Groundwater 1-Iydrology ofEl--Khatatba area and its Vicinities, West Nile Delta, Egypt.

Abstract

The study area is bounded by Latitudes 30° 00' to 30° 30' N and Longitudes 30° 30' to 31° 00' E. It is bounded by El Rayah El-Nasiri and El Rayah El-Beheri in the east and Cairo­ Alexandria Desert Highway in the west, attaining a total area of about 800 km2 . The general surface slopes generally towards the Nile Delta. The sedimentary sequences in the study area consist of sediments ranging in age from Quaternary (Holocene and Pleistocene) to Tertiary (Pliocene, Miocene and Oligocene). In the present work, three major faults (F2, F3 and F4) trending NE-SW have been strongly detected and divided the area into four hydrogeologic zones (I, II, III and IV). In the study area, the groundwater occurs under unconfined (zones I & IV) and confined (zones II & III) conditions. The average saturated thickness ranges between 84.5m in zones I and IV and 97.5m in zones II and III. The general subsurface flow of groundwater is from the Nile Delta towards the area of study. The depth to water level varies generally from about 20 meters to more than 100 meters below the ground surface with gradual increasing westward and southward directions.