CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROGEOELECTRICAL AND HYDROGEOCHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MIOCENE AND FRACTURED BASEMENT AQUIFERS AT HALAIB, SOUTH-EASTERN DESERT OF EGYPT

The present work throws light, for the first time, on the hydrogeoelectrical and hydrogeochemical characteristics of the groundwater encountered in both of the Miocene and the fractured Basement aquifers, located at wadi Ei Kwan and its vicinities. This work represents a part of the extensive field program, that was planned and executed by GARPAD, since 1994.The objective of the work was to achieve an integrated development for the area of Halaib-Abu-Ramad-Shalatein on an agricultural basis, hence the groundwater potentiality should be investigated. The present area is very close to the Egyptian-Sudaneese borders. Four hand-dug wells (Birs) exist in this locality. Eight vertical Electrical Soundings (VESes) are carried-out, using the Schlumberger Four Symmetrical Electrodes. These VESes are interpreted by different methods. Hydrogeoelectrical cross-sections were constructed. Four geoelectrical layers were encountered in VESes 110, 111,112,113, 115 and 116, while five ones are encountered in both VESes 109 and 114.This work revealed the existence of two aquifers. The first one is the Miocene aquifer, while the second is the fractured Basement aquifer. Seven concealed faults are located. They constitute three horsts and three grabens. Water samples were collected from the Birs and chemically analyzed. The water type is sodium chloride and the origin is shallow meteoric for Ei Kwan 1,while it is of meteoric origin for the rest of the Birs