Prof. Azza Ahmed Abdallah :: Publications:

ABSTRACT Siwa Oasis contains natural springs of different ages and salinities. The last decades witnesses uncontrolled mechanical over-pumping from the aquifer for irrigation purposes leading to environmental and developmental problems. Saline pools configuration increases due to over-pumping and climatologically implications resembled by the thermal effects of the saline content causes different pressures locally enhancing the dunes to change their direction and rate of migration. Comparative interpretation using old and recent maps (topographic and TM image) confirms the deviation in direction of the dunes particularly close to the saline pools. The measured changes in direction(s) and rate(s) formulate a serious hazardous about the future development plans, meanwhile the constructed projects should estimate the anticipated hazardous compared with the newer directions and rates. The main anticipated threats are: city, cultivable areas and the industrial projects. Continuous monitoring and proper planning (present and future) should consider the resulting effects of the uncontrolled behavior of man-made local thoughts otherwise hazardous will increase to a level that would affect both development plans and socio-economic trends.