Eos (Washington, D.C.), 2010-03, Vol.91 (11), p.103-103
2010
Details
- Autor(en) / Beteiligte
- Titel
- Characterizing Water, Sediment, Nutrients, and Contaminant Fluxes in Coastal Egypt: Marine Constituent Dynamics in Coastal Egypt; Alexandria, Egypt, 20 November 2009
- Ist Teil von
- Eos (Washington, D.C.), 2010-03, Vol.91 (11), p.103-103
- Ort / Verlag
- Washington: Blackwell Publishing Ltd
- Erscheinungsjahr
- 2010
- Link zum Volltext
- Quelle
- EZB Electronic Journals Library
- Beschreibungen/Notizen
- The Egyptian coastal area is a highly dynamic region in which materials (water, sediment, nutrients, and contaminants) are transported from various sources to the Mediterranean and Red seas. At a workshop in Egypt, U.S. and Egyptian scientists discussed these largely unquantified processes and how they interact to drive coastal ecology. A major goal of the workshop was to identify the most pressing research priorities for the region for both scientific and management purposes. The workshop concluded by recommending that international multidisciplinary efforts be undertaken to characterize water, nutrient, sediment, and contaminant delivery fluxes and mechanisms to coastal regions of the Nile Delta. The Nile River is thought to be the most significant source of sediments to coastal Egypt, but as workshop participants discussed, the Aswan High Dam and water diversion practices have essentially shut off the sediment supply to the delta. This change has initiated massive erosion that is now threatening arable land and infrastructure. A workshop conclusion recommends that future studies focus on understanding sediment transport and mobility throughout the delta and also on predicting sea level rise rates for the region to better forecast the extent of future land loss.