as a decrease in its water area, has been noticed throughout the last four decades. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the ability of remote sensing for assessing the water quality status of the lake for the period from August 2010 to August 2013. Remote sensing technique was used to retrieve and predict the lake water quality parameter records through the assessment period (August 2010 to August 2013). Stepwise multi-linear regression technique was used to correlate between the field measurements of water quality parameters and the reflectance of remote sensing imageries, and then the derived models were validated. The results revealed the critical status of water quality conditions of the lake, particularly of its southern and southeastern parts. The results showed also that some water quality parameters (Chl-a, TSS, pH, Fe, Zn, Cr, and NH4) can be retrieved from remote sensing imageries with reasonable accuracy (R2 = 0.86, 0.67, 0.65, 0.63, 0.62, 0.61, and 0.6, respectively), while the water quality parameters, which can be predicted, based on calibrated and validated regression models are TSS and Chl-a, with acceptable accuracy (R2 = 0.6 and 0.43, respectively). Lake Burullus needs urgent plans and strategies to protect its water quality from the potential hazards of human activities. The study proved the ability of remote sensing as an effective technique to monitor the changes in water quality conditions of shallow coastal lagoons and to predict with some water quality parameters without field measurements; therefore, it is highly recommended to be used by decision makers.
Climate change impacts on water security elements of Kafr El-Sheikh governorate, Egypt
Agricultural Water Management, 2022
Water quality modeling and management for Rosetta Branch, the Nile River, Egypt
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 2021
Rosetta Branch (RB) is the Nile western branch, which is considered the main freshwater resource ... more Rosetta Branch (RB) is the Nile western branch, which is considered the main freshwater resource for the western governorates of the Nile Delta, in addition to El-Beheira governorate, Egypt. This work aims to investigate the effectiveness of applying six feasible water quality management scenarios for the RB at Kafr Elzayat (KZ) City, where two major pollution sources (industrial companies and the Tala Drain) are discharging their effluents to the branch. A hydro-ecological model for the branch was developed based on MIKE 11 modeling system (3 modules). The developed model was calibrated using field hydrodynamic and water quality records for the branch during the period from November 2014 to August 2015. The calibrated model results were considered a base case for the simulated management scenarios. According to the study results, diverting the Tala Drain effluents to the nearest main drain will significantly enhance the branch water quality, while diverting of the industrial companies’ effluents to the city sewer system will significantly enhance the water quality conditions downstream of the study. The expected scenario of decreasing the RB discharge, due to future climatic changes and/or construction of the new Ethiopian dams, will significantly affect the RB water quality status in a negative way. Urgent management plans, based on the presented scenarios results (or a combination of them), should be applied to enhance the branch water quality. The Tala Drain should be, at least, provided by a water quality treatment plant, and the branch freshwater discharge should be increased.