Waterlogging in Arid Agriculture Areas Due to Improper Groundwater Management—An Example from Kuwait

Abstract

Abstract:Waterlogging is an acute problem in the agricultural areas of arid regions. This study highlights the main reasons for water table rise in the Wafra agriculture area of South Kuwait. A two-tier aquifer system exists in the area, which consists of the Kuwait Group aquifer underlain by a semi-confined Dammam aquifer. Improper sealing of wells tapping the semi-confined Dammam aquifer and over-irrigation were the main reasons for water level rise, and an increase in total dissolved solids was due to high evaporation of brackish water used for irrigation in the area. Other issues such as thin soil cover, topographic variation, and geomorphology within the area play an interactive role in the development of salt crusts on the ground surface. The key solution to the problem lies with proper well design and irrigation management. The sealing of the wells tapping the Dammam Formation has resulted in the lowering of the water level, which has allowed the reclamation of farms. For sustainable management of the Wafra agriculture area, it is observed that only the Kuwait Group aquifer should be utilized for irrigation, dewatering should be carried out in selective low-lying areas, and the adoption of best irrigation practices can be the only way for sustainable agriculture development in the area. The use of tertiary-treated wastewater, along with groundwater from the Kuwait Group (KG) aquifer, can be a solution to sustain agriculture. The crop water requirement should be considered for irrigation application while using best practices such as drip irrigation.

A detailed perspective of water resource management in a dry and water scarce country: The case in Kuwait

“…Approximately 10%-13% of Kuwait's total groundwater production is blended with desalinated distilled water to make it potable. Groundwater is used for various purposes in Kuwait, including irrigation, gardening, construction, and even animal watering (Al-Murad et al, 2017). Currently, this water system satisfies the demand for water for more than 75,000 consumers at a considerably lower price.…”

“…The agricultural areas are in three significant directions and have approximately 2,880 farms with 141 million m 2 . However, 90% of Kuwait's land is considered unsuitable for agricultural purposes, where main crop productions include vegetables, potatoes, and grains (Al-Murad et al, 2017). There are three main sources of water in Kuwait for agricultural utilization: brackish groundwater, treated wastewater, and desalinated water.…”

“…Approximately 54% of groundwater and 19% of treated wastewater are used for agricultural sector applications (Aleisa and Alshayji, 2019). Kuwait's agricultural sector experiences a small role in the nation's economy due to extremely high temperatures during the summer season and poor quality of groundwater (Al-Murad et al, 2018;Al-Murad et al, 2017). Water is crucial in agriculture for the production and maintenance of food security.…”

Hydrogeological Characteristics of the Quaternary aquifer in Beni Suef area, Egypt

“…9). This problem is caused by the topographic nature of the study area due to the high ground elevations in the west, the poor drainage of the soil and the use of flood irrigation systems (Gad, 2004), in addition to the increased aquitard (soil) thickness as well as the shallow water table . The excessive usage of water in irrigation leads to waterlogging and finally soil salinization (Al-Murad et al, 2017). Other factors such as soil thickness (Houk et al, 2005(Houk et al, , 2006, soil type, geology and geomorphology play important role in the occurrence of waterlogging and salinization problems in agricultural area (Hatton et al, 2002;McFarlane and Williamson, 2002;Holden et al, 2006).…”

Antibiotics in Wastewater: Baseline of the Influent and Effluent Streams in Kuwait

“…It has been suggested in several previous studies that the development of antibiotic resistance by bacteria was due to the occurrence of subtherapeutic concentrations of these antibiotics in these environments [53,54]. Several studies have reported measurable concentrations of antibiotics in the WWTP effluents that eventually ended up in surface waters [55][56][57][58] or even in the food chain [59] following recent and frequent applications of treated wastewater in aquaculture and agriculture [60]. There are many studies on antibiotics released from WWTPs in Europe [61,62], North America, the East, and the Far East [63,64], but very few assessments have been carried out in the Middle East and Africa [11,[65][66][67].…”