Transboundary Groundwater Management Issues in the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System (NSAS)

Abstract

Transboundary resource management refers to the principle of reasonable utilisation of land and water. This requires consideration of the social and ecological dimensions of groundwater use, in addition to hydrological monitoring and modelling systems. Egypt is a world leader in transboundary groundwater management and regional cooperation on water management issues more broadly. This chapter discusses Egypt’s experiences in leading knowledge generation and sharing with other riparian countries to further the sustainable utilization of the major transboundary aquifer in Africa: the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System (NSAS). To date, Egyptian transboundary groundwater management initiatives have been state-led, and have focused on the generation of studies with the intent to share data between countries on the hydrological conditions and volumes of water flowing through the aquifer. This is intended to enhance management and coordination. However, this data sharing is slow and sometimes sensitive. Furthermore, it has been difficult for the transboundary groundwater management initiatives to get to grips in any practical way with the challenges of sustainable groundwater use. Practices to conserve the health of the land that stores the groundwater reserves, and enable their replenishment also receive little attention in transboundary cooperation for groundwater management. To monitor, manage and sustain the hydrological, ecological and socio-economic aspects of the transboundary system requires the engagement of local institutions to conduct or facilitate the monitoring and to implement the management practices. For them, it is important not only to pursue the sustainable management of the aquifer over the longer term, but also to consider how to improve the viability of local resource management in the short term. In light of this, the main recommendation is to build and share knowledge about local capacities to manage ecosystem service production and recharge patterns in the surface layers, as well as to monitor and jointly manage the reserves stored in the deeper layers.