use of treated sewage water for large-scale · pdf filehany el kateb institute of silviculture...

Hany El Kateb Institute of Silviculture

TUM

Use of treated sewage

water for large-scale

afforestation

Hany El Kateb

Institute of Silviculture

Technische Universität München (TUM)

Establishment of Plantation Forests and Development of Sustainable

Forestry in Desert Lands of Egypt Using Sewage Water

Education and Research


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Egypt





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Desert lands in Egypt





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Satellite image of Egypt

www.maplibrary.org

Arable land 3.6%

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rt la

nd

Total land area 1 million km2

www.maplibrary.org

Climate: Mediterranean in north (hot-dry summer 27°, and a warm winter 15°), and continental in south (40° in summer and 13° in winter)

Annual average precipitation: 10 mm (150-200 in north and 2 mm in south)

Humidity: High in the north with 70% during summer, and low in the south with 13%.





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The Nile and Nile Delta





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The Nile delta on the outskirts of Cairo (continued)

Land cover 1972 Land cover 2011

400 km2

Urban Vegetation Desert River

1972 32% 42% 24% 2%

2011 61% 21% 16% 2%





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The Nile delta today According to the Executive

Secretariat of the United

Nations Convention to

Combat Desertification,

Egypt lost 9% of its arable

lands to constructions over

the past 36 years. The

country is ranked first in the

rate of desertification with a

loss rate of 3.5 acres per

hour (35 ha or 50 soccer

fields daily) of fertile Delta

agricultural land, which is

an incomparable rate in the

world statistics.





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Greatest challenges facing Egypt

Aside from health, education, poverty and corruption, Egypt is

facing many challenges.

Arid/desert climate

Water scarcity

Misuse of the limited fertile land to secure food for the

increasing population

High susceptibility to climate change: Egypt is ranked 3rd

in rising sea levels after all low-lying Island States and

Vietnam (World Bank, 2009)

Mismanagement of resources

Absence of innovative, environmentally-friendly solutions.





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Resources with high potential in Egypt aquarium

pro

sm

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om

/2011/0

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arium

-energ

y-u

se/

Lee Bruno venturebeat.com

Agriculture using

fresh water

Forestry using

sewage water

Biofuel using

sewage water

Solar power plant

Desalination plant





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Use of resources with high potential in Egypt

Outline of simplified version of an IBTS, Integrated Biotectural System (Berdellé and El Kateb)

Objective:Management of resources in a sustainable way to secure water and food by steady supply.





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Resource-based development in Egypt

- enhancing the public awareness of the importance of the natural resources for the survival of the present and future generations, as well as the awareness of disasters that ensue following the misuse of resources leading to thirst, hunger, poverty and natural catastrophes,

- strict saving in the use of resources as it is the first measure to proper resource utilisation,

- rational utilisation of the natural resources including reuse and recycling of resources,

- finding the best alternative measures to reach sustainability in resource utilisation,

- establishment of policies and programmes for the rehabilitation, conservation and, whenever necessary, preservation of the natural resources,

- integration of sustainable management systems of the resources into the law,

- further development of effective mechanisms for regulation, control and monitoring of resource utilisation” El Kateb, 2012.

“The political, economic, and social development in Egypt must be closely associated with the sustainable management of available resources and should be based on:





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Forestry in Egypt

Many excavations in various parts of the country support the opinion that large parts of ancient Egypt at both Nile banks were forest zones.

Also the Sinai Peninsula with its many valleys was rich in forest. The names of the valleys are still good indication.





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Forestry in Egypt (continued)

At the end of the first century, over a thousand years ago during the Fatimids era, Egypt was the first country in the world, which established a national forest organisation (Goldmann, 2001). Usage of wood was well managed. Wood was mainly used for the construction of cargo ships. Thousands of ships of a size of about 85m long and 35m abeam were built.




Today, far less than 0.1% (around 720 km2) of the country’s land area is covered with trees.

discoverislamicart.org


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16

Egypt has almost no natural forests. We can find:

Relic of nature woodlands on the slopes of Gebel Elba (Mountain Elba) in the Elba Protected Area in the southern of the country, the largest protected area in Egypt (over 36,000 km2). www.cultnat.org

Sparse, scattered mangroves along the red sea coast.

Mangroves in Sharm El Sheikh





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A few indigenous species occur over the country. These include: sycamore, acacia, tamarisk, carob, popular, mulberry-trees and above all date-palms as well as various fruit trees.

Forestry in Egypt is mainly based on plantation forests with the most common species being: Casuarina spp. and

Eucalyptus spp.





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What is Afforestation?

Afforestation is the planting of trees on lands formerly used for purposes other than forestry.

It is a cost-effective tool to reduce emission. Planting large areas of new forests is effective to slow the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide.





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Egyptian National Programme for Afforestation

In the mid 90s, the “National Programme for the Safe Use of Treated Sewage Water for Afforestation*” was launched to mainly improve the prevailing environmental situation by

- making use of unutilised sewage water, which is a hazard for the environment and in addition a waste of water resource and nutrients, in

- establishing forest plantations “greening desert lands” to support the efforts exerted to stabilise the greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.

Within the frame of this programme, a pilot project on over 5,000 hectares spread over the country was conducted to determine the success/failure of afforestation using basic-treated sewage water.





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National Programme for Afforestation (continued)

Potential locations for afforestation using

sewage water

Planted species within the pilot project

Acacia (Acacia nilotica and Acacia saligna)

Casuarina (Casuarina equisetifolia)

Cupressus (Cupressus sempervirens)

Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus camaldulensis)

African Mahogany (Khaya senegalensis)

Neem (Azadirachta indica)

Pinus (Pinus pinea)

Popular (Populus spp.)

Jatropha (Jatropha curcas) and Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) as biofuel crop

Sisal (agava sisalana) and ornamental trees





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National Programme for Afforestation (continued)





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Potential of the afforestation in Egypt K

haya

se

ne

ga

len

sis

Eucaly

ptu

s

citrio

do

ra

Eucaly

ptu

s

ca

ma

ldu

len

sis

1.5 years 10cm, 10m

4 years 19cm, 20m

8 years 24cm, 22m

12 years 30cm, 24m

4 years 19cm, 15m

9 years 30cm, 21m

12 years 30cm, 20m

4 years 23cm, 11m

7 years 26cm, 14m

9 years 28cm, 13m

Sa

da

t C

ity (

civ

il a

nd

in

du

str

ial w

aste

wa

ter)

Ism

aili

a (

civ

il w

aste

wate

r)





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Potential of the afforestation in Egypt (continued)

Eucalyptus

citriodora

Eucalyptus

camaldulensis

Khaya

senegalensis

Rotation period 11 years 12 years 15 years

Total volume* 348 m3/ha 346 m3/ha 333 m3/ha

Total biomass 306 t/ha 325 t/ha 241 t/ha

Annual CO2

sequestration 51 t/ha/year 50 t/ha/year 30 t/ha/year

Estimated yield (El Kateb and Mosandl, 2012)

*Compared to Germany, the leading country in Forestry in Europe, this volume in average for all tree species is achieved after 60 years. This means that the same yield in Egypt is attained 4.5 times earlier than in Germany.





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Potential of wastewater in Egypt




Filtration,

sedimentation

Filtration,

sedimentation

Do

me

sti

c

Ind

us

tria

l

Non-conven-

tional energy

Trans-esteri-fication reactor

* aerobic, anaerobic and algae-based treatment ** membrane filtration

Biological treatment & heavy metal removal using agricultural waste by-

products

Biological* treatment & heavy metal removal and recovery

using mechanical** treatment and/or agricultural waste by-products

An-aerobic digester

Biogas Bio-

diesel

Heavy

metal

Treated

waste-

water

Fertiliser

Use in

afforestation

Alg

al

bio

ma

ss

Sludge


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Treatment and use of potential of wastewater Filtration,

sedimentation

Filtration,

sedimentation

Filtration,

sedimentation

Do

me

sti

c

Ind

us

tria

l A

gri

cu

ltu

ral

Non-conven-

tional energy

Trans-esteri-fication reactor

* aerobic, anaerobic and algae-based treatment ** membrane filtration

Biological treatment & heavy metal removal using agricultural waste by-

products

Biological treatment & removal of heavy metal and

chemical residues using agricultural waste by-products

Biological* treatment & heavy metal removal and recovery

using mechanical** treatment and/or agricultural waste by-products

An-aerobic digester

Biogas Bio-

diesel

Heavy

metal

Treated

waste-

water

Treated

waste-

water

Fertiliser

Reuse in

agriculture

Use in

afforestation

Algal biomass

Sludge


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Egyptian-German

Collaboration Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation

Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs

National Programme for the Safe Use of Treated Sewage Water for Afforestation

administration, coordination, infrastructure, sewage water analysis

Department of Forestry and Wood Technology, University of Alexandria

(silviculture research)

Agriculture Research Centre, Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation (soil research, forest tree breeding)

Department of Agricultural Engineering, Ain Shams University

(water research, irrigation)

Institute of Silviculture, Technische Universität München (TUM)

(silviculture research, forest tree breeding)

Institute of Hydraulic and Water Resources Engineering, TUM (water research)

Forest Finance Group forest carbon trade, sponsoring, commercial

application

Bavarian State Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry

knowledge transfer, exchange of experts

Institute of Water Quality Control, TUM

(wastewater research)

German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) supports enhancement of education and

research in Egypt





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Multi-functionality of the afforestation in Egypt

Decreasing pollution as growing trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere

Protection against desertification and erosion Sand dune fixation and coastal protection Efficient use of water resources Wood production, and biofuel-crop production Human settlement protection from wind and sand Food security for an increasing population through the

protection of adjacent arable and new reclaimed lands from wind and combating desertification

Establishment of new industries related to wood and wood processing

Creating new jobs and qualification opportunities among young people whose unemployment rate is high.

Offering recreational opportunities for local people as well as tourists due to the attraction of forests in arid regions.





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Opportunity for large scale afforestation in Egypt

- sewage water (about 7 billion m3 annually, of which

approximately 40% is only treated) and

- desert lands of nearly one million km2.

Resources

Using 5.5 billion m3 sewage water for the afforestation and

assuming an average annual water requirement of 8,500 m3/ha

- 650 thousand ha in the desert lands can be afforested

(nearly 20% of the total agriculture area) and

- 25 million tons of CO2 annually can be stored.

Potential

Large-scale afforestation may stimulate cloud

formation and may result in rainfall (University of

Hohenheim 2012) that the country urgently needs.





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Approach to establishment of large-scale plantation forests in the desert lands of Egypt

Making optimal use of the potential available in the wastewater and in plantation forests.

Development of sustainable forestry in desert lands by improving productivity, quality, technology, cost-effectiveness, and economic returns of the plantation forests.

Development of sustainable management for the wastewater resources.

Building of forest administration liable to implement the forestry policy, to provide guidelines for forest management, to approve and to control the implementation of forest management plans.

Capacity building of trainers and technical staff. Enhancing education and research related to wastewater and

forest management. Conducting interdisciplinary researches to accompany the

afforestation activities and develop decision support systems.





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Accompanying Scientific Studies - Scientific Approach

Applied Research

Data and statistical analyses, and simulation modelling

Management Science

Application of

management science

Assessment

Selection of species, use of high-quality seed materials, establishing windbreak systems,

initiating tree breeding programme

Development of a

decision support

system for the

sustainable

management of

plantation forests in

arid regions

Identifying for each species under different environmental conditions the

most appropriate: irrigation system,

level of water requirement, soil improvement technique (biochar, compost, mycorrhiza, soil conditioner)

Identifying the most effective silvicultural technique for each

species under different environmental conditions, according to the desired

objective of the afforestation

Assessment of sewage water

Improvement of treatment, quality and transportation of wastewater

Assessment of plantation forests established at the pilot

project phase

Evaluation of the status of the afforstation for deriving appropriate

silviculture techniques

Collecting further ecological, and socio-economical

information





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Accompanying Scientific Studies - List of species

Acacia (Acacia nilotica and Acacia saligna), shrub (windbreak)

Casuarina (Casuarina equisetifolia), shrub (windbreak)

Jatropha (Jatropha curcas), shrub (biofuel crop)

Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis), shrub (biofuel crop)

Gmeline or White Teak (Gmelina arborea), precious hardwood

African Mahogany (Khaya senegalensis), precious hardwood

Outeniqua yellowwood (Podocarpus falcatus), precious hardwood

Teak (Tectona grandis), precious hardwood

Mangium or Black Wattle (Acacia mangium), hardwood

Neem, also Indian Lilac (Azadirachta indica), hardwood

Lemon-scented gum (Eucalyptus citriodora), hardwood

River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), hardwood

Black Afara or Framire (Terminalia ivorensis), hardwood

Caribean Pine (Pinus caribbea var. hondurensis), softwood





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Scheme for the large-scale afforestation




Year: 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th

Phase I Plan issuing,

and working

group forming

Forest Plantations Species

selection,

afforestation

of 26 ha, and

breeding on

47 ha

Capacity building in sustainable management of plantation forests

Forest Plantations

Phase II Preparation

work

Afforestation

of 92 ha

Phase III Preparation work

Appropriate irrigation sys-tem, irrigation water quantity,

and soil conditioner

Research findings

Proper early and mid-rotation silvicultural techniques

Appropriate quantity of irrigation

water, and soil conditioner


water


water

Decision support

system for the

sustain-able man-agement of forests

in arid regions

Large–scale afforestation

De

mo

nstra

tions

(edu

catio

na

l and

tra

inin

g u

nits

)

Building up the forest administration


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Large-scale afforestation




We assume that the average annual water-consumption for forest lands in Egypt = 8.500 m3 ha-1

Current annual volume of sewage water (7 109 m3) and industrial wastewater (2 109 m3) in Egypt = 9 109 m3

If 5.5 109 m3 is used for afforestation, we can, theoretically, afforest an area of a size of 5.5 109 m3/8.500 m3 ha-1 ≈ 0.65 106 ha = 6.500 km2

and annually store CO2 of ≈ 25 106 tons

Expected volume of sewage water in 2017 = 17.0 109 m3

Using this volume, we can afforest an area of a size of 17.0 109 m3/8.500 m3 ha-1 ≈ 2.0 106 ha = 20.000 km2

and annually store CO2 of ≈ 77 106 tons


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A scenario for large-scale afforestation

Arable land 3.6%

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Forestland 2.0%

Coast = 50 km x 20 km

Total area = 1000 km2 x 5 = 5,000 km2

Width = 10 km

Total length = 1,500 km

Total area = 15,000 km2

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Thank you for your kind attention


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Thank you for your kind attention

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