The drainage pattern phenomenon in the sandy area is rare in the world and has very high yields with excellent quality groundwater. It was recorded and tested in the Qattara Delta to the west of the River Nile. The study is based on data sets of remote sensing, groundwater wells, chemical analyses, pumping tests, stable isotope, and field measurements. The drainage is trillic to dendritic, structurally controlled by NW, NE, and E-W fault systems, and has reduced flooding ability and a good chance for groundwater recharge. There are two main aquifers, Samalut karst and Nubian clastic. Samault is confined to semi-confined, and has huge thickness reaching 395 m and groundwater flow from SSE to NNW. The structural elements and multiple sources of recharge much effect on the distribution of the salinity of groundwater which is less than 1000 in the south and increases northward to 2727 ppm owing to the decline the rate of recharge from the River Nile, and dominant upward leakage from deep Nubian. The maximum drawdown exceeded 6 meters, transmissivity ranges from 6,200 to 45,900 m2/day, the storativity values vary from 8.2x10-6 to 8.6x10-4, and the overall static water level will decline ~15 meters over the first 10 years and then an additional 3 meters through a total of 50 years of continuous pumping. Samalut is less depleted in the south owing to the imparting of the River Nile changed to moderately deplete in the center and depleted in the north part that means that upward leakage from paleo-water of deep Nubian aquifer. A Nubian confined aquifer is tapped by one flowing well with salinity 1614 ppm, and the transmissivity is 720 m2/day. We can conclude that the productivity and hydrogeochemical properties of the aquifer of drainage pattern in the sandy area are highly potential and low salinity. This concept can be replicable in similar terrain elsewhere.

Exploration of groundwater with good quality and quantity, the governorate must identify drainage patterns in this area for selection the site of drainage lines to drilling highly potential wells.  

Drainage pattern phenomena, sandy area, groundwater

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