242
E.-S. E. Omran
1 Introduction
It can be argued that the entire economic dimension of the situation in Egypt is an
inevitable consequence of globalization. We decided to concentrate on what can be
done internally in Egypt to provide a growing population with food. This should be
in relation to the capacity for agricultural production. We must discuss what can be
done to help Egypt to once again have a more sustainable food system; thus not as
dependent on the global food system as it is now. We will seek to illuminate one
dimension that may impact the problem facing Egypt today, bearing in mind that
the problem is comprehensive and multifaceted. The Western Desert is aimed at
land reclamation projects in Egypt; however, this extension requires the best use of
land and water resources. The project’s focus is based on knowledge of population
growth and food security problems in Egypt. The main problems facing Egypt are
overpopulation, limited arable land and water scarcity (Zidan and Dawoud 2013).
It is, therefore important to increase the area of cultivated land (Kamel and Abu El
Ella 2016). This is accomplished by reclaiming more land, particularly in the desert,
which occupies more than 96% of Egypt’s total area (El-Ramady et al. 2013), but
with limited scope for agricultural expansion in the Nile Valley and Delta (Shalaby
and Moghanm 2015). The arable land expansion increases domestic production
and supports numerous development projects (Adriansen 2009). Major agricultural
expansion, industry and civil activities are planned in the Western Desert (Abd El All
et al. 2015), which covers 66.7% of the total area of Egypt having seven depressions;
Siwa, Qattara, Fayum, Bahariya, Farafra, Dakhla, and Kharga, where the freshwater
exists in the oases (Fadl and Abuzaid 2017).
On the other hand, due to water resource limitations, Egypt faces a steady decrease
in groundwater per capita. The New Valley in Egypt’s Western desert lies in Dakhla
Basin which consists of Farafra- Dakhla - Kharga Oases. Dakhla Basin is a major
unit of the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System (NSAS) with huge storage capacity
in groundwater. It consists mainly of compacted and broken sandstone with thin
clay interbed intercalations. The Nubian Sandstone Aquifer (NSSA), Egypt’s largest
aquifer of groundwater, is in this area (Masoud and El Osta 2016). The Nubian
aquifer still has a large groundwater reservoir that can help develop the New Valley,
respectively. A good water management plan is essential because this Nubian system
is not well charged and should be treated as an aquifer for groundwater mining
(Mostaf and Hasan 2017). Based on Egypt’s hydrogeological map, a large part of the
lower aquifer is exposed in unconfined conditions south of the 26° N parallel. This
forms the Nubian Aquifer System.
Located in the heart of the Western Desert, Dakhla Oasis has highly fertile land and
is the main oasis that supports large population (Kato et al. 2012). How can the population’s demands be meet in relation to agricultural production and be sustainably based
on expanding into the New Valley? The main focus is on understanding the potential
for agricultural expansion in the New Valley. This extension can be a solution for the
growing population of Egypt to increase agricultural production. However, waterlogging is one of the main limitations, which affect agricultural expansion. With this
E.-S. E. Omran
1 Introduction
It can be argued that the entire economic dimension of the situation in Egypt is an
inevitable consequence of globalization. We decided to concentrate on what can be
done internally in Egypt to provide a growing population with food. This should be
in relation to the capacity for agricultural production. We must discuss what can be
done to help Egypt to once again have a more sustainable food system; thus not as
dependent on the global food system as it is now. We will seek to illuminate one
dimension that may impact the problem facing Egypt today, bearing in mind that
the problem is comprehensive and multifaceted. The Western Desert is aimed at
land reclamation projects in Egypt; however, this extension requires the best use of
land and water resources. The project’s focus is based on knowledge of population
growth and food security problems in Egypt. The main problems facing Egypt are
overpopulation, limited arable land and water scarcity (Zidan and Dawoud 2013).
It is, therefore important to increase the area of cultivated land (Kamel and Abu El
Ella 2016). This is accomplished by reclaiming more land, particularly in the desert,
which occupies more than 96% of Egypt’s total area (El-Ramady et al. 2013), but
with limited scope for agricultural expansion in the Nile Valley and Delta (Shalaby
and Moghanm 2015). The arable land expansion increases domestic production
and supports numerous development projects (Adriansen 2009). Major agricultural
expansion, industry and civil activities are planned in the Western Desert (Abd El All
et al. 2015), which covers 66.7% of the total area of Egypt having seven depressions;
Siwa, Qattara, Fayum, Bahariya, Farafra, Dakhla, and Kharga, where the freshwater
exists in the oases (Fadl and Abuzaid 2017).
On the other hand, due to water resource limitations, Egypt faces a steady decrease
in groundwater per capita. The New Valley in Egypt’s Western desert lies in Dakhla
Basin which consists of Farafra- Dakhla - Kharga Oases. Dakhla Basin is a major
unit of the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System (NSAS) with huge storage capacity
in groundwater. It consists mainly of compacted and broken sandstone with thin
clay interbed intercalations. The Nubian Sandstone Aquifer (NSSA), Egypt’s largest
aquifer of groundwater, is in this area (Masoud and El Osta 2016). The Nubian
aquifer still has a large groundwater reservoir that can help develop the New Valley,
respectively. A good water management plan is essential because this Nubian system
is not well charged and should be treated as an aquifer for groundwater mining
(Mostaf and Hasan 2017). Based on Egypt’s hydrogeological map, a large part of the
lower aquifer is exposed in unconfined conditions south of the 26° N parallel. This
forms the Nubian Aquifer System.
Located in the heart of the Western Desert, Dakhla Oasis has highly fertile land and
is the main oasis that supports large population (Kato et al. 2012). How can the population’s demands be meet in relation to agricultural production and be sustainably based
on expanding into the New Valley? The main focus is on understanding the potential
for agricultural expansion in the New Valley. This extension can be a solution for the
growing population of Egypt to increase agricultural production. However, waterlogging is one of the main limitations, which affect agricultural expansion. With this