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Enhanced Water Resources Management Project – Egypt

Okda and Tellin Pilot Project Environmental Management Plan Okda/Tellin Pilot Area

Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation – Egypt World Bank – GEF

Grant No TF 012592 Project No 325837

Euroconsult Mott MacDonald in association with Alterra, Deltares, Capacity Building International, Chemonics Egypt Consultants

June 2016

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Euroconsult Mott MacDonald, Amsterdamseweg 15, 6814 CM Arnhem, PO Box 441, 6800 AK, Arnhem,

Netherlands T +31 (0)26 3577 111 F +31 (0)26 3577 577 W www.mottmac.com

Consulting Services for the Enhanced Water Resources Management Project (EWRMP). Environmental Management Plan Okda/Tellin Pilot Area

June 2016

Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, Egypt

World Bank - GEF

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EWRMP Environmental Management Plan Okda/Tellin

T +31 (0)26 3577 111 F +31 (0)26 3577 577 W www.mottmac.com

Issue and revision record

Revision Date Originator Checker Approver Description

00 Dec. 2015 J. Harmsen

A. González C. Bäcker EMP Okda/Tellin

Draft Dec 2015

01 July 2016 J. Harmsen

A. González C. Bäcker EMP Okda/Tellin

July 2016

This document is issued for the party which commissioned it

and for specific purposes connected with the above-captioned

project only. It should not be relied upon by any other party or

used for any other purpose.

We accept no responsibility for the consequences of this

document being relied upon by any other party, or being used

for any other purpose, or containing any error or omission

which is due to an error or omission in data supplied to us by

other parties

This document contains confidential information and

proprietary intellectual property. It should not be shown to

other parties without consent from us and from the party

which commissioned it.


Euroconsult Mott MacDonald i

Content

Chapter Title Page

Executive Summary 1

Environmental management plan _________________________________________________________ 1

Conclusions __________________________________________________________________________ 3

1. Introduction 5

1.1 Project Background __________________________________________________________ 5

1.2 Rationale of the Environmental Management Plans _________________________________ 5

1.3 General Description of Okda/Tellin Pilot Area ______________________________________ 7

1.4 Potential Environmental Pressure _______________________________________________ 7

1.5 The Okda and Tellin Environmental Management Plan ______________________________ 8

1.6 Report Structure ____________________________________________________________ 13

2. Environmental Assessment and Needs 15

2.1 Waste water _______________________________________________________________ 15

2.2 Sludge ___________________________________________________________________ 18

2.3 Biosolids from Agriculture ____________________________________________________ 21

2.4 Drinking and Domestic Water Supply ___________________________________________ 21

2.5 Sanitation Facilities _________________________________________________________ 22

2.6 Public Health ______________________________________________________________ 23

3. Water Pollution Impact on Health Risk 25

3.1 Rational of Health Risk Assessment ____________________________________________ 25

3.2 Health Risks and Water ______________________________________________________ 25

4. Stakeholders Consultation and Measures Proposal 27

4.1 Scooping of Stakeholders Consultation __________________________________________ 27

4.2 Stakeholders Environmental Issues _____________________________________________ 28

4.3 Stakeholders Proposed Mitigation Measures _____________________________________ 30

4.4 Policy, Legal and Administrative Framework ______________________________________ 31

4.5 Responsibilities for the drain __________________________________________________ 34

5. Environmental Mitigation Measure Plan 36

5.1 General___________________________________________________________________ 36

5.2 Waste Water Treatment ______________________________________________________ 36

5.3 Solid Waste Collection _______________________________________________________ 40

5.4 Composting _______________________________________________________________ 43

5.5 Monitoring ________________________________________________________________ 43

5.6 Effect of Mitigation Measures __________________________________________________ 44

5.7 Subsurface Water at Residential Areas __________________________________________ 44

5.8 Effect on Irrigation Water Quality _______________________________________________ 44


Euroconsult Mott MacDonald ii

5.9 Effect on Air Quality _________________________________________________________ 45

5.10 Spreading and Accumulation of Undesired Substances _____________________________ 45

5.11 Effects on Health ___________________________________________________________ 45

6. Environmental Measures Implementation 46

6.1 Reuse ____________________________________________________________________ 46

6.2 Future Proof _______________________________________________________________ 46

6.3 Domestic Wastewater _______________________________________________________ 47

6.4 Basic Elements for Low-cost Technologies _______________________________________ 48

6.5 Reuse of Water from the Drain ________________________________________________ 50

6.6 Base Line Assessment Study for Pre-treatment Decentralized Facilities in Tellin pilot _____ 50

6.7 Possibilities of an Instream Wetland ____________________________________________ 51

6.8 The value of Sludge _________________________________________________________ 52

6.9 Solid Waste _______________________________________________________________ 53

6.10 Decision Making ____________________________________________________________ 54

7. Constructed Wetland in Tellin drain 55

7.1 Introduction _______________________________________________________________ 55

7.2 Design ___________________________________________________________________ 55

7.3 Environmental and Social Impact Assessment of the constructed wetland ______________ 56

8. Cost Analysis and Implementation Schedule 59

8.1 Willingness to Pay __________________________________________________________ 59

8.2 Value of Sludge and Compost _________________________________________________ 59

8.3 Planning Schedule __________________________________________________________ 60

8.4 Costs ____________________________________________________________________ 60

8.5 Waste water _______________________________________________________________ 61

8.6 Collection of Solid Waste _____________________________________________________ 63

8.7 Setting Priorities, Multi-Criteria Analysis _________________________________________ 64

9. Institutional Set-Up and Potential Sources for Fund 65

10. Monitoring & Evaluation Program of Measures Performance 67

11. Conclusions 69

12. References 70


Euroconsult Mott MacDonald iii

List of Figures

Figure 1: EWRMP Logical Frame ................................................................................................................... 6

Figure 2: Villages discharging into Okda and Tellin drains ............................................................................ 7

Figure 3: Present pollution load ...................................................................................................................... 7

Figure 4: The assessment circle. Presented by Harmsen and Rifaat on the SWIM-conference (Sharm El

Sheik, 2014) .................................................................................................................................................. 11

Figure 5: Sampling point and water quality in Tellin drain ............................................................................ 16

Figure 6: Pathways for the recycling of liquids and solids from urban areas for agricultural production ..... 46

Figure 7: Present infiltration tanks (left) and proposed improved system in which tanks are improved and

connected by a small sewer system with a well-functioning infiltration tank (right). Harmsen et al., 2014 .. 47

Figure 8: Design of a septic tank (Tilley et al., 2014) ................................................................................... 48

Figure 9: Design of a free-water surface constructed wetland (Tilley et al 2014) ........................................ 49

Figure 10: Design of an instream wetland .................................................................................................... 49

Figure 11: Design of a vertical constructed wetland(Tilley et al 2014) ......................................................... 49

Figure 12: Cross sections showing distribution of plantations in the vegetation zone ................................. 55


Euroconsult Mott MacDonald iv

List of Pictures

Picture 1: Reuse of water from Okda Drain, August 2015 ........................................................................... 18

Picture 2: Collection bins for solid waste in Utrecht, The Netherlands. 1) Organic waste, 2) plastic and

other packings 3) paper and 4) residual waste ............................................................................................ 20

Picture 3: Burning of solid waste on the banks of a drain ............................................................................ 20

Picture 4: Biomass deposited on the bank of a drain ................................................................................... 21

Picture 5: Dead Donkey and Garbage in the Drain ...................................................................................... 24

Picture 6: Algae Growth ................................................................................................................................ 24

Picture 7: Solid waste, covering the drain .................................................................................................... 24

Picture 8: Wastewater discharges into the drain .......................................................................................... 24

Picture 9: Waste water treatment at Kafr Ar-Rubumayah (left) and sludge drying beds (right) ................... 39

Picture 10: Area between drain and road, potentially suitable for sludge drying and composting ............... 40

Picture 11: Trucks are filled on the site ‘Faddan Area’ with waste to be transported to a landfill in the desert

(left). Small transport after delivering of waste to the ‘Faddan area’ ............................................................ 42

Picture 12: Machines for mixing the compost and to cover and uncover the heaps (photo’s Van Lersel

Compost) ...................................................................................................................................................... 43

Picture 13 : Farmer collecting dredged sediments from a channel (1985) .................................................. 59

List of Tables

Table 1: Potential value of products in solid waste ...................................................................................... 19

Table 2: Degree of treatment permitted for agricultural use (modified code 2014) ...................................... 33

Table 3: Plants and crops permitted for irrigation by treated wastewater .................................................... 34

Table 4: Economic evaluation of two scenarios ........................................................................................... 41


Euroconsult Mott MacDonald v

List of Abbreviations

BCWUA Branch Canal Water Users Associations

CDIAS Central Directorate for Irrigation Advisory Service

CLEM

DWB

Central Laboratory for Environmental Monitoring

District Water Board

EA Environmental Assessment

EGP Egyptian Pound (USD 1 = EGP 7.6 in June 2015)

ESIA Environmental and Social Impact Assessment

EMP Environmental Management Plan

ESMP Environmental and Social Management Plan

EPADP Egyptian Public Authority for Drainage Projects

ESMF Environmental and Social Management Framework

EWRA Egyptian Water Regulatory Agency

EWRMP Enhanced Water Resources Management Project

GEF Global Environment Facility

GIS Geographic Information System

GoE Government of Egypt

IIIMP Integrated Irrigation Improvement and Management Project

IIP Irrigation Improvement Project

ISSIP Integrated Sanitation and Sewerage Infrastructure Project

IWMD Integrated Water Management District

IWRM Integrated Water Resource Management

M&E Monitoring and Evaluation

MALR Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation

MES Monitoring and Evaluation System

MHUUD Ministry of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Development

MoHP Ministry of Health and Population

MSEA Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs

MTII Ministry of Trade Industry and Investment

MWRI Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation

NOPWASD National Organisation for Potable Water and Sanitary Drainage

NWRC National Water Resources Council

NWRP National Water Resources Plan

PAD Project Appraisal Document

PBDAC Principal Bank for Development & Agricultural Credit

PDO Project Development Objective

RIGW Research Institute of Groundwater

SADBP Sustainable Agricultural Development Business Plan

SADS Sustainable Agricultural Development Strategy

SAR Sodium Adsorption Ratio

SWM Solid Waste Management

TA Technical Assistance

TOR Term of Reference

WQM Water Quality Management

WTP Water Treatment Plant

WUA Water User Association

WWTP Waste Water Treatment Plant


Euroconsult Mott MacDonald 1

Executive Summary

Environmental management plan

The Enhanced Water Resources Management Project (EWRMP) aims at introducing Integrated Water

Resources Management (IWRM) in Egypt. The major challenge of the EWRMP is to achieve commitment

of all major stakeholder agencies to work together in the context of IWRM pilots. This requires extensive

efforts in consensus building, clarity of roles and responsibilities, building awareness and commitment, and

highlighting the inter-linkages between water resources management, solid waste management, sanitation,

pollution control, hydraulic efficiency, and improved public health and productivity.

Part of the project is a study for Environmental Assessment (EA) and financial options to resolve drain

pollution in three pilot areas and a study for resolving the pollution of the drains. The Environmental

Assessment and the social impact has been reported before and were confirmed during field trips.

• There is a large environmental pressure resulting in a poor water quality in the drain, which will have

impact on human health;

• Main reasons for the poor situation are the lack of waste water treatment and lack of a proper

collection system for solid waste;

• A stakeholder consultation has shown that there is a willingness to improve the situation.

Based on all available information and an additional field visit an Environmental Management Plan for the

Okda/Tellin has been prepared and described in this report.

This EMP has been made to come to a realistic approach to solve the waste water and solid waste problems

in the pilot area Okda and Tellin. The starting point of this EMP is the experience that real action to improve

the situation is scarcely undertaken in the rural area of Egypt. We are in an infinite circle of assessments

followed by non-realized plans.

It is necessary to break this infinite circle. This is worked out by limiting the plan to action that can be

performed and implemented in the coming few years. Basically this is done by;

• Use of inexpensive technology;

• Addressing activities that need a responsible organization;



• Acceptation that the problem can be partly solved in the coming few years. A full solution asks for

funds that are unfortunately not available.

Various ministries and organization are responsible for activities in the Okda/Tellin region. As soon as a

number of ministries are involved, decision making needs time. To make short term actions possible, the

proposed actions are mainly within the responsibilities of the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation,

which covers the drain, including the banks.

Law 48 (1982) forbids the discharge of partly cleaned wastewater, but does not prevent the discharge of

untreated waste water which is daily practise. The proposed actions will benefit the water quality in

watercourses, but the results are probably not always good enough to be in compliance with Law 48/1982.

This EMP will be adopted by MWRI, one of the main proponents of Law 48/1982, so there is an opportunity

that a policy dialogue can be initiated between different stakeholders to highlight the benefits of the

recommended interventions and, hence, agree on a framework to allow such interventions for piloting

purposes in this project. It is envisaged that the PCU will guide MWRI to start such dialogue (internally and

with other stakeholders) to allow for implementing the recommended interventions.

Drains are used for both the discharge of waste water and the discharge of solid waste (including sludge).

To improve the water quality in the drain, it will be necessary to solve the two existing waste problems, which

asks for an integrated approach.

Measures proposed are collection of the solid waste. With a limited fee (4 LE/household/month) collection

and discharge in a landfill can be organized. Reuse of the organic fraction (50% of solid waste) by making it

a resource for compost and recycling of other components (e.g. plastic, paper and metals and selling these

materials are a potential source for financing.

A challenge is the combination of composting of biomass from solid waste and the use of the sludge coming

from septic tanks and the planned treatment in Tellin and biomass (straw) from agriculture. Sludge drying

fields have to be made on which composting will be also an activity. The produced compost can be used in

agriculture as fertilizer and soil improver.

The Solid Waste Feasibility Study found that there are many obstacles in identifying land for waste recovery

and composting. It is very difficult to having this land available, preferably far from residential area. In this

study, the Faddan area and the area on the bank of the drain near the water treatment plant of Kafr El

Robe’Ma’a were identified as suitable to start a first pilot.

The wastewater of individual houses/farms and small settlements can be treated in small septic tanks,

followed by infiltration in a constructed wetland. They can be constructed on the land of the waste water

producer or constructed on the bank of the drain. This may be prefab tanks (costs LE 1000 /tank1, but also

locally constructed septic tanks (LE 300/ tank1)). The cleaned water can be discharged to the drain, or

reused. On such a way the pressure to the drain can be fully reduced. It is advised to promote a mechanism

with funding and technical assistance to implement these measures.

For villages the situation can be improved by improving the existing septic tanks, building large septic tanks

connected to the sewer system and connecting households to the sewer system. This will reduce the organic

load to the drain with 50%.

For the villages in the Tellin area a more extensive plan is described. In the original plan, the waste water of

these villages will be collected and treated in a decentral WWTP, which will be designed by HCWW (e.g.

Anaerobic Baffled Reactor). This plant has to remove 75% of the load (expressed as BOD). Because

finances are lacking this WTTP has been replaced by a sedimentation tank just before the constructed

1 Rough estimate



wetland. Although less effective than the original combination, the sedimentation follows by the constructed

wetland has to be considered as the best solution that can be constructed on the moment. A facility to dry

the produced sludge should be part of the plan. The banks and the drain of the Tellin drain will be designed

as a constructed wetland having vertical and horizontal elements.

Primary treatment, constructed wetland and a solution for sludge are the elements of the plan. The instream

wetland as presented in other reports is not applicable as the only waste water treatment in the Tellin

situation. The water hyacinth has too many disadvantages. Capacity is also expected to be too limited in the

specific situation. It is better to talk about constructed wetlands, which includes more efficient vertical filters

that can be constructed on the bank of the drain. These system increase the capacity and is used in the

design.

The bank of the drain fulfils an essential role in the plans described. If things can be realized on the bank,

all responsibilities are within MWRI. On the moment these banks are used to deposit solid waste. This waste

has to be removed and brought to a definitive location. A rough estimate of this amount will be around 30.000

m3. It is expected to be difficult to find a location large enough for all this waste. A controlled landfill in the

desert might be a proper solution. The Faddan area can be a proper place for transhipment. On the moment

the solid waste of this site is already transported to the desert in large trucks. Use can be made of this facility.

Smaller trucks can be used to collect the waste from the bank, because large trucks will destroy the local

roads.

The proposed methods are simple and cheap. Costs are comparable with fees paid at the moment.

Conclusions

The function of an Environmental Management Plan is to be the link between impacts predicted and the

mitigation measures and implementation and operation measures. Regarding the solid waste and waste

water, the environmental quality in the Okda/ Tellin region can be considered as very bad. Solutions that can

be realized on the short term are available.

1. It is possible to improve the environmental quality in the coming years by setting-up a solid waste

collection system including a destination of the waste. Discharge on a landfill is possible and costs

of collection and discharge can be paid by a monthly fee of the inhabitants. More sustainable is a

separation system and selling the recyclable fractions and compost the organic biowaste. If well-

organized this may even cover the costs.

2. Agricultural biowaste of farmers, especially rice-straw, is often burned and causes an air pollution

problem even in Cairo. This biowaste can be considered as an important resource for farmers, It

can be composted and improve fertility and reduces the need for fertilizers.

3. To improve the water quality in the drain, a solution is worked out for the Tellin drain. After a primary

treatment in a sedimentation tank, the water is led in a constructed wetland in the drain. The sludge

can be reused in agriculture. At the end of the wetland it is predicted that 30-58 % of BOD will be

removed. Although this might not be sufficient, this solution can be realized in the short term and is

therefore the best choice for the moment. If it becomes possible to realize a WWTP in the area, the

constructed wetland will be still have a function in polishing the water and the water will become

more suitable for reuse.

4. To enable the use of the drain for a constructed wetland, but also as measure to improve the

environmental quality it is necessary to remove all the waste disposed on the banks. This amount is

estimated on 30,000 m3.



In all four situations, it is necessary to do something with the solid material, biowaste, sludge and agricultural

biowaste. Biowaste can be composted and reused in agriculture. Sludge can also be composted, but can

also be dried on beds and reused in agriculture, comparable with the situation in many European countries.

The sludge in the Okda/Tellin region is suitable for reuse, because it is all domestic and polluting industries

are absent. However an area is necessary to do the required activities in compost piles or drying beds. If the

necessary area does not become available, biowaste and sludge have to be discharged into landfills, which

has to be considered as a waste of resources (nutrients and organic matter). In this project two suitable

areas have been identified to be used in the first pilot, he Faddan area and the area near the WTTP at Kafr

Ar-Rubumayah. Small size composting and drying fields can be organized on the banks of the drain.

As long as activities are limited to the drain and the bank MWRI is the responsible ministry with EPADP as

operating organization. This means that the activities around the waste water treatment as described for the

Tellin area can be organized. Improvement of the primary treatment will need cooperation with HCWW. For

the solid waste more organizations have to be involved.



1. Introduction

1.1 Project Background

The Enhanced Water Resources Management Project (EWRMP) aims at introducing Integrated Water

Resources Management (IWRM) in Egypt. The major challenge of the EWRMP is to achieve commitment

of all major stakeholder agencies to work together in the context of IWRM pilots. This will require extensive

efforts in consensus building, clarity of roles and responsibilities, building awareness and commitment, and

highlighting the inter-linkages between water resources management, solid waste management, sanitation,

pollution control, hydraulic efficiency, and improved public health and productivity. This will require not just

normal awareness activities and training but also lobbying and at times conflict resolution. This implies that

the EWRMP has to initiate and guide multi-stakeholders dialogue to mobilize active participation of

stakeholders at the local and national levels.

The overall objective of the EWRMP is to establish the basis for scaling up investments through the

government’s IWRM programme and contribute significantly to pollution control and improved ecosystem

health of the Mediterranean Sea. The successful operationalization of the IWRM approach and principles in

the pilot schemes should demonstrate the benefits of synergy of the on-going World Bank co-financed

investment projects (IIIMP, NDP2 and ISSIP) and will likely be replicated in the Nile Delta, which will result

in increased water use efficiency and availability for reuse and improved water quality, health status,

productivity and living conditions of the poor. The improved surface water quality will eventually reduce the

pollution load of Nile water flowing into the Mediterranean Sea.

The Project Development Objectives (PDO) are:

• To pilot IWRM in the Nile Delta, and

• To enhance the knowledge and capacity of water sector institutions for IWRM in Egypt.

The Project promotes the IWRM principles and practices through:

• Awareness raising, institutional and capacity strengthening and demonstration activities in

selected pilot schemes in the Nile Delta to improve the coordination among WUAs; and

• Technical assistance (TA) on targeted studies, capacity building, training, and provision of

equipment to strengthen the capacity and knowledge of the national institutions in the water

sector and to improve the national water resources monitoring networks.

1.2 Rationale of the Environmental Management Plans

The indicative logical framework (log frame) of the Project is presented in the following Figure 1. A

comprehensive log frame was prepared during the Inception Phase, which includes detailed project activities

(inputs), objectively verifiable outputs, results, purpose and goal. The latter three categories are translated

into outcome and impact indicators within the EWRMP Results Oriented M&E Plan. One of the major impacts

related to activities and results (#2), conducting EMPs for three pilot areas namely: Nekla/Menesi,

Okda/Tellin and Khadrawia.



This document presents the Environmental Management Plan (EMP) for Okda/Tellin pilot scheme. The

extent and function of the EMP has been discussed in the respective project documents, the WB Project

Appraisal Document (PAD), the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the TA Consulting services, and the Technical

Proposal (TP of the TA Consultant). In the Inception Report of the TA Consultancy services, the EMPs have

been further explained and defined.

Figure 1: EWRMP Logical Frame



1.3 General Description of Okda/Tellin Pilot Area

The Okda/Tellin Pilot Area is located in the Sharkeia Governorate, administered by Menia and Kamh

Zaqaziq local units, some 40 km north of Cairo. The area is served by two drains, Okda Drain with a

length of about 10 km serving an area of 4,942 feddan (2,075 ha) and with a population of 70,000; and

Tellin Drain with a length of 5.7 km, serving an area of 2,515 feddan (1,056 ha), and a population of

about 60,000. The pilot area includes a number of small to medium-sized villages, the largest of which

are Al-Tibin (>15,000 pop) and Bandaf (10,000-15,000 pop) (Figure 2 and Figure 3). The pilot area is

mostly used for agriculture purposes.

Figure 2: Villages discharging into Okda and

Tellin drains Figure 3: Present pollution load

1.4 Potential Environmental Pressure

Key environmental problems are the absence of a sewage collection network and wastewater treatment

units, as well as improper solid waste management practices which results in untreated sewage being

discharged directly into drains, pollution of land, surface and ground waters; impacts on human and

livestock health; clogging of drains by solid waste; and loss of agricultural area.

The following systems are used to discharge wastewater

• 13.9% is using a public sewage network

• 28.0% is using a public sewage network

• 6.4% has a direct pipeline to the drain

• 51.7% is using a septic tank.



The septic tank is used as a storage tank and has to be emptied on a regularly basis. The content is

discharged into the drain. All sewage systems and pipelines are also leading to the drain which means

that all waste water find it final destination in the drain.

In the absence of a formal monitoring programme for the study drains (Okda and Tellin), EPADP has

carried out two sampling events during May and October 2014. The measurements of key water quality

parameters along the drains show low DO levels (dips below 1.0 mg/l at times) and high BOD, TDS and

turbidity. Total coliform levels were much higher than the guidelines posed by Law 48/1982. All are

symptoms of organic loading from untreated wastewater. No significant industrial discharges were

recorded. In the Tellin drain 100% of the sewage is discharged in the drain, in the Okda drain this is

84% due to the presence of a private treatment in Kafr Ar-Rubumayah (Figures 2 and 3).

The analysed data reveal symptoms of sewage contamination in Okda drain, particularly right at the

start of the drain arising from untreated/partially treated sewage draining into the drain from Izbit AL

Jibali and others. Pollution load decreases afterwards, especially due to the presence of a wastewater

treatment plant (WWTP) treating the wastewater of Kafr Erobamaa (population about 5,000).

The main pollution load arises from larger settlements such as Tellin and Abou Twalla. The DO levels

drop significantly downstream of these villages and the BOD level increases concurrently, signifying

untreated waste being dumped. Tellin village has currently a wastewater collection system and a lift

station (under construction) that will pump collected wastewater for treatment in a WWTP (in tendering).

This will reduce the pollution load of the drain significantly (nearly 40% of the population dumping into

the drain lives in Tellin village).

Drainage water is being reused for irrigation purposes in the area during peak agricultural water demand.

The measured TDS levels in the drain are acceptable for irrigation purposes showing that treatment of

waste water and improving the quality of water in drains will be profitable for agriculture

In the catchment of the Okda/Tellin pilot area there is no formal solid waste collection system in place.

As a result much of the solid waste ends up in canals and drains.

In conclusion: The situation in the area is comparable with the situation in many other areas in Egypt.

We think it is not necessary to refine the assessment. This assessment and other research of DRI show

that the load of waste water and waste on the drains is too high and the water quality is bad and poor.

It will be important to reduce the environmental pressure to the drains, but also to the irrigation canals

and subsurface water.

1.5 The Okda and Tellin Environmental Management Plan

1.5.1 Environmental Management Plan Objectives

The Environmental Assessment UPDATE (World bank, 1999) gives the following summary of an

Environmental Management Plan (EMP):

Prediction of the potential adverse environmental and social impacts arising from development

interventions is at the technical heart of the environmental assessment (EA) process. An equally

essential element of this process is to develop measures to eliminate, offset, or reduce impacts

to acceptable levels during implementation and operation of projects. The integration of such

measures into project implementation and operation is supported by clearly defining the

environmental requirements within an environmental management plan (EMP).



EMPs provide an essential link between the impacts predicted and mitigation measures

specified within the EA report, and implementation and operational activities. They outline the

anticipated environmental impacts of projects, the measures to be undertaken to mitigate these

impacts, responsibilities for mitigation, timescales, costs of mitigation, and sources of funding.

This Update provides an introduction to mitigation measures and EMPs, identifies the policy

framework for preparing EMPs for Bank financed activities, outlines the main components of

EMPs, and discusses means to ensure that commitments within the EMP are carried through

to implementation and operation.

In essence, an EMP has the function to minimize negative impacts of projects. It is site specific and

adds value at pilot scale level. This project is designed to reduce the negative effects of uncontrolled

discharge of waste water and others such as solid waste. The present situation is very bad for the

environment and human health. Activities to improve the situation will mostly result in a better

environment and less risks for human health. Compared to the strategy of ‘DOING NOTHING’ and leave

the situation as it is, an evaluation of most action will result in an improvement of the situation.

The environmental management plan is a follow up of the environmental assessment. From the

environmental assessment (Chapter 2) it can be concluded that the drains are heavily contaminated

and measures are necessary. Unacceptable contamination is caused by the uncontrolled discharge of

solid waste and waste water. In principle mitigation measures are simple, stop the discharge of waste

and waste water. This can be organized by collection, controlled discharge, treatment and reuse the

valuable parts of the waste.

Europe and the USA have shown that further development can go together with a clean environment.

Organizational and technological solutions are available. It should however be realized that the industrial

development has caused a very bad environment in Europe in the first period. In the 19th century the

canals in Amsterdam were collection canals of waste. A long time was necessary to solve all the

environmental problems. Awareness of the population in the second half of the 20th century has led to

nation-wide approaches on the treatment of waste and wastewater. In Europe, solutions are available

and can be copied in Egypt.

This EMP has the intention to really improve the situation in the Okda Tellin Region. In this environmental

plan we do an analysis of the reason we are in this infinite circle and come to a proposal to break this

circle within the objectives of EWRMP projects. The effects of the different realistic improvement will be

discussed. Realistic means applicable on the short term. To do this it is necessary to set priorities in

these realistic improvements.

1.5.2 Environmental Management Plan Phases

The EMP comprises three main phases and more details will be presented in the following sections.

Phase I

Phase I of the EMP started with a rapid scoping and bounding exercise to identify the topics and areas

of influence which are significant in environmental terms, with particular reference to rural sanitation,

solid waste and other pollution issues (this phase have been covered mostly through EA process for

Okda/Tellin pilot area including:

� assess the problems of solid waste and sullage/sewage disposal;

� conduct a rapid appraisal by use of a household survey questionnaire - of (a) current local

practices and (b) local attitudes to waste and wastewater disposal, including assessment of the

degree of awareness of the issues and the problems facing the local communities;



� by limited sampling and measurements provide an indicative assessment of drains & canals

water quality, shallow groundwater depths in selected villages or settlements;

� identify the health aspects of water-related diseases, specifically those resulting from poor water

quality related to poor sanitation conditions, in farmers’ fields and in villages and other populated

areas;

� identify and assess any other impacts of the project (e.g. impacts of construction activities,

impacts on mosquito and other insect nuisance);

Phase II

In the light of the results of Phase I, the aim of Phase II is to formulate and obtain proposal on a program

of mitigation measures, pollution reduction measures and possibly other environmental enhancements

in conjunction with the relevant stakeholders. It is envisaged that this involved the following tasks:

� identify the concerned agencies, authorities and organizations and review their relevant roles

and responsibilities ;

� identify any major gaps in the existing environmental data, or problems of data availability;

� formulate preliminary recommendations with indicative cost estimates for the actions and

measures to be managed by MWRI/EWRMP for a program of environmental mitigation and

enhancement measures and related activities.

Phase III

The scope of activities in Phase III will depend on the outcome of Phases I and II. Phase III will

include the implementation of the recommended intervention and the other mitigation measures

formulated in Phase II that rely on MWRI/EWRMP.

1.5.3 To a real plan

The following approach can be used:

1. Awareness of the problem; contamination

2. Environmental assessment

3. Selection of solution

4. Implementation of solutions

5. Improve the environment conditions

However, in Egypt the approach stops at 4. Environmental management plans have been made for

several regions in Egypt during last decades and may be even for the same region as considered in this

project. Instead of the step-wise procedure leading to a solution, we are in an infinite circle (Figure 4).

This figure was made for sanitation, but the same can be made for others like solid waste problems. In

the past several plans have been made, but no real actions did occur and in a few years the procedure

starts again. In the present way of working the drains are contaminated and will be contaminated in

future in other words,” if you do what you did, you get what you got”.



Figure 4: The assessment circle. Presented by Harmsen and Rifaat on the SWIM-conference

(Sharm El Sheik, 2014)

There are several reason to be in the circle.

Availability of money in combination with a lower priority for the rural area are the first reasons to stay

in the circle, which reasons are also valid in other countries.

There are also more, specific Egyptian reasons.

• Doing something with waste water and solid waste asks for an available area, which is not

available. Combination with other functions can be a solution or the government has to take

decisions to make land available.

• Responsibilities related to the issue of waste water and solid waste are divided and/or unclear

and organization do not always have the possibilities to take their responsibility.

• A regulatory reason is Law 48/1982. This law does not forbid to discharge waste water into the

drain. It sets criteria to discharge treated waste water, which makes it impossible to use simpler

and cheaper methods for treatment. In other words discharging 100% of the load in waste water

is allowed, but removal of for instance 60% of the load and discharge the residual 40% is not

allowed, if this amount does not fulfil the criteria of Law 48/1982.

The reaction on the absence of implementation are mostly questions on monitoring and assessment,

the right part of the circle. This will only lead to more procrastination and will not change the conclusions

that the drains are heavily contaminated and action is necessary. The circle can only be broken by

working on the left side of the circle.

• Look for affordable methods to improve the water quality of the drain;

• Find land or make land available;

• Work with institutions that are able to take their responsibility;

• Discuss the undesired effect of Law 48 on the proper level.

_________________________________________________________________________

On the meeting of the Water District Board in Khadrawia (August 31, 2015), the

chairman Hag/ Mohamed Mohamed Bakr summarized the way to solutions as

follows:

• We need alternatives for the way we treat waste water and solid waste;

• We need authority to be able to implement solutions;

• We need a change of attitude, awareness on all levels;

• And especially for the last point, volunteers are present to support.

Participants on this meeting mentioned a sewage system as first priority to

improve the situation

It is assumed that the conclusions of Hag/ Mohamed Bakr are also valid for the

Okda/Tellin region.



In this Environmental Management Plan the focus is on the alternatives mentioned by Hag/ Mohamed

Mohamed Bakr: on realistic treatment of waste water and solid waste and to organize this within known

responsibilities. Results can be used to in activities to increase the awareness in the region by offering

a realistic plan for the coming years. The effects of the different realistic improvement will be discussed.

Realistic means applicable on the short term. To do this it is necessary to set priorities in these realistic

improvements.

1.5.4 Approach of the Environmental Management Plan

As mentioned, the intention of this EMP is to come to real follow up and to improve the situation in the

study area. A situation as realized in Europe cannot be achieved in a few years. Europe also has

needed several decades. A Step wise approach is necessary having in mind that financial resources

are limited.

Steps must be realistic making use of local conditions. As a variation of Pareto’s rule we used the

principle that with 20% of the necessary investment, you can have 80% of the desired result. Translated

to waste water treatment this means that with low investments (20%) it is possible to remove 80% of the

contamination in the water. 20% of the contaminants are left and it will take the other 80% of the

investment to remove these. Regarding the limited available funds, we choose for using these funds for

removal of 80% of the contaminants.

In a step wise approach it is easy to describe the last step. After this step all waste is collected followed

by reuse or safe discharge and all waste water is collected and cleaned almost completely before

discharge. This needs an appropriate organization, but moreover, the costs are about LE2000/

inhabitant/year. Having the appropriate organization is a matter of decision making, it needs efforts, but

it is possible. Having LE2,000/ inhabitant/year in Egypt is not realistic. Therefor this EMP is limited to

steps that can be taken in the coming 5 years. To reach the final goal, control on all waste streams, we

consider the following steps:

Step I The Environmental Assessment Process, which has taken place already and reported

Step II The current report formulate the realistic mitigation measures plan for the coming 5 years

Step III The implementation phase of the measures formulated in this report

To reach the final goal, a clean environment more steps will be are necessary in future.

Step IV Formulating mitigation measures for following 5 years

Step V The implementation phase of the measures formulated for second 5 year period

Etc.

In this report we present phase 2 the EMP for the Okda/Tellin pilot, including step I and step II, and:

• Summarize the main findings from the field investigations carried out and the assessment of the

existing environmental conditions in specifically this pilot project area,

• List and elaborate on the proposed pilot project interventions as identified in the Environmental

Assessment Report and conducted feasibility studies, aiming at improving environmental

conditions in the pilot project area,

• Assist the Planning Department of the EPADP with a recommended framework for further

action.



The present EMP has been based on the following studies that were conducted under EWRMP or by

others:

• Water quality surveys conducted under EWRMP for the Environmental Assessment in the

Okda-Tellin pilot area – May and October 2014,

• Wastewater survey conducted under EWRMP, 2014,

• Design of an in-stream wetland system under EWRMP, ongoing,

• Feasibility Study of Solid Waste Management Component in Tellin, Abu Towala, Kafr El-

Dair, and Sanetat Abu Towala Villages Minya Al-Qamh, Sharqia Governorate – December

2014.

• Design of instream wetlands for the Khadrawia EMP, Prof. Alaa Eo-Zawahry - January 2008

and BoQ & Costs.

• Report about EWRMP Questionnaire on Environnemental Impact Assessment on El Okda

drain Mania Elkamh district- Skarkia governorate.

The following reports were published during the preparation of this EMP and are used

• Enhanced Water Resources Management Project – Egypt Environmental and Social Impact

assessment (ESIA) for Instream wetland in Okda/Tellin Pilot Area

• Enhanced Water Resources Management Project – Egypt. Feasibility Study of the Solid

Waste Management (SWM) Pilot in Okda/Tellin – Sharqia

• Enhanced Water Resources Management Project – Egypt. Constructed Wetland in Channel

(CWC) Tellin Drain

1.6 Report Structure

The purpose of this report is discuss, with adequate level of details, the improvement plans concluded

from the Environmental Management Plan (EMP) – Phases (1) and (2) applied to Okda/Tellin pilot area.

The reports comprises of Nine Chapters as briefed below:

• Chapter 1 deals with general introduction about the EWRMP project, and environmental

management plan.

• Chapter 2 presents the environmental assessment and the defined needs concluded from

the EMP – Phase I activities.

• Chapter 3 covers water pollution impact on health risk of the people living in the pilot area

and compared to other catchments in the District focusing on water related diseases.

• Chapter 4 handles the Stakeholders Consultation, which discussed the environmental

issues of concern, the recommended actions and the responsible entities, the importance

of their participation, and their potential roles in improving the environmental situation.

Moreover, it discusses the potential success and the foreseen risks, challenges and

difficulties that may encounter the improvement intervention actions regarding the nine main

environmental issues, which were defined in the Stakeholders Consultation Workshop of

Chapter 4.

• Chapter 5 presents a description of Mitigation Measures Plan by MWRI/EWRMP, starting

with the scope of EWRMP concerned measures.

• Chapter 6 reviews the approach and EWRMP mitigation measures implementation.

• Chapter 7 is dedicated to the design of the constructed wetland including a primary

treatment for sedimentation. Because it is a big activity, the chapter includes an

Environmental and Social Impact Assessment.

• Chapter 8 presents the cost & feasibility of the proposed measures to be implemented by

MWRI/EWRMP as a leading entity and other potential entities as well. Moreover, it shows

the time schedule for the implementation plan.

• Chapter 9 presents the institutional setup and potential sources of fund for the proposed

measures.

• Chapter 10 presents the outline of the monitoring & evaluation program to evaluate the

performance of the proposed implemented measures.



• Chapter 11 contains de most important conclusions of this EWRMP activity

• Chapter 12 mentions the reference reviewed for the completion of the EMP.



2. Environmental Assessment and Needs

2.1 Waste water

Key environmental problems are the absence of an area covering sewage collection network and

wastewater treatment units, as well as improper solid waste management practices which results in

untreated sewage being discharged directly into drains, pollution of land, surface and ground waters;

impacts on human and livestock health; clogging of drains by solid waste; and loss of agricultural area.

In the absence of a formal monitoring programme for the study drains (Okda and Tellin), EPADP has

carried out two sampling events during May and October 2014. The measurements of key water quality

parameters along the drains show low DO levels (dips below 1.0 mg/l at times) and high BOD, TDS and

turbidity. Total coliform levels were much higher than the guidelines posed by Law 48/1982. All are

symptoms of organic loading from untreated wastewater. No significant industrial discharges were

recorded.

The ESIA-study for the Tellin area showed:

• 13.9% of households is connected to a public sewage network

• 28.0% is connected to a private network

• 6.4% has a direct pipeline to the drain

• 51.7% makes use of septic tanks

The septic tanks are not working as treatment, but more as storage tank. They are emptied regularly

and the content is discharged into the drain. Also the sewage systems discharge into the drain, which

means that 100% of the waste water has the drain as final destination. In the Okda drain this is 84%

due to the presence of a private treatment in Kafr Ar-Rubumayah (Figure 2). Probably more, because

the WWTP has not sufficient capacity to treat all water.

The analysed data reveal symptoms of sewage contamination in Okda drain, particularly right at the

start of the drain arising from untreated/partially treated sewage draining into the drain from Izbit AL

Jibali and others. Pollution load decreases afterwards, especially due to the presence of a wastewater

treatment plant (WWTP) treating the wastewater of Kafr Erobamaa (population about 5,000).

The main pollution load arises from larger settlements such as Tellin and Abou Twalla (Figure 2). The

DO levels drop significantly downstream of these villages and the BOD level increases concurrently,

signifying untreated waste being dumped. Tellin village has currently a wastewater collection system

and a lift station (under construction) that will pump collected wastewater for treatment in a WWTP. This

will reduce the pollution load of the drain significantly (nearly 40% of the population dumping into the

drain lives in Tellin village). However this WWTP will not be realized on the short term because of not

sufficient funds.

The WWTP was intended to be built between sampling points 4 and 9. This will reduce the load of waste,

but it should be realised that the drain is already heavily contaminated at point 4. Yasmin Nassar

(Personal Communication, 2015) has evaluated the water quality in the Tellin drain. She also observed



that the first part of the Tellin drain is clean. After first discharges after sampling point 3, the quality

becomes worse and heavily contaminated (Figure 5).

Figure 5: Sampling point and water quality in Tellin drain

Later lab analyses regarding the water quality for Tellin drain were reported and confirm this situation.

Point 10 can be comparable with previous points, but is some times more clean. Dilution with drainage

water from agricultural origin can be the reason. An example is given in Figure 6.

Figure 6: Water quality results for Tellin drain 2015

An important precondition of an instream wetland is a sufficient flow in the water in order to support the

uptake of oxygen by the water. Observation at the drain has shown that the flow is limited.

• On august 23 a small flow was observed (highest after second cover). On august 30 no flow

was observed after first cover and after the second cover the flow was much slower. On both

days the flow was too low to have a function in aeration;

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

BOD mg/l

COD mg/l

CFUx10000/100 ml



• In Mid-term Review Mission, November 9 to 20, 2014 it was mentioned that the water level in

at the end of Tellin drain was low);

• Calculation of Alterra using SIWARA has shown that this part of the Delta has water stress,

especially in summer because rice area have priority in summer (Roest, personal

communication). In the area farmers use the drain water for irrigation. A limited amount of

irrigation water is going to the area and consequently the amount of drainage water is also less;

• It is not possible to check the conditions of the drain in the covered area. There may be illegal

connections and blockage. Blockage will reduce the flow, but also increase the water table of

the groundwater.

All together it can be concluded that the there is a limited water flow in the drain. Consequences are 1)

the design presented in Figure 10 will give limited aeration. Reed is a more active aerator of water

(hollow steams) and can be more effective. 2) The decrease of BOD in the drain is a result of

biodegradation and dilution by clean water from agriculture flowing to the drain. Because the latter is

low, the effect of dilution is low. On the other hand, if sufficient oxygen can be provided, more

degradation is possible because the residence time will be larger. It is possible to increase the amount

of water in the drain by its design (deepening and widening). In case of widening, less area will be

available for other activities as presented in this report

After reviewing all available analysis, it is concluded that:

• The results of all analysis are comparable. Low contamination in points 1; 2 and 3.

• Strong contamination after the first discharge of waste water before point 4 and following points.

• Decrease of contamination after point 9. This probably caused by dilution with drainage water

from the agricultural fields. The EC in point 10 also drops. From the EC values of 1; 2 and 3 I

conclude that the EC of drainage water is lower than the EC of waste water. The increase of pH

in point 10 also suggests presence of more drainage water.

• The low concentrations of oil and crease show that no small industries discharge waste water

• TDS follows COD and BOD, increase after point 4.

The bad water quality was confirmed during a field visit on August 23, 2015. Tellin drain started clean

and even fish was growing to be used for consumption. Already after a few km the quality was bad

(black water). The Okda drain was already contaminated from the beginning due to discharge of waste

water. Based on visual observation it is expected that no or a very low amount of oxygen will be present

in the water of both drains (except first part of Tellin drain).

Drainage water in last part of the Tellin drain is already structural used for irrigation purposes, because

no other water is available. This structural reuse may be the reason of the low flow in the drain. In the

report on the Mid-term Review Mission, November 9 to 20, 2014 it was mentioned that the water level

in the receiving drain (at the end of Tellin drain) may be higher or equivalent to the water in the Tellin

drain, which may be also an indication of the low flow (discharge) in the drain. Also water from the Okda

drain is reused for irrigation (Picture 1).



Picture 1: Reuse of water from Okda Drain, August 2015

______________________________________________________________________________

In conclusion: The situation in the area is comparable with the situation in many other areas in

Egypt. It is not necessary to refine the assessment. The assessment shows that the load of waste

water and solid waste on the banks of the drains is too high and the water quality is bad and

poor. It will be important to reduce the environmental pressure to the drains, but also to the

irrigation canals and subsurface water.

______________________________________________________________________________

2.2 Sludge

Treatment of waste water will deliver sludge. On the moment the only treatment is the use of septic

tanks. Sludge from the tanks has to be removed on regular basis. The owner of the tank pays for removal

(LE 20-80 /month). In practice this sludge is discharged into the drain, thereby reducing the positive

effect of the septic tank on the contaminant load.

Sludge can be reused in agriculture and is a good resource for the production of compost. If reuse is

not possible it has to be considered as solid waste.

It should be realized that large amounts of sludge are produced. Only for the Tellin area for which a

treatment is designed 25 ton of dry sludge is produced daily (35,000 inhabitant with each 100l/day

containing 0.7 g/l solid material). On wet base this will be more than 50 m3. After drying it will be approx.

25 m3.

1.1 Solid waste

A survey was conducted under this project to quantify the different categories of Municipal Solid Waste

(MSW) in the pilot area and to evaluate the current status of solid waste management (details are in the

ESIA report for Okda and Tellin).

At present only 20% of the families use solid waste collection services provided by an NGO. The current

system of street cleaning in the four villages is as follows:

� Public streets are swept by residents and outputs of the sweeping are placed in bags or cartons.

Some residents burn waste in the streets or dump it on the banks of canals and drains; causing

the problem of environmental pollution.

� Cleaning may be done daily, however, clean streets are few.

� Alleys and clogged roads are swept by residents.

� Collected waste is placed in accumulation places for burning.



� There are many accumulations of buildings debris in the streets.

� There are accumulations of waste in some areas at the village level.

� Wastes are collected in the four villages twice a week, if being part of the NGO activities.

� Most of residents of the four villages and shops are dissatisfied with the collection and disposal of

garbage carried out by NGOs because of the problems facing the NGOs. There are no garbage bins,

which leads to the accumulation of garbage in the streets and drains and increases bad impact on

the environment.

Each family produces 10 kg of solid waste per week (Chemonics Egypt Consultants, 2014). For the

whole area, this means 260 ton/week having a density of 400 kg/m3 is forming 650 m3 of waste. If this

waste is landfilled on one feddan, it will give a layer of 8 m in one year. Compacting and biodegradation

processes will reduce the thickness of this layer, but reuse and not landfilling will be more effective. 50%

of the waste is organic matter, which can be composted. The compost can be used in agriculture as soil

improver and fertilizer. Next step is removing of the recyclable materials (24%) from the waste.

Potentially there is a market for the separated products (Table 1). The total potential value of 1 ton of

waste is LE 659.

Table 1: Potential value of products in solid waste

Item

% of the recyclables in the collected amount

Sale Price of Recyclables (LE/Ton)

Value in 1 Ton (LE)

Plastic 12.10% 2200 266

Plastic Bags

26.60% 310 82

Cardboard 19.70% 700 138

Paper 4.20% 700 29

Baby Diapers

17.50% 310 54

Glass 8.60% 300 26

Tin 3.30% 1500 50

Fabric/cloth 7.70% 100 8

Bones 0.30% 2000 6

Total 100% 659

Most easy collection system for inhabitants and collection is a system with one bin. For reuse it will be

necessary to separate the waste after collection (manually) or to separate for instance after composting.

The latter will produce compost of lower quality compared to the compost of separately collected organic

waste. In Europe, compost is prepared from separately collected organic waste. Knowing that 50% of

the waste is organic waste and an explainable reuse of the compost, a system with two bins, one for

organic waste and one for the rest will be a good starting point. The organic waste will be composted

and the residual waste can be disposed on a controlled site or further separated and reused.

Separation at the source, in the households, has sense if the material can be reused. For instance in

The Netherland 80% of the paper in paper factories is produced from recycled paper. There is already

a long tradition in collection of the paper. In most villages the paper is collected by sport and cultural

clubs. From the profit, they pay activities for their members. Households collect their waste in 4 bins; 1)

organic waste, 2) plastic and other packings, 3) paper and 4) residual waste. The last one is the smallest

bin (Picture 2). 1), 2), and 3) are collected by municipality, 4) has to be brought to a central container in

the close neighbourhood. Chemical waste (batteries, oil, etc.) are collected separately from this system.



There is a special site for collection construction waste tires etc. To start a separate collection there

must be a market for the product. In Cairo reuse of waste is more developed. It has to be investigated

if this can be transferred to the investigated area.

Picture 2: Collection bins for solid waste in Utrecht, The Netherlands. 1) Organic waste, 2)

plastic and other packings 3) paper and 4) residual waste

On the moment, the area between roads and the drain is the main area to collect solid waste. To reduce

the volume, the waste is burned (Picture 3). Negative aspect of this burning is air pollution and the

residual waste will become contaminated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH).

The drains are cleaned every 6 months and the material is discharged on the bank. The contractor is

responsible for cleaning the drain and not for the banks. It is locally not clear who is responsible for the

bank. National Authorities do not take the responsibility. Locally, they also do not have the capacity

(material, cars people, and expertise) to take this responsibility. As mentioned in 2.3, the Ministry of

Water Resources and Irrigation is responsible for the banks of drains.

Picture 3: Burning of solid waste on the banks of a drain

The solid waste already disposed on different places in the area including bank of channels and drains

and in the drain has to be collected. This can be considered as an emerging activity. On the moment,

nobody will feel personally responsibility for this waste. Removal of this waste and safe disposal is a

public responsibility. For the public awareness this action will be important, because it immediately

shows the positive effects. The environment becomes clean and collection of new waste prevents new

contamination.



The amount present near the drains is very large. If we assume that every meter of bank is covered with

2 m3 of waste a total amount of 31,400 m3 is present in the area. If this is concentrated on 3 feddan of

land, it will give a layer of approximately 2.5 m. In future more area will be necessary for new produced

waste. Alternative is transport to a landfill in the desert which is 60-100 km away. Having a truck for 20

m3, more than 1500 transport will be necessary. Two transports a day and 250 working days means that

3 years will be necessary. Having two trucks will reduce the necessary time to 1.5 years.

Transport will also be necessary for the residual waste that cannot be reused. The same transport

system can be used for that. Transport can be reduced by maximizing reuse.

The project aims at directly collecting municipal solid waste (MSW) from an estimated number of 10,000

rural households in the four (4) villages of: Tellin, Abu-Towalah, Kafr-El-Deir, and Sanetat Abu-Towalah,

in Minya Al-Qamh District in Sharqia Governorate; transport collected waste to a small scale sorting and

treatment facility to extract recyclables and produce organic compost and RDF; and subsequently

transport the final waste rejects to a nearby municipal collection point (transfer station).

2.3 Biosolids from Agriculture

Agriculture produces large quantities of solid biomass, part of it is composted, but part of it is also

deposited on the banks of the drain (Picture 4). It is expectable that this waste will be burned. The

material visible in this figure is well suitable for composting, especially in combination with sludge.

After harvesting of rice, it is practise to burn the large quantities of straw, producing air pollution. This

not only noticeable in the area, but even in Cairo. Also this straw can be composted in combination with

sludge.

Picture 4: Biomass deposited on the bank of a drain

2.4 Drinking and Domestic Water Supply

The drinking water comes mainly from public sources; 94 percent of population gets drinking water from

public source, and 6 percent get water from groundwater, exception made by Kafr Boktor Saad where

drinking water for one-third of local population comes from groundwater.

The quality of drinking water was found fair by 70% of the responders, bad by 18% and good by the

remaining 12%. It was remarkable that the whole responders from Elrobbomaya and Ezbet Elzanaty,

found water quality bad however more than overall one-third confirmed that the quality of drinking water

is good.

Regarding the way to assess drinking water quality, around half of the responders assess the water

quality on colour change and the presence of sediments, more than one-fifth of responders assess water



quality by changing in smell, colour and taste in general, then less than one-fifth of responders assess

water quality by bad and laced with chlorine taste.

Around four-fifth of responders don't use filtration system, and 21 % use carbon (charcoal system) while

just people from Abo Twala village use bottled water and groundwater.

2.5 Sanitation Facilities

The sanitation facilities are very poor whereas there are no sewerage network or wastewater treatment

facilities. All villages within the scope of the pilot area are not connected to an operational wastewater

network that discharges the wastewater into a central treatment plant, except Kafr Ar-Rubumayah which

has a privately operated decentralized wastewater treatment plant that discharges into Okda drain

(Figure 77). As reported by the Tellin local unit officials the governorate wastewater network has been

almost completed for the Tellin area, yet the pumping station to transfer the wastewater into a central

treatment plant is not constructed yet. As already mentioned, about 50% of the surveyed households

discharge their wastewater into the drains (Tellin or Okda) either through a direct pipeline from the

household or through collection in a privately constructed network, and then discharge without treatment

into the drains. The remaining percentage (about 50%) of the surveyed households uses septic tanks.

About 70% of the households connected to sewer networks were not aware whether the networks finally

lead to WWTP, or when have they been connected to such network. All surveyed population indicated

that wastewater overflow is usually noticed within the villages’ streets. About 60% indicated that this

recurrent on daily and/or weekly basis.

All untreated wastewater finds its way to the pilot drains one way or the other and potentially pollutes

the high groundwater table.

Needs

� Proper sanitation system should be implemented in the community. Implement proper sanitation

system with WWTPs as soon as resources become available

� Avoid dumping solid waste in the drains

� Develop integrated solid waste collection system and recycling accepted by the community and

appropriate to socioeconomic and environmental conditions.

� Confirm the drinking water quality in most of the involved communities.

� Better communication to solve lack of sanitation facilities involving the communities and Government.

� Make people aware that good waste and waste water management will improve health. prevent

dead animals, pesticides containers and direct sewage disposal into canal



Figure 7: WWTP Service status in Okda/Tellin Pilot Scheme

2.6 Public Health

The common water related diseases in rural area include Malaria, Diarrhea, Intestine Worms, Skin

diseases and Belharzia. Most of the interviewed indicated that Belharzia and Diarrhea are the main

diseases affected family members over the last three years of available health data. More discussion is

offered within the next chapter, expressed devoted to this topic. See also picture 5, 6, 7 and 8.

Needs

� Design and conduct awareness campaign for village residents and farmers covering the following issues: o Solid waste disposal problems especially dead animals, pesticides containers and

direct sewage disposal into canal; o Health risk due to using polluted water for different uses; o Pesticides application, precaution and associated health risk. o Mitigation measure and precaution to be considered to alleviate environmental

pollution problems.

� Improve the health unit facilities within the project area



Picture 5: Dead Donkey and Garbage in the

Drain Picture 6: Algae Growth

Picture 7: Solid waste, covering the drain Picture 8: Wastewater discharges into the

drain



3. Water Pollution Impact on Health Risk

3.1 Rational of Health Risk Assessment

The water resources and domestic water supply projects need to satisfy specific conditions to safeguard

the public health and welfare of a community. The basic elements required to assure success of such

projects include safety (water quality), adequacy (quantity), dependability (continuity), and convenience.

To assure these two basic elements, careful attention must be paid to planning, design, construction,

operation, and maintenance of any water related project. A safe water supply is basic to the

management and control of waterborne diseases. Approximately 80 % of all diseases in the world are

considered to be related to the use of contaminated water.

One of the assessment tools within EA process is to conduct public health inventory for the Okda/Tellin

Pilot Scheme. The inventory exercise was conducted over the period between 2013, 2014 and 2015

(up to September) and summarized in this chapter.

3.2 Health Risks and Water

A wide range of syndromes can occur due to using contaminated water. This could be due to drinking

water, eating fresh crops, swimming in canal and farming practice. Generally, the diseases that are

associated with water may be grouped into four main categories. These categories include: waterborne

diseases, water-washed diseases, water-based diseases and water-related diseases. These categories

are presented in Figure 7 and briefly summarized below.

Waterborne diseases

Waterborne diseases are those infections that may be spread through a water supply system. Water

borne diseases can be bacterial, viral or parasitic origin. Water acts exclusively as a passive vehicle for

the pathogen that causes the diseases. Examples of some of these diseases include: typhoid fever,

cholera, giardiasis, dysentery, leptospirosis, tularemia, paratyphoid, and infective hepatitis.

Salmonella pathogens are generally found in municipal wastewaters. The Salmonella group includes a

great number of species that may initiate infections in human and his domestic pets. Salmonellosis in

man may be classified as: enteric fevers (e.g., typhoid fever), septicemia, and acute gastroenteritis.

Bacterial: Salmonella, Cholera

Viral: Hepatitis

Parasitic: Amoebiasis

Water Borne

Enteric: Diarrhoeas

Skin: Scabies

Louse Borne: Typhus

Water Washed

Crustacea: Paragonimiasis

Fish: Diphyllobothriasis

Shell: Schistosomiasis

Water Based

Mosquitoes: Malaria

Tsetse Flies: Trypanosomiasis

Black Flies: Onchocerciasis

Water Related

Diseases Associated with Water

Figure 8: Diseases associated with water quality



As a matter of fact, water borne diseases are not exclusively dependent upon water for their

transmission. Viruses are rapidly and more often transmitted through inter-human contacts. Their

presence in water in which they do not multiply is merely an indicator that they have already spread in

the community. Bacteria can use various routes of entry: contaminated food is a much more source of

infection than contaminated water.

Water washed diseases

Water washed diseases are those caused by a shortage of water for personal hygiene. The main

infections caused by this shortage of water are those that affect the body exterior surfaces, the eyes,

and the skin. Examples of the water-washed diseases include: bacillary dysentery, skin sepsis and

ulcers, conjunctivitis, trachoma, scabies, yaws, leprosy, tinea, louse-borne fevers, diarrheal diseases,

and ascariasis.

Diarrhea is a condition that produces watery or bloody stools that leads to a loss in weight. Diarrhea is

usually due to the ingestion of many enteric organisms that cause disease. Diarrhea may also be caused

by other non-enteric infections such as measles or even be caused by intestinal abnormalities not

related to infection such as lactose intolerance. These enteric organisms are usually transmitted through

excreta (human and animal) and may be ingested through contaminated drinking water, food, hands, or

other objects. The pathogenic organisms that may cause diarrhea may be bacteria, viruses, or

parasites. The transmission of diarrhea-causing pathogens may be reduced by improved excreta

disposal, increasing the amount of water for personal and domestic hygiene, improving the water quality,

promoting breast-feeding by mothers, and providing a safe food supply. Vaccine developments are

expected to reduce diarrheal diseases. Diarrhea is considered the main cause of the high morbidity and

mortality rates for children less than 5 years old. Diarrhea may lead to death in severe cases, especially

in children suffering from malnutrition. Some children suffer more than others, and they may have ten

or more episodes of diarrhea per annum.

Water-based and water related diseases

These categories are broad interest in irrigation and water resources projects. Two diseases are at the

forefront: malaria and schistosomiasis. Their dominance in risk forecasting is based on sound

epidemiological evidence.

Water-based diseases are considered as infections transmitted through an aquatic invertebrate host,

usually an animal. In other words, transmission occurs through an intermediate host that can be, for

example, the freshwater snail of schistosomiasis. An essential part of the life cycle of the infecting

organism takes place in this aquatic animal.

Examples of the water-based diseases include: schistosomiasis, guinea worm, and filariasis.

Schistosomiasis or bilharziasis (swimmer's itch) is a disease that is caused by the infection of the venous

system by trematodes of the genus Schistosoma. The disease is transmitted through the skin and it may

be accompanied by inflammation and itching. In most endemic communities the prevalence of the

infection is highest in 10 to 14 year-old children.

Water related diseases involve the proximity of water. The pathogen is transmitted by insects which

bread in water or bite near water. Mosquitoes are responsible for malaria and filariasis and yellow fever.

The mosquitoes breed mostly in highly polluted water such as stagnant open drains, poorly maintained

ponds, pit latrines, septic tanks, and soakaway pits. Filariasis is an infection that is conveyed by

nematode worms, which have different forms. The worms survive in the lymphatic ducts of man, and

the disease in an infected victim may block the lymphatic vessels. This condition ultimately leads to

swelling of the arms, legs, or genitalia, leading to deformity or elephantiasis.



4. Stakeholders Consultation and Measures Proposal

The inhabitants of the area experience the presence situation also as non-desired. This is described in

‘Report about EWRMP Questionnaire on environmental impact assessment’ by Sabah Khalifa (2015).

Results are summarized in this chapter.

4.1 Scooping of Stakeholders Consultation

The public consultation was conducted in 2014 as part of phase 1 of this project to validate the major

findings of reconnaissance survey and water quality information other environmental issues. Public

consultation enables better planned, projects, programs and services, facilitates effective collaboration

and knowledge sharing, enable greater opportunities of the stakeholders to contribute directly to

program development and supports early identification of synergies between stakeholder and

Government work, encouraging integrated and comprehensive solutions to complex policy issues.

It also assists in building partnerships through consent and transparency. The household questionnaire

is designed to reflect the information needed in terms of awareness, attitude and practice of residents

and householders within Okda/Tellin Pilot Scheme. The survey conducted in three phases during July

and August 2015.

• Preparatory activities;

• Survey implementation

• Data handling and processing

Topics related to Environmental Quality

� Quality of drinking water � Activities that may have the greatest negative effect on drain/drinking water quality (Pesticide

and fertilizer application, Industrial activities, urban wastewater, solid waste disposal, etc.… � Sources of household drinking water (e.g. groundwater well) � The quality of surface waters (canals, drains, streams, etc.…) � Water quantity (having enough water) as a problem in the area? � Sources of irrigation water � Which of the pollutants affect either surface or groundwater quality in the area (Pathogens,

Fertilizer, Pesticides, sewage) � Potential impacts from water pollution on: agriculture, health, etc.…..

Topics related to Wastewater Management

� Type of sewage system in the area � Disposal means of sewage � Environmental problems resulting from sewage (environmental, health, etc.…)

� Future plans related to sewage treatment



Topics related to Solid Waste Management

� Is there an organized waste collection and disposal system, if not what do they do with the

waste? � Method of household garbage disposal � Do they pay for solid waste management (if not, are they willing to pay?) � The current practices for solid waste management in the area � Main environmental/health problems related to solid waste management

4.2 Stakeholders Environmental Issues

4.2.1 Wastewater

Results showed that not all parts of the main city are serviced with the required infrastructure to address

sewage issues, particularly the smaller communities (Ezbas). Many villages discharge their sewage into

the nearby drains either through pipelines from households directly into the drains, or through private

sewage networks connect limited number of neighbouring households which eventually discharge the

collected sewage into the nearby drains. Large number of households uses septic tanks for disposal of

their domestic waste. Some of them use private contractors for emptying the septic tanks, which also

usually end up into the drains. The only village that has a sewage system is Robomeya village, where

the domestic wastewater is treated at a central treatment plant then discharged after treatment into

Okda drain.

4.2.2 Drinking and irrigation water

The source of drinking water is through the city network or from groundwater wells that are treated in

privately owned treatment units. As indicated by many attendees the quality of drinking water is not

satisfactory. This has been mainly attributed to the poor maintenance of the water networks. Regarding

irrigation water many attendees that there is frequent shortage in irrigation water supply. In addition, its

quality is generally not suitable for irrigation. As indicated by the attendees, this could be attributed to

the fact that quality of the main source of irrigation water is generally poor. Besides, shortage is attributed

to obstructions of the canals with solid waste that it dumped in and on the banks of the canals as well

as encroachments on the canals.

According to the CAPMAS statistics year book of 2007, the rate of water supply in Sharqia governorate

is about 74 liter/capita/day, which is considered less than the national average of about 120

liter/capita/day. The sources for drinking water in the pilot area are mainly surface water from Bahr

Ewees or groundwater wells.

Accordingly to the water supply and sanitation survey performed in the Okda and Tellin pilot area results

indicated that the source of potable water for about 91 % of the sample size is through the city network

and about 7% from groundwater sources through private wells

The majority of surveyed households indicated that the quality of drinking water is perceived to be

acceptable (about 70% of the sample size), whereas about 12% indicated that the quality of drinking

water is good and about 18% indicated that the water quality is perceived not acceptable. Water

coloration and presence of precipitates, smell and taste are the main parameters indicated by the

surveyed households as means of assessment of the drinking water quality in the area. Other measures

such as laboratory analysis were not considered as a tool for water quality assessment. Thus the

majority of households in the area do not use additional water purification measures at their homes

(such as filters, etc.).

As per the survey, the key problems related to drinking water quality were reported by representatives

of the different villages during the public consultation meeting carried out during the course of the

Okda/Tellin Environmental Assessment preparation phase. The key problems reported were the poor



maintenance and the deteriorated status of the pipelines which sometimes contributes to low water

quality. This also could sometimes result in mixing with wastewater due to corroded pipes and because

of the cross linking between the drinking water pipes and the septic tanks used as means of wastewater

disposal in the area. In addition, potential pollution of the main drinking water source (Bahr Ewees) is

also another reason for poor drinking water quality.

4.2.3 Wastewater collection and treatment

All villages within the scope of the pilot area are not connected to an operational wastewater network

that discharges the wastewater into a central treatment plant, except Kafr Ar-Rubamaah which has a

privately operated decentralized wastewater treatment plant that discharges into Okda drain (Figure 9).

It was reported by the Tellin local unit officials that governorate wastewater network has been almost

completed for the area, yet the pumping station to transfer the wastewater into a central treatment plant

is not constructed yet. About 50% of the surveyed households discharge their wastewater into the drains

(Tellin or Okda) either through a direct pipeline from the household or through collection in a privately

constructed network, and then discharge without treatment into the drains. The remaining percentage,

(about 50%) of the surveyed household, uses septic tanks. About 70% of the households connected to

sewer networks were not aware whether the networks finally lead to WWTP, or when have they been

connected to such network. All surveyed population indicated that wastewater overflow is usually noticed

within the villages’ streets. About 60% indicated that this recurrent on daily and/or weekly basis. Large

percentage of the surveyed households is not aware whether maintenance is carried out for the private

network or the septic tanks, while maintenance is not carried out periodically.

The cost of connection to the private networks ranges up to 600 L.E (capital costs) per household. No

monthly fees are paid for the services, whereas for households having septic tanks, the mostly common

monthly cost for tank cleaning ranges between 20-80 L.E/month per household. The survey results

revealed that more than 80% of the surveyed households prefer connection to public sewer networks

instead of private networks or septic tanks and for that the majority of surveyed households (about 76%)

are willing to pay for the wastewater services. The potential payments/fees proposed by the surveyed

households ranged from 5 L.E up to 100 L.E per month.

4.2.4 Solid waste management

There is no formal solid waste management system established for the area. Solid waste is usually

disposed of in the drains, on banks of irrigation canals and on the streets. A number of NGOs took the

imitative to establish a waste management system for monthly fees (about 7-10 L.E/month). It was

indicated during discussion, that joining the waste management service is not obligatory although the

service fees is considered acceptable by the attendees However, as reported by the attendees, a major

system weakness point is the lack of cooperation between the Governmental Organizations and the

Non-Governmental Organizations regarding enforcing the system components to encourage the whole

population to subscribe to the system. Another weakness reported by the attendees was the irregularity

in waste collection.

4.2.5 Responsibilities for waste collection

An important question was: who was willing to take responsibility of solid waste management. Results

are given in Figure 9. Most mentioned were the public sector and CDA, but large differences were

obtained from different villages.



Figure 9: Preference for taking the responsibility in the villages

4.2.6 Health issues related to environmental pollution

During all the discussions, attendees indicated the various diseases exist in the area mainly including

renal failure and hepatitis. However, during the discussions it was indicated that the attendees were not

aware of any available statistics/ records or documentation relating the existence of such health issues

with specific environmental pollutant. Moreover, attendees also indicated that there are no proper health

care services in the area that are qualified enough to carry out the required medical checks to relate

disease with pollution.

4.3 Stakeholders Proposed Mitigation Measures

The ultimate goal of the stakeholder consultation is to develop an outline environmental

improvement/enhancement plan proposed by the community (beneficiaries) and accepted by the

concerned official entities. By the end of consultation process, both groups were able to develop an

agreed the conceptual plan which is arranged according to the priority of implementation considering

the cost, timing, responsible entities. The following sections illustrate the outline of proposed mitigation

measures for Stakeholder consultations in 2014 with some updates regarding SWM in September, 2015.

The potential success and the foreseen risks, challenges and difficulties that may encounter these

actions are at some level discussed above. These improvement measures are within the main

environmental issues that were defined in the Stakeholders Consultation Workshop aforementioned,

namely (1) Drainage water quality, (2) Wastewater pollution, (3) Solid waste and (4) environmental

awareness. The above is also included in the Environmental Assessment prepared for this pilot.

4.3.1 Reduce wastewater pollution loads to pilot scheme

There is an urgent need to treat the domestic wastes from villages within Okda/Tellin pilot scheme. This

needs coordination between MWRI and NHUUD consider these villages as a priority in their plans.

4.3.2 Stop solid wastes dumping into water resources of Okda/Tellin pilot scheme

Irrigation canals and agricultural drains pass through many villages. At the villages' level, there are no

solid waste management facilities. Villages’ council should work to establish a solid waste collection

system at the village level. The solid waste is to be collected from the houses and shops versus monthly

0

20

40

60

80

100

120Who prefer to take responsibility of SWM in the village

Private sector Public sector CDA Youth



fees. The proposed ISWMP can reduce the vigour of the solid waste management problem in the area

as will be described within following chapters.

4.3.3 Build a high level of environmental awareness

The environmental awareness-raising program is aimed at water quality and solid waste issues, with

the principal aim of helping to improve public health by reducing water pollution. A secondary related

aim is to improve cleanliness in the villages as a contribution to improving public health. These are long-

term objectives which should be conducted in a joint and fully-coordinated program with other agencies

- notably the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Utilities, Housing and New Communities.

However, experience to date has shown that it is particularly difficult to make effective progress with

inter-agency activities, and it will be even more so for EPADP because none of the other Ministries is

directly involved in the project. Further difficulties lie in convincing local people that they should pay for

the additional services for improving their environment and should take responsibility for cleaning up the

pollution generated by them but does not directly affect them - especially downstream pollution by

domestic effluents and wastes.

The proposed awareness program has two main components:

• The formulation and implementation of a farmer-oriented awareness campaign,

• The extension and broadening of this farmer-based program into a community awareness-raising exercise.

Mainly, there are two tools possibly can be used to conduct the awareness program through:

• Direct personal contact through: o Focus group discussion

o Meetings

o Workshops

• Posters and other material including short video spots

4.4 Policy, Legal and Administrative Framework

There are several ministries and institutes have different roles in the wastewater management and reuse

in Egypt. These ministries and institutes are:

• The Ministry of Land Reclamation and Agriculture manages agricultural aspects.

• The Ministry of Housing Utilities and Urban Communities is concerned with the planning and

construction of municipal wastewater treatment plants.

• The Ministry of Health and Population assumes responsibility for sampling and analysis of all

wastewater effluents. It is also responsible for setting water and wastewater quality standards

and regulations in addition to its central role as the custodian of public health.

• The Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation allocates water for reclamation areas.

• The Ministry of the Environment and the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency caters for

environmental aspects.

• Scientific institutions and universities conduct basic and applied research activities.

• Holding Company for Water & Waste Water Is responsible for facilities for water and waste

water treatment. They are automatically involved when a WWTP has to be build.

Laws and decrees regulating the disposal of wastewater in Egypt are as follows:

• Law 93/1962 regulates wastewater disposal and designates the responsibility of constructing

public wastewater systems to the Ministry of Housing which is also responsible for issuance of



permits regulating wastewater discharge into public sewerage networks or into the environment.

The Ministry of Health determines the regulatory standards.

• Decree No. 649/1962 and Decree No. 9/1989: Decree No. 649/1962 of the Minister of Housing

issues the executive regulations of Law 93/1962. It specifies regulatory standards for

wastewater disposal. It was updated in 1989 by Decree No. 9/1989 in which a distinction was

made between wastewater disposal on sandy soils and clay silt soils. Most prominent conditions

included that wastewater treatment plants should be located one to three kilometres from the

nearest residential area. Primary treatment was set as a minimum treatment level required

before final discharge. Reuse of effluent in the irrigation of vegetables, fruits or any other crops

eaten uncooked is strictly prohibited. The same restriction is imposed on grazing of animals or

milking cattle on the fields irrigated with wastewater. In 1995 an amendment was made by both

the Ministry of Irrigation and the Ministry of Agriculture and approved by the Ministry of Health.

Nonetheless, it has not yet been issued by the Minister of Housing. This amendment determined

the minimum degree required for wastewater treatment for the various reuse aspects. Tertiary

treatment was set as prerequisite for unrestricted irrigation of crops eaten uncooked. Secondary

treated effluents may be reused for irrigating palm trees, cotton flux, jute, cereals, forage crops,

flower nurseries and thermally processed vegetables and fruits.

• Law 48/1982 was passed for the protection of the River Nile and watercourses from pollution.

Decree 8/1983 is an executive regulation of Law 48/1982 that was issued by the Minister of

Irrigation. Under this law discharges to the Nile, canals, drains and groundwater are controlled

through licensing. The Ministry of Public Works and Water Resources issues licenses to

industries, sanitary sewage treatment plants and riverboats. Licenses are issued provided that

discharges satisfy regulatory standards and requirements. A grace period of three months is

granted to violators to comply with the requirements. Failure to comply can mean withdrawal of

the license. The Ministry of Public Works and Water Resources is empowered with

administrative and policing means to enforce this law. The Ministry of the Interior‘s water

surfaces police have also powers to ensure its implementation. The Ministry of Health is

entrusted with setting standards and monitoring the quality of discharges. Water quality

standards in this law are specified for various categories that include the River Nile, treated

industrial effluent to the Nile and canals, treated industrial and sanitary water discharge to

drains, lakes and ponds, treated discharge from river vessels to the Nile and canals and drain

waters to be mixed with the Nile or canals.

• Law 4 of 1994—Environmental Framework Law by the Minister of State for Environmental

Affairs (MSEA). In Law 4 it is stated that all facilities discharging to surface water are required

to obtain a license and maintain a register indicating the impact of the establishment‘s activity

on the environment. The register should include data on emissions, efficiency and outflow from

treatment units and periodic measurements.

• Decree No. 603/ 2002—Decision of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture and

Land Reclamation for the restriction of the use of wastewater in the agricultural sector. It

prohibits the use of wastewater, whether treated or untreated, for irrigating traditional field crops.

Irrigation is only used in the limited cultivation of trees for timber and ornamental trees, taking

into account the measures to protect the health of workers in agriculture when using this type

of water.

• Decree No. 1038/2009—Decision of the Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation to prohibit

the use of wastewater, whether treated or untreated, for the irrigation of all food crops. No

permission to own new lands would be approved, unless the Ministry of Water Resources and

Irrigation (MWRI) confirmed the existence and suitability of a source of irrigation.

• Other pertinent laws include Law 12/1984 that regulates the authority of the Ministry of Public

Works and Water Resources as the custodian of all water resources. Wastewater in Agriculture

(501/2005) The Ministry of Housing, Utilities, and New Communities, supported by seven

technical committees, issued the Code for the Reuse of Treated Wastewater in Agriculture. The

Code stipulates exact requirements in planning and approval procedures, responsibilities,

permitted use according to effluent quality, and monitoring. The Code regulates only the direct



use of wastewater, not the wastewater discharged into drains. According to the Code, the reuse

of treated wastewater—irrespective of the treatment level—is prohibited for the production of

vegetables, whether eaten raw or cooked; export-oriented crops (i.e. cotton, rice, onions,

potatoes, and medicinal and aromatic plants); as well as citrus fruit trees; and irrigating school

gardens. Restrictions are in place for type of crops, irrigation methods, and health precautions.

The existing reuse schemes are operated by public institutions, mainly ministries such as the

Ministry of Housing, Utilities, and New Communities, MALR, and MSEA.

• Plants and crops irrigated with treated wastewater are classified into three agricultural crop

groups that correspond to three different levels of wastewater treatment. Biological and

chemical standards for these three levels of treatment are set as well. The Code further

stipulates conditions for irrigation methods and health protection measures for farm workers,

consumers, and those living on neighbouring farms. The Code classifies (Table 2) wastewater

into four grades (designated A, B, C and D), depending on the level of treatment it has received,

and specifies the maximum concentrations of specific contaminants consistent with each grade,

and the crops that can be irrigated with each grade of treated wastewater (Table 3.

Table 2: Degree of treatment permitted for agricultural use (modified code 2014) Requirements & Max. Limitations

Degree of Treatment Grade A Grade B Grade C Grade D

Physical & Chemical Standards

TSS 10 30 50 300 Turbidity, (NTU) 5 Undefined Undefined Undefined BOD5 10 30 60 350

Pathogens Standards

F. Coliforms MPN/100 ml

100 1000 5000 Undefined

Intestinal Nematodes Egg/liter

1 1 1 Undefined



Table 3: Plants and crops permitted for irrigation by treated wastewater Grade of Treatment

Agricultural Group Description

A (One Group)

Group 1-1: Green landscapes in Educational establishments, public and private parks ا��ط��ت ا� �راء ��ت �� ا�� وا��زھ�ت ا�� وا�

All types of grass and fence plants and all kinds of flowers � أ�وا�� ا��ل �"�!� أ�وا� و��ت ا��ور وا�زھور �

B (3 Groups)

Group 2-1 Dry grains crops, cooked & processed vegetables

All Kinds of Vegetables (manufactured) and strategic dry crops of all types such as wheat - corn - barley - rice - beans - lentils – sesame

ا��م –ا��دس –ا�%ول –ا$رز –ا��ر - ا�ذرة –ا�*�( . Group 2-2: Fruit Crops

Fruit trees with sustained and deciduous leaves such as: citrus fruits - olive - palm - mango - pecan - pomegranate for the purpose of drying

ا�ر��ن �0رض ا��%�ف –ا��و –ا�� ل –ا�ز��ون –ا��وا�( Group 2-3:

Medicinal Plants Anise - hibiscus - Cummins - Marjoram - Ammi - Fenugreek - moat - fennel - Chamomile – sage herb

–ا��0ت –ا�� –ا� �� –ا��رد2وش –ا�"�ون –ا�"ر"�د� –ا��ون ا��ر�ر�� -ا��و�3 –ا��ر

C Group 3-4 Roses and Cut flowers

Roses farmyard – Rosa Canina - bulbs such as Algeladiols, bird of paradise and all kinds of ornamental plants.

��و�� ا$��ل �5ل –ورد ا��ر –ا�ورد ا��دى � ا��8د�و�س و��%ور ا�� و"�!� أ�واع ��ت ا�ز��.

Group 3-5 Trees suitable for planting in highways and green belts

Alcazurina - camphor - oleander - tamarisk - types of ornamental palms.

ا�ز��، أ�واع � �ل –ا$5ل –ا�د!�� –ا�"�!ور –ا�"�زور�� Group 3-6 All types of fibre crops

Such as cotton - linen - Jute - kenaf. ا��ل. –ا��وت –ا�"��ن –ا�*طن

Group 3-7: Grassy forage crops and leguminous crops

Sorghum types and kinds of shamrock أ�واع ا��ور�م وأ�واع ا��%ل.

Group 3-8 Mulberry to produce silkworm silk

All kinds of Berries � أ��ف ا��وت��

Group 3-9 All plants and ornamental trees nurseries

Such as Ficus décor - Ficus Natda - Ambassndr – Acacia

ا$"�� –ا��%�در –ا�%�"س ��دا –�5ل ا�%�"س د�"ورا D (3 groups)

Group 4-1 Solid biomass crops

All crops for the production of bio-diesel fuel and energy oils such as: soybean - rapeseed - Jojoba - and Jatropha - Castor.

ا� روع. –وا��رو!� –ا��و�و�� –�ذور ا��%ت –!ول ا��و�� Group 4-2 Crops to produce cellulose

All non-food crops for the production of glucose and its derivatives like ethanol and acetic acid - ethanol – Generation ��ا��ل =�ر ا�0ذا>�� :��ج ا��و"وز و��*�� "�:��5ول و��ض

ا��ل -ا:��5ول –ا� ��ك Group 4-3 Timber trees

All trees for timber production such as Alcaaa - camphor - and mahogany

� ا$��ر :��ج ا$ ��ب �5ل ا�"�� وا��ھو��@ -ا�"�!ور –

4.5 Responsibilities for the drain

It is important to identify responsible organizations. To make the proper decisions it to know the

distribution of responsibilities in the area. Different organizations are responsible for different parts in

the area which is presented in Figure 9.



Figure 10: Responsibilities of different organiazations in the area

From organizational point of view it will be most easy to work within the responsibility of one organization.

If the solution can be found in the drain and include the banks, this organization will be the Ministry of

Water Resources and Irrigation. The Ministry of Agriculture is not possoitive to use agricultural soil for

activities related to waste. It is also not expected that farmers will make land available, because they

are afraid that it will have consequences for the value of the rest of the farm. If plans and profits for the

farmer are more concrete it is advised to investigate the willingness of farmers to cooperate. This report

has its focus on the possibilities in the drain and on the banks.



5. Environmental Mitigation Measure Plan

5.1 General

As already mentioned decisions can be made on the short term if the responsibility is clear, a focus on

the drain and on the banks of the drain will appoint MWRC as responsible organization. This will need

an integrated view on waste water and solid waste necessary. Waste water is discharged to the drain

and solid waste is deposited on the banks of the drain. To be able to use the bank of the drain it will be

necessary to remove the solid waste from the banks of the drain and to prevent new deposition with

new solid waste.

A drain has two banks. At the Tellin drain the left bank is between the drain and the road. The right

bank is adjacent to agricultural land and housing. Which site is most suitable depends on the local

situation. This report does not decide which side of the bank has to be used, only when it is specifically

mentioned. A proper solution will be a site specific solution, made in cooperation with local people.

5.2 Waste Water Treatment

It is proposed to realize as quickly as possible a primary treatment of the waste water in the area. Septic

tanks are suitable to do this locally. If waste water is collected, also larger septic tanks can be building

or use can be made of other sedimentation facilities. For a simple and cheap way to treat the waste

water we have to consider the differences between the houses in the area:

• Individual house or cluster of a view houses in the rural area;

• Small settlements;

• Villages.

For communication purposes it is advised to make an artist impression of the ideas presented below in

order to convince farmers and inhabitants and show them the advantages.

5.2.1 Individual houses or cluster of houses

It is not expected that individual houses in the rural area will be connected in the near future to

wastewater treatment plants through this project or other projects and programmes. Treatment of the

waste water from these houses has to be solved locally. An advantage is that more space is available

for the necessary activities. A simple basic solution is the use of a septic tank which will remove about

50% of the load, in situation with a high groundwater level the septic tank must be water tight. They can

be constructed on the land of the waste water producer or constructed on the bank of the drain. This

may be prefab tanks, but also locally constructed septic tanks. The costs highly depend on the way it is

organized. Self-motivation by people will reduce costs even to costs of material (cement, stones).

Instruction will be necessary.

The sludge can be reused by the farmers themselves in agriculture by spreading it on the field or

composted. In chapter 6.8 recommendations are given to do this on a safe way. The overflow can be 1)

infiltrated; 2) reused on land; 3) discharged to the drain after passing a small constructed wetland which

will discharge to the drain. It is possible to reduce the pressure caused by waste water of these houses



with almost 100%. Biomass coming from the constructed wetland can be composted together with the

sludge.

Although the interventions proposed are simple and can be implemented by farmers themselves, it

has to be realized that the necessary knowledge will be lacking. It is advised to promote a mechanism

with technical assistance and funding to implement these measures.

5.2.2 Small settlements

In small settlements the same set-up as for individual houses can be used, but it will be more difficult to

organize the treatment after the septic tank. It is still essential that the sludge can be reused in

agriculture. This can be done directly or indirectly using sludge drying beds. If this is not organized the

sludge will be discharged to the drain, eliminating the positive effect of the septic tank. To make the

proper choices, it is necessary to be aware of future activities. If the settlement will be connected by a

sewer system to a future central WWTP the focus should be on primary treatment in septic tanks and

reuse of the sludge. If the settlement will not be connected to a central unit, it must be possible to

upgrade. To improve the quality of the water discharged, it is possible to improve the septic tank by

adding more compartments (Baffled reactor) or to make it possible to use UASB,

It has to be investigated if it is possible to improve the present septic tanks, so that they are less sensitive

for overflow and not filled by the groundwater. If this is possible it is also possible to increase the number

of septic tanks in the area. This can be small systems for individual households, but also large systems

for groups of houses. For Deir Gabal El-Tair Septic tanks of 1000 m3 has been designed. As basic

treatment they can be used by 650 households and they cost LE 65.000. For the whole area approx. 40

of these tanks are necessary, needing an investment of LE 2,600,000. On the longer term the overflow

of these systems can be connected to a WWTP for further treatment.

If sufficient space is available within the drain area a constructed wetland is a possibility for polishing

the water. To be within the responsibility of MWRI, both septic tank and constructed wetland can be

placed on the bank of the drain or in the drain (Figure 10 and Figure 1212) or the outflow of the septic

tank can be the inflow of the constructed wetland. To make space available, reuse of the sludge (see

3.5) and removal of the solid waste on the banks has to be an integral part of the plan.

Figure 11: Waste water treatment for a small settlement using a septic tank and constructed

wetland. To be constructed on the bank of a drain. Not on scale

Wetlands can have different designs; most effective is a so called vertical design using reed as

vegetation. Only 1-3m2/person will be necessary. After removal of the waste on the bank the bank can

be used for such a system (Figure 12). Addition of gravel like material can be necessary to increase the

permeability for water. Harvesting of the reed can be combined with maintenance of the drain.



Figure 12: Replacing the waste on the bank by a vertical wetland

Independent of the design it will be necessary to remove (harvest) part of the on a regular basis. The

material can be composted in combination with sludge. Sludge has a positive effect on the composting

process of these materials.

5.2.3 Villages

In villages with a higher population direct reuse possibilities will be limited. To make reuse in agriculture

possible some treatment and also transport will be necessary. Except for one third of the load of Kafr

Ar-Rubumayah (see 4.1.2) no treatment facilities are present. Partly it will be possible to use the same

approach as described for small settlements, but with the same reasoning as used in 3.2 it can be

calculated that there is not sufficient space in the drain or on the banks of the drain also when more

effective vertical wetlands will be used.

However doing nothing will mean that most of the waste water will end up in the drain as in the present

situation, partly by the sewage system and partly by discharge of the sludge in the septic tanks used.

As mentioned the inhabitants of the villages prefer to be connected to a sewer system. Instead of a

direct connection to the drain, the sewer can be connected to large septic tanks either in the bank of the

drain or on strategic places in the village. Improvement of existing septic tanks can be part of this activity.

This will give a reduction of discharge of approx. 50%. In a later phase, the outflow of the septic tanks

can be connected to a central or decentral treatment as described below or the septic tank can be

upgraded to for instance an UASB.

For Tellin area it is already proposed to develop a solution in which the waste water is collected, followed

by a decentral treatment and to polish the effluent of this treatment in a constructed wetland. The solution

will be used for

• Tellin villages ( including Ezbet Assem-Ezbet El Gibaly ) with population equal 18861 capita

• Kafr El Dayer ( including Ezbet Abu Mandour- Kafr Ossman Atiya) with population equal 5412

capita

• Abu Towala with population equal 8438 capita

• Sinatet Abu Towala with population equal 1816 capita

So, the total population required to be served is about: 34,527 (35,000 Capita) Total population in the

area is 60,000. Assuming population growth rate 2% and the design target year is 2030; the design

population will be 46,000 capita.



The decentral treatment plant will be designed by HCWW. Both anaerobic and aerobic treatments are

still possible. The decentralized treatment must be able to remove 75% of BOD. Produced sludge has

to be reused in agriculture and facilities to dry the sludge have to be included in the design of HCWW.

Distribution to farmers has to be organized.

5.2.4 Reuse of sludge

Kafr Ar-Rubumayah has a privately operated decentralized wastewater treatment plant (Picture 9) that

discharges into Okda drain. This plant is able to treat a third of the supply of waste water (80-90 %

removal of BOD) the other two/third is directly discharged in the Okda drain using a by-pass. The

capacity of the plant is 25 m3/h. Drying beds for primary and secondary sludge are present and sludge

is reused in agriculture.

Picture 9: Waste water treatment at Kafr Ar-Rubumayah (left) and sludge drying beds (right)

Between the road to the WWTP and the Okda drain space is available to create drying beds and a

facility for composting. This space is now occupied by solid waste (Picture 10). Advantage of this area

is that there is no housing close to the drain. Using this area should not have a negative effect on the

possibilities for maintenance the drain However; this should not be a reason for not doing it. In the

present situation it is also not possible to reach the drain on all places due to the presence of waste.

Proper dimensions of the drying beds and composting facility in consultation with the organization

responsible for maintenance will ensure that maintenance will remain possible. In line with Pescod

(1992) the capacity of the drying beds should be sufficient to store for 3 months to make the sludge

suitable for reuse.



Picture 10: Area between drain and road, potentially suitable for sludge drying and

composting

It will be relatively easy to start activities on this side. Only 25 m3/h of the total supply of 75 m3/h is

treated on the plant. The rest is directly going to the drain through a by-pass. Investment in a primary

treatment for this residual 50 m3/h will provide extra sludge that can be dried and composted on the new

area. The produced sludge and compost can be offered to agriculture and act as a demonstration for

other farmers. This activity will give a reduction on the discharge of waste water to the drain of approx.

50% for the 50 m3/h that is now discharged directly to the drain. With a residence time of 1 day approx.

1200 m3 will be necessary. The costs of the necessary three tanks will be approx. LE 200,000. The

employees working on the plant can do the necessary activities.

5.3 Solid Waste Collection

The proposed solid waste operation system for new produced waste is described in more detail in the

Feasibility Study of the Solid Waste Management Pilot in Okda/Tellin – Sharqia (2015) without such a

system the banks of drains and the drains themselves will be still used for discharge. It includes the

following components:

� Design of an integrated system for sound solid waste handling and management in terms

of collection, transfer, disposal, and benefiting from it through a method matching the

capabilities of local environment and governed by the results of economic and technical

feasibility studies.

� An institutional set up utilizing existing regulatory mandates of existing entities to assign

roles as follows: i) service management to the local administration unit; ii) service provision

to NGOs or private vendors; iii) service governance and monitoring to BCWUAs.

� A clean-up campaign of water ways within the boundaries of the SWM will be undertaken

by EPADP, and a similar campaign of streets will be implemented by the local authorities

at the outset of implementing the scheme.

� Capacity building and raising awareness level of stakeholders.

� Protection of canals and water drains.

The feasibility study considered alternative options and systems for providing solid waste collection and

transfer services as follows:

� 5 options for solid waste storage at generation place

� 5 options for solid waste collection from generation point

� 4 systems for domestic garbage collection

� 2 systems for collecting street waste.

The most appropriate alternative for the three villages was selected in view of the following points:



� Compliance with laws and provisions

� Cost-effectiveness (cost/benefit)

� Effectiveness (achieving the desired results)

� Availability of land for the recycling and treatment site

The Feasibility Study of the SWM pilot scheme in Okda/Tellin integrates the institutional set up of the

pilot. It presents the approach adopted by the consultant in conducting field surveys with a special focus

on social and gender-related aspects, analysis of the geographical focus of the study with a special

reference to the SWM issues, analysis of selected aspects of the field survey and how they affected the

proposed design of the SWM system, main rudiments of the proposed system and financial analysis of

the capital and operational costs, the Net Present Value (NPV) and the Internal Rate of Return (IRR).

Finally two scenarios for implementing the proposed SWM scheme were further investigated (Table 4).

The first scenario comprises collection and transportation to a nearby intermediate collection point where

recycling and composting will take place and only refuse will be taken to the landfill; the second scenario

includes collection and transportation to the landfill of the governorate, without treatment. The first

scenario assumes that the recycling and composting equipment will be utilized at sites owned by the

governorate. The following table summarizes main results of the study and the corresponding service

charge per household to make the system feasible in both scenarios.

Table 4: Economic evaluation of two scenarios

Service Charge Per

Household Net Present Value

Internal Rate of

Return

Scenario One: Collection, transportation,

treatment in a nearby site (in El Faddan) LE0.00 1,283,900.00 40%

Scenario Two Collection and Transport (no

treatment) to the landfill LE4.00 LE17,822 20.7%

According to the study, the proposed system is feasible and affordable to the targeted population –

especially if the first scenario was applied. It will yield profit that secures financial sustainability provided

different actors perform their respective roles and responsibilities, and the planned awareness campaign

and capacity building activities achieved their planned results.

The first scenario will need an area to work of about 1500 m2 (Figure 12). This area will be large enough

as first pilot for the villages included in the feasibility study (Tellin, Abu Towala, Kafr El Dair and Senatit

Abo Towala) having 43,000 inhabitants. Approx. 40 m3 has to be sorted. To use the area also for

composting this process probably needs to be optimized. As mentioned large amounts of sludge also

will need treatment. To do this a larger area is needed.



Figure 13: Treatment and Composting Site Plan

Not described is the removal and final deposition of all the waste present on the banks. This can be in

conjunction with foreseen activities on waste collection. On the moment solid waste present on the

Faddan Area, which is the foreseen site for solid waste treatment is transported to a landfill in the desert.

Large trucks are used (Picture 11).

Picture 11: Trucks are filled on the site ‘Faddan Area’ with waste to be transported to a landfill

in the desert (left). Small transport after delivering of waste to the ‘Faddan area’

This transport system can be copied to remove the waste of the banks to the desert, either directly or

by using the Faddan Area as a temporary disposal site, which seems more realistic. Probably the large

trucks will destroy the road near the banks and smaller trucks are necessary to collect the waste first.

Another temporary site is also possible. It should be realized that storage of waste will always have

impact on the quality of the site. It is better to do it on a site that is already contaminated by earlier

activities.

On the moment activities are focussed on the collection system and reuse and safe discharge of new

waste. Plans are developed and also trainings are given. As long as reuse is only a theoretical option

and not practised in real life and no discharge site is available it will demotivate inhabitants. Why



separating the waste if it still ends on the banks of the drain. It is therefore not sufficient to have a

collection and separation system. It is also necessary to have space for controlled disposal of the solid

waste. This can be in the region, but also on a suitable site outside the region. Without a proper site and

real reuse, the collected waste will be disposed where it was disposed before, on the banks of the drain.

The availability of the Faddan area is not sure yet, especially after being cleared from all accumulated

wastes and being considered for being utilized as a public garden by the current Governor. It must be

realised that due to a long use as waste disposal site, the soil will be contaminated. This will make it not

possible to re-use it for agricultural purposes. The original landlord of the Faddan area have donated it

for public purpose as a “wakf”, to be used for solid waste management related purpose. If the local

authorities decided to use it in other purposes, they will claim it back and there will be a legal dispute

which can cause the site either to be returned as a collection and transportation site for solid wastes or

remain barren land. Since recent orders of the local authorities to clear the site and stop receiving

collected solid wastes, vendors of the solid wastes collection service in the neighbouring villages have

been struggling to find an alternative location to use as a transfer point. They resorted to dump the

collected loads of wastes on banks of nearby drains, in vacant lots, or public roads.

It is recommended to keep this area for solid waste treatment and not to start to contaminate a new

valuable area. The Faddan area is essential in the plans and should be available at least during the

period to remove waste from the whole area.

5.4 Composting

In composting waste water and solid waste meet. Sludge and the organic part of solid waste are both

good resources for compost. Also the treatment of biomass from agriculture that is deposited on banks

or burned (e.g. straw of rice) can be included in this activity. Composting can be an activity on the areas

described in 4.2.4. or at the treatment site suggested in the Feasibility Study of the SWM Pilot in case

land was made available to it. An easy way to compost is making heaps and has a regular turn over

(Picture 12). With more investment the time needed for composting can be shortened. Composting

tunnels are also in discussion (training of August 30, 2015 in Minya). This is more expensive and may

leave the treatment in the infinite circle (Figure 4) There is already experience in Egypt to Compost on

the farm it selves.

Picture 12: Machines for mixing the compost and to cover and uncover the heaps (photo’s Van

Lersel Compost)

5.5 Monitoring



It can be necessary to do monitoring to support the further design of the activities described in this report

(see also chapter 8). This differs from monitoring used to do the assessment. It is a pitfall to ask for

monitoring that will be a better description of the present situation. This is known, the drains are heavily

contaminated, and doing such a monitoring we are back in the circle. For proper site specific solutions

it can be necessary to do some extra monitoring, but also this monitoring will be site-specific.

5.6 Effect of Mitigation Measures

It will be of no doubt that the measures described in this chapter will lead to

• Cleaner and more beautiful environment

• Good for human health

• Stimulant for inhabitant

Is should be realized that the perfect measure do not exist and that foreseen, but also not foreseen

effects can be encountered in future. In this chapter possible effects on different environmental

compartments are discussed.

It is also important to realize that that the alternative for the advised measures is mostly ‘doing nothing’.

The negative impact of ‘doing nothing’ will be larger than a measure like the use of septic tanks for all

waste water which will reduce the discharge to the drain by 50%. This is a large improvement but

unfortunately not accepted by Law 48/1882. The sludge produced can be reused as fertilizer and soil

improver in agriculture.

5.7 Subsurface Water at Residential Areas

The impact of direct reuse of waste water including sludge will be comparable with the use of manure

in agriculture. If water from residential areas will be transferred to the rural area the impact on subsurface

water of the residential area it selves will become smaller

Using septic tanks, the effluent may leach to the subsurface water and affect the quality of the upper

part. This water will slowly be discharged to the drain. The whole system, septic tank and soil will clean

the water. The water discharged to the drain following this route will therefore be cleaner than water

directly discharged. For small residential areas in the rural area only having septic tanks and infiltration

will therefore be a positive measure.

In more densely populated areas, more water will be infiltrated and leached to the subsurface water.

The influenced part will be thicker, but also this water will slowly flow in the direction of a drain on further

distance. Pumping of groundwater will also have influence on the system, so a hydrological study will

be necessary to establish the impact. This has to be compared with the present situation with more

uncontrolled treatment.

5.8 Effect on Irrigation Water Quality

In the moment there is a negative effect of disposed solid waste on the banks of the irrigation channels.

Removal of this waste will improve the quality of this water. Lower discharge of waste water to the drain

will increase the reuse possibilities. As a result of scarcity of irrigation water, reuse is common practise.

The drainage water is pumped back to the primary irrigation channel. Dilution and some natural cleaning

properties make the water suitable again for irrigation. This practise is not allowed if the water in the

primary irrigation channel is also as used as resource for drinking water.



5.9 Effect on Air Quality

Reuse of waste and composting as proposed, including composting agricultural bio-waste will prevent

uncontrolled burning of these wastes. On this way air pollution will be prevented.

The proposed measures, drying beds and large septic tanks, may give locally nuisance of smell. Having

them centralised will reduce the nuisance of smell on other places.

5.10 Spreading and Accumulation of Undesired Substances

On this moment all substances in waste water find their final destination in the drain. Depending on the

properties, it can be biodegraded, adsorbed in the sediment or transported to agricultural land by reused

water or reused dredged sediments. This includes all substances used by humans like pharmaceuticals.

Treatment of wastewater will reduce the total amount of undesired compounds. However sludge and

treated water may still contain some residuals. Because no industry is present in the area, the risks of

accumulation of heavy metal are low. It is advised to follow the international developments on the

presence of undesired compounds in order to take decision on the use of these compounds and

possibilities to be discharged on time.

5.11 Effects on Health

Concentration of waste water treatment and selection of waste on specific sites reduces the health risks

for most of the population. Health risks for workers on the site do increase. This is a professional risk

and it is necessary to reduce these risks as much as possible.



6. Environmental Measures Implementation

6.1 Reuse

To obtain a sustainable system, it is important to reuse as much as possible. Waste should be

considered as a resource. For an agricultural area an example is presented in Figutre 6. In this scheme

water and the solid fraction of waste water and the compostable fraction of solid waste are composted

and used in agriculture.

Figure 6: Pathways for the recycling of liquids and solids from urban areas for agricultural

production

Also solid waste contains reusable fractions. In The Netherlands paper, plastic and bio-waste are

successfully collected and reused. In Egypt valuable parts are collected after discharge on several

places but in less extend in the rural area.

6.2 Future Proof

Realistic mitigation measures are focussed on simple treatment possibilities for waste water and on the

collection of waste. Although we focus in this report is on simple methods we must have in mind that in

the future waste water will be treated in more centralized waste water treatment plants. Investment for

the coming 5 years must keep their value. An example derived from the sanitation activities in Minya is

given in Figure 7. In this example existing infiltration pits are improved to a septic tank. In following step

they are connected and the discharge of individual tank goes to a large infiltration tank if infiltration is

possible or the effluent still has to be discharged using a sewer system. After realizing a Central Waste

Water Treatment System all small sewer systems can be connected to treat the discharge from all septic

tanks. To be able to do this, all small sewer system must be designed to be connected in future. This

may ask for an extra investment in man power on the short term, but will have large saving on the long

term.



Figure 7: Present infiltration tanks (left) and proposed improved system in which tanks are

improved and connected by a small sewer system with a well-functioning infiltration tank (right).

Harmsen et al., 2014

6.3 Domestic Wastewater

It is always better to treat the wastewater from the source before discharge to the drain but this is hard

to achieve in Egypt for the following reasons:

• High capital cost for networks, pump stations, and wastewater treatment plants;

• Unavailability of reasonably priced lands for WWTP construction in the delta;

• Informal settlements that are randomly spread, to the extent that makes wastewater network

design very complicated at times;

• High groundwater table in the Nile Delta, making construction of wastewater networks

expensive and requiring many middle lift-stations to avoid deep excavation;

• Unavailability of human and financial resources to manage all required infrastructure in case

these are built;

• Frequent electricity shutdown in the countryside, upsetting biological wastewater treatment and

resulting in inefficient pollution reduction.

Treatment should therefore be focussed on low cost and simple to manage treatment systems. Van Lier

and El Shafai (2015) advised to start with primary treatment in the whole area with the following

arguments:

• Mass reduction of pollution load in entire area;

• Rapid implementation of basic sanitation for improved public health;

• Provides social equity/justice; all villages are served at same level;

• Application of low-cost technologies /low energy costs. Technologies not import dependent /

low-tech skills only;

• Facilitates design of secondary treatment in later stage (proper data).

As mentioned before and also concluded by Van Lier and El Shafai (2015), Law 48/1982 does not allows

simple treatments. Discharge is only allowed if after treatment the water quality met the following criteria:

BOD < 60 mg/L, COD <80 mg/L and TSS, 50 mg/L.

Most simple treatment is the direct reuse of waste water. This is a normal procedure for waste water

from stables (manure), but for waste water of human origin, human health can be affected. Some pre-

treatment is therefore necessary. In real life, reuse of waste water is already common practise in Egypt,

because drainage water is reused. The drain can be considered as a pre-treatment. Waste water

contains nutrients, which is a resource for agriculture. The organic part in the waste water improves the

soil structure.



6.4 Basic Elements for Low-cost Technologies

Septic tank

The use of septic tanks (Figure 8) is close to the infiltration pits used in several areas. In the Delta the

use of infiltration is limited caused by the high water table. If groundwater can enter the system, the

capacity becomes low and the tanks have to be emptied frequently, which increases the costs. Therefor

tanks should be made water tight. The retention time should be at least 48 hours. This means a size of

300 liter/person. For one family (5 persons) the size has to be at least 1.5 m3.

Figure 8: Design of a septic tank (Tilley et al., 2014)

By adding more compartments, the efficiency of a septic tank can be improved. In the original ideas for

Tellin HCWW has proposed an Anaerobic Baffled Reactor. The outlet of the reactor should be led to

the inflow of the constructed wetland for further polishing.

6.4.1 Constructed wetland

There is high expectation on the instream wetland in Egypt, a natural system able to improve

the water quality, but capacity is limited.

Figure 9 shows the principle of such a construction. (Tilley et al 2014). They call it a free-water surface

constructed wetland. Macrophytes are used to create the proper conditions for degradation and they

have also a function in supplying oxygen. The water flow is horizontal. They are recommended for the

treatment of effluent after secondary treatment and for settlement of the solid fraction. Treatment of

untreated waste water is not advised.



Figure 9: Design of a free-water surface constructed wetland (Tilley et al 2014)

The concept of the instream wetland proposed in Egypt is presented in Figure 10. Sedimentation is the

most important aspect. Instead of macrophytes, floating vegetation is used, which covers the water

surface and more important prevents oxygen to enter the water. This decreases the possibility for

aerobic degradation.

Good results are obtained near Al Bahow and Edfina (Rashed and Abdel-Rashid, 2008). In both drains

villages of 3,000 inhabitants discharged there waste water.

Figure 10: Design of an instream wetland

The instream wetland is an example of a horizontal wetland. Vertical wetlands (helophyte filter) are more

effective (higher capacity per m2) an illustration is given in Figure 11

Figure 11: Design of a vertical constructed wetland(Tilley et al 2014)



6.5 Reuse of Water from the Drain

The Ministry of Housing, Utilities, and New Communities, supported by seven technical committees,

issued the Code for the Reuse of Treated Wastewater in Agriculture (hereafter, “the Code”). The Code

stipulates exact requirements in planning and approval procedures, responsibilities, permitted use

according to effluent quality, and monitoring. The Code regulates only the direct use of wastewater, not

the wastewater discharged into drains. The Egyptian code for wastewater reuse (WWR) (no.501 /2005)

is revised due to the presence of too many restrictions comparing to WWR codes of other countries.

According to the old code, no edible crops or export crops can be cultivated and irrigated on wastewater,

regardless of the treatment level. The new code allows the use of water having residual BOD. The

values and possibilities for use are given in Table 1 and Table 7

6.6 Base Line Assessment Study for Pre-treatment Decentralized Facilities in Tellin pilot

In this EMP the proposed basic treatment units are simple 1) use of small or large septic tanks, 2)

constructed wetland in the drain. The septic tanks have to be emptied on regularly basis and can make

use of the existing system. As addition a destination for the sludge is necessary, to prevent that it will

be discharged in the drain. Maintenance of the constructed wetland has to fit within the regularly

maintenance of the drain and is the responsibility of MWRI.

The pilot project is also proposed to improve the practical experience of decentralized wastewater

management in Egypt. The decentralized pre-treatment wastewater treatment step is found to be

necessary to be able to use a constructed wetland in the drain for further polishing. The combination

decentral treatment and constructed wetland is intended to serve the community of Tellin villages

located in Minia El Kamh district.

Technologies for decentral treatment are very well summarized in Reymond, 2012, Reymond at all.,

2014, Tiley et al., 2014 and Van Lier and Abdel Wahaab, 2015. A good candidate for the decentral

treatment is a modified septic tank, which is still a low cost solution. Anaerobic Baffled Reactor (ABR)

or Up flow Septic tank/ Baffled Reactor (USBR) can be good example for the modified septic tank. Both

can remove 70-80% of BOD. The treated effluent from the modified septic tank can be returned back to

the drain to be treated in the constructed wetland.

There are six raw sewage disposal points coming from El Tellin village and Abutowalla village. Those

points are the main source of pollution in the drain. It will be necessary to decide if these disposal point

have to be connected or if will be separately treated. All pre-treated water has to be collected to be

polished in the constructed wetland at the end of the drain.

If a WWTP can be constructed, it is advised to make the proper choices together with HCWW for the

following reasons

1. They have the experience in design and building;

2. They can organize use and maintenance of the plant:

3. They have experience in tendering a WWTP

Decentral treatment can only be successful if there is a solution for the sludge produced.

No WWTP has been planned for the villages in the Okda–region. A constructed wetland will have

insufficient capacity to treat the waste water from the villages. There are possibilities for a constructed

wetland at the beginning of the drain and to treat specific smaller discharges. Site specific design will

be necessary.

Final remark: Covering the drain in villages has to be considered as an emergency measure. As soon

as the water becomes cleaner, the drain can be open again. A clean drain with vegetation around will

improve the living quality of village and provides extra capacity for purification of the water. Care must



be taken with opening the cover. Illegal discharge and blockage may have given a buffer of soil saturated

with waste water. This will cause a temporary nuisance for inhabitants.

6.7 Possibilities of an Instream Wetland

In several discussions is proposed to make use of instream wetlands as described above. This is

comparable with a horizontal constructed wetland. Looking for capacity using a horizontal system, 10-

20 m2 are necessary to treat the waste water for one person (Brix, 2004). The area has a population

of approx. 130,000 inhabitants, which means that 600,000 to 1,200,000 m2 are needed. Having a drain

of 5 m, the total length necessary is 260 to 520 km. The length of the drain is the Okda/Tellin area is

only 15.7 km. In the existing plans 5.2 km of instream wetland is developed, which is sufficient to clean

1 to 2% of the waste water.

Rashed and Abdel-Rashid (2008) have shown that an instream wetland is able to produce reusable

water if the design is used for a village of 3000 inhabitants. In Tellin the number of inhabitants is about

34,000. It is not to be expected that the same design can be used. It should be much larger.

Having the design as presented in figure 12 and discharge most of the waste water on the drain, the

performance will be similar as in a septic tank. The drain will still act as an open sewer. Approx. 50% of

the waste will stay in the sedimentation zone or on the bottom of the drain and has to be regularly

removed.

It can be possible to use the drains for polishing of already cleaned waste water or to use the capacity

for houses that cannot be connected to a sewer system. The self-purifying capacity of the drain even

after modification into an instream wetland will be insufficient to treat the waste water of a village. To

take advantage of an instream wetland, it is therefore necessary to combine an instream wetland with a

relatively effective first treatment. In such a situation the wetland has its proper role in polishing the water

to make it suitable for reuse. A design of a wetland is always site specific. It depends on available land,

groundwater table, load, expected variation etc. In this chapter the use of a constructed wetland is

described for the Tellin drain. Part of the consideration are more general applicable, but are focussed in

this chapter on the specific situation in the Tellin drain. In other situation they may lead to another

solution and design.

The above will bring the next consequences for the design:

• Because results of the sampling of 20/10/2015 as presented in 2.1 are comparable with earlier

results and are also in line with the expectation, it is not necessary to change the design criteria.

• It is necessary to decrease the load to the drain. At least by collection of the sludge (septic tank)

but preferably by a WWTP to be designed by HCWW (Efficiency >75%).

• This can be followed by treatment in a constructed wetland. As mentioned above an instream

wetland is not expected to be efficient enough. Including the bank with a reed filter as described

in chapter 5.2 and 7 is expected to be more effective.

• It is necessary to prevent that waste and sludge will be dumped in the drain.

After the decentral treatment, the solid part of the waste will have been removed. Still present in the

water are solved components and emulsified compounds, which means that the precipitation of

suspended solids in the waste water will be a less important function of the wetland, the focus should

be on degradation of the organic matter (BOD). If we assume2 that the waste water has a BOD of 500

mg/L, the WWTP (efficiency 75%) will be able to reduce this value to 125 mg/L. To reuse the water,

grade A (<10 mg/L) or at least grade B (<30 mg/L) will be necessary. This is still a large oxygen demand.

This again asks for a wetland that is able to introduce oxygen.

2 A more accurate assumption will be made by the In stream wet land specialist in the design



Water hyacinth is proposed in the instream wetland in Figure 10. This plant has some advantages.

• It grows fast, what is important if uptake of heavy metals is an important function Uptake of

heavy metals is limited. To give it a function in treatment of industrial water it should be

calculated if the uptake capacity is sufficient;

• It can be used as a source for paper;

• It can be used after composting as a source for nutrients;

• It supplies oxygen to water, providing the surface is not completely covered.

There are however also disadvantages.

• Because the plant growths fast the complete surface will be quickly covered completely resulting

in a thick layer of biomass. Instead of supplying oxygen, this layer will consume oxygen.

Frequently removal of the plant to keep the desired density is necessary;

• Water Hyacinth is a good environment for the snail hosting the parasite causing Bilharzia. In

reed these snails may be present too but in less number;

• Water covered with water hyacinth has a large evapotranspiration, thereby reducing the amount

of water available for reuse.

Already before the two villages the drain is contaminated. This water flows through the covered drain

and feed also the wetland and will use its cleaning capacity. It is therefore recommended to look for

possibilities to treat discharged water before sampling point 4.

In summary, the wetland to be constructed after the planned decentral WWTP with an efficiency

of 75% should also be efficient in order to improve the water quality in the drain to at least Rate

B. It is not expected that the construction presented in figure 12 with water hyacinth will be able

to have a sufficient decrease of BOD. Use of reed is probably more effective. Reed on the bank

and infiltration on the bank and reed in the drain will be both part of the solution. The wetland

should not only be constructed at the end of Tellin drain, but can also be functional on other

parts of the drain. A site specific design is described in chapter 7.

_________________________________________________________________________________

6.8 The value of Sludge

In all cases we need a solution for the sludge (solid part of waste water). This sludge is obtained from

the septic tanks, dredging the constructed wetland, dredging existing drain and in future from the waste

water treatment plants.

Sludge has a value, it contains nutrients and the organic matter will improve the soil structure. By using

sludge, farmers will save on purchasing fertilizers. Sludge has also a positive effect on the composting

of biomass for instance straw of rice. The produced compost is valuable for agriculture.

Reuse of the solid fraction (sludge) is common practice in the European Union. Approx. 40% of the

sludge coming from Waste Water Treatment Plant is reused in Agriculture (Milieu Ltd, 2008). The same

report mentions that the current European Sewage Sludge Directive addresses both pathogen reduction

and the potential for accumulation of persistent pollutants in soils but sets no limits for organic

contaminants. The Directive sets limit values for seven heavy metals (cadmium, copper, nickel, lead,

zinc, mercury and chromium); both in soil and in sludge itself. It specifies general land use, harvesting

and grazing restrictions to provide protection against health risks from residual pathogens. The Directive

requires all sludge to be treated before being applied to agricultural land, but allows the injection of

untreated sludge into the soil under specific conditions. While it calls for the use of treated sludge, the

Directive does not specify treatment processes.



Pescod (1992) gives different effective treatment processes and the ones relevant for this study are;

• Retention of 20 days after an anaerobic treatment ( mesophilic anaerobic digestion at 25°C);

• After composting in which the temperature was higher than 40°C during 5 days and higher than

55°C during 4 hours;

• Storage of untreated liquid sludge for a minimum of 3 months;

• Dewatering on sludge drying beds during 3 months.

The last one, dewatering on sludge drying beds during 3 months, seems most appropriate for the

situation in the Okda/ Tellin area.

It is expected that in the Okda and Tellin region being rural area the contents of heavy metals and other

contaminant in sludge will be low, which makes it reusable. For regions having industry, or future

industrial development in Okda and Tellin, it is important to separate the municipal waste water from

industrial waste water, because mixing will decrease the value for agriculture or will make reuse

impossible. Lessons can be used from The Netherland. Originally sludge from WWTP’s was reused by

farmers. Industries and houses were connected to the same WWTP, which resulted in too high content

of heavy metals. Application could make agricultural land unsuitable for high quality food en use of

sludge was forbidden in the seventies of last century.

A system will be necessary to collect, store and distribute the sludge, which includes sufficient space to

do the necessary activities. The area next to Kafr El Robe can be used for the first pilot. Non-reused

sludge has to be considered as solid waste.

6.9 Solid Waste

Collection of waste and prevention of uncontrolled discharge is the first step in controlling waste. To

obtain a sustainable system it is necessary to develop reuse possibilities and controlled discharge of

non-reusable waste. Reuse of all waste is a long term goal in the pilot area. As described in this report

there are already possibilities to compost the organic fraction of the waste. For the residual waste, the

collection has to be followed by controlled discharge. Controlled discharge is more than a landfill.

Emission to air and water resources has to be prevented. Uncontrolled burning of the waste, as occurs

on this moment on banks of drains, has large effects on the air quality and consequently human health

and cannot be part of solid waste treatment.

The following has already been proposed:

• Design a collection system including separate collection of organic waste, collect, compost

organic waste and dispose residual waste on a controlled site;

• Realize the controlled disposal site;

• Develop possibilities to reuse residual waste, for instance paper, plastic, tins;

• Collect waste that can be reused separately;

• Collect and dispose the solid waste distributed in the area, especially on banks of channels

and drains.

The Feasibility Study of the proposed SWM Pilot in Tellin, Kafr El Dair, Abo Towala and Senatit Abo

Towala villages includes extensive details of implementing a pilot scheme that is designed to utilize

existing organizational set ups while defining roles and responsibilities for service management,

governance and provision. The study includes a number of scenarios for solid waste management

including (1) collection, transportation to a nearby treatment and transfer site, and disposal of rejects in

landfill; (2) collection, and transportation to a distant landfill without treatment; and (3) collection,

transportation to a distant landfill site and treatment at the landfill site. The study includes calculations

of all related cost items in each scenario, as well as service charge per household that realize feasibility

(i.e., positive net present value and internal rate of return higher the suggested discount rate of 20%).



6.10 Decision Making

As already described it is important to know which organization is able to make the necessary decisions.

If more organizations are necessary, practise has shown that a long time can be necessary. If regulation

is involved a lot of years will be necessary and the infinite circle in figure 1 will never been broken. To

be able to break the circle, it is proposed to look for solution within the responsibility of the Ministry of

Water Resources and Irrigation. Solutions have to be found wthin the drain and the area including the

banks of the drain. This may also overcome Law 48(1982). Waste water will go to the drain, which is

still allowed. The bank, which is part of the drain, is used for low-cost treatment and will improve the

quality of the water discharged.

_________________________________________________________________________________

To enable short term decissions this report has a focus on solutions to be implemented within

the responsibility of MWRI; the area covered by the drain, including the banks.

_________________________________________________________________________________



7. Constructed Wetland in Tellin drain

7.1 Introduction

A low cost yet an effective water treatment system is always in need in Egypt. Constructed wetlands in

channels (CWC) are expected to be promising treatment alternative to improve the water quality along

small to medium drains and channels in Egypt. In “Enhanced Water Resources Management Project –

Egypt, Constructed Wetland in Channel (CWC) Tellin Drain” Yasmin Massar (2015) has made a design

for the constructed wetland.

7.2 Design

The design of wetlands depend on four main parameters; Hydraulic load rate, residence time, plant

density, the inlet concentration. In this particular drain, the inlet concentration, and hydraulic loading rate

are not be altered unless a coupled treatment facility is launched. Therefore the design will primarily

depend on increasing the residence time and vegetation.

The design steps include several HEC-RAS runs for the hydraulic modelling part. Followed by Matlab

scripts to calculate simulate transport models for the different parameters. Finally, a model to calculate

the vegetation area was built.

The design included a primary treatment, because on the moment of design it was very unclear if

sufficient money could be made available to realize the WWTP. The primary treatment is essential to

remove the solid part. If this is not removed, the constructed wetland will be overloaded. For details of

the design, go to the design report. Figure 12gives the vegetation plan. In order to increase the cultivated

area, the side slopes of the drain are dredged to a milder slope of 1V: 3H along the first 800 m. Reeds

and cattail are cultivated along the side slopes. Because of the tall stems of Reeds, they are cultivated

along the lower half of the side slope, while Cattail is to be cultivated at the upper half of the side slope.

The drain side slope is reformed downstream the 800 m reach, and along the rest of the 200 m Cattail

is cultivated at the upper half of the side slopes, and Hyacinth along the water surface. This way no

Hyacinth is expected to be carried away along unfavourable reaches.

Figure 12: Cross sections showing distribution of plantations in the vegetation zone



The selected design includes two weirs located at 2850 m and 1050 m from the downstream of the

drain. Each weir is preceded by an instream sedimentation tank. The bed is dredged an extra 30 cm to

decrease the head above the weir and to increase the retention time behind the weir. The sedimentation

tank upstream the weir at station 2850 is 120 m, while the one upstream the weir at station 1050 is 200

m. Finally a vegetation zone extended in the last 1 km of the drain. The design almost halved the velocity

along the drain and doubled the retention time. In addition to that the maximum increase in water

elevation was between stations 3500 and 2850 and between stations 1300 and 1050, only. The

expected increase in elevation does not exceed 15 cm in both locations.

With the design and the estimated retention time, the average air temperature, wind speed, and solar

radiation the following removal efficiency of the system has been calculated:

• from 35 % to 75 % for the Total Suspended Solids;

• 30 % to 58 % for the BOD;

• 44 % to 57 % for the COD;

• 99 % for the Fecal Coliform.

The system is effective for Faecal coliform and for the organic load slightly more effective than a septic

tank. The performance of the system can be made more effective by increasing the size of the

constructed wetland, which is difficult to realize by lack of area. Another way is improvement of the

primary treatment. The wetland in combination with the WWTP of HCWW should be more effective.

During designing drafts were discussed with EPADP. Because the wetland is constructed in the drain

and the sedimentation area is in the bank, EPADP will become responsible for construction and

maintenance. First responsibility of EPADP is the dimensions of the drain to ensure its functioning. This

has led to a suboptimal design. For instance the original design had a side weir at the highest accepted

water level. At a higher water level the water will escape via this weir. No operation is necessary. This

gave insufficient certainty regarding EPADP’s first responsibility and it was necessary to add a gate that

could be opened manually. This gate will need monitoring and someone to open it when the water level

becomes too high.

It was also necessary to construct the weir from concrete, while use of rocks will improve the cleaning

properties of the construction.

The process has taught us that it will be necessary to discuss responsibilities beforehand. Now the

design is based on the way EPADP works and also has to work. With the constructed wetland a new

responsibility has been added. It must be clear to EPADP how they should handle when design of

wetland and design of drain are in conflict with present rules. This should not constrict the development

of creative solutions for the new responsibility on water quality.

7.3 Environmental and Social Impact Assessment of the constructed wetland

An environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) has been made for the constructed wetland in

the Tellin area, which is separately reported in a EWRM report. A low cost, yet an effective water

treatment system is always in need in Egypt. Constructed wetlands in channels are expected to be

promising treatment alternative to improve the water quality along small to medium drains and channels

in Egypt. This ESIA focuses on the construction and operation of the proposed constructed wetland in

the Tellin drain in Sharquia governorate, Egypt.

The proposed system includes the following activities:

• Pre-construction works o Level the drain bed, banks, and side slopes to the original design elevations and slopes

o Collect all solid waste along and in the drain for safe disposal

o Clear all existing culverts from debris.



• Construction of two weirs and two sedimentation tanks upstream the weirs

• Implementation of concrete access way for dredging machines at the location of the sedimentation

tanks

• Construction of two re-routing side-escapes to re-route drain water away from the construction of

the weirs/sedimentation tanks during construction and to bypass excess water not to raise the water

level above required value upstream the weirs

• Modifying side slopes to match the wetland design

• Planting vegetation

7.3.1 Positive impacts

Implementing the proposed in-stream wetland will likely lead to stopping the deterioration of water

quality in the drain by treating the drain water in-steam and by hindering the dumping of domestic solid

waste in the drain. This will probably result in the following:

• Providing a low cost treatment example that can be implemented, if successful, to other polluted

drains in Egypt.

• The whole treatment system lies within the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Water Resources and

Irrigation (MWRI) that already operates the drain, making the institutional setup much easier

and more sustainable

• Significant drain water quality improvement that will have positive impacts on agriculture

drainage water reuse

• Providing tertiary treatment in the future (after the sewage system is finalized) to make drain

water quality even better and to act as a buffer to the scattered informal settlements that will

never get connected to the sewer system in the future.

7.3.2 Negative impacts

The key negative impacts during the construction phase are:

• Noise

• Construction debris

• Air contaminants form construction equipment

• Temporary storage of excavated contaminated sediments

• Temporary storage of contaminated reeds/ hysenthis

• Re-routing of the drain bypassing the designed weir locations

The main negative impacts during the operation phase are:

• Improper storage and handling of dredged soil

• Improper storage and handling of cultivated plants

• Flooding risks

• Backing-up of existing sewage pipelines if the water level in the drain is raised above the

discharge hydraulic grade line

In order to mitigate the anticipated negative impacts, the following are proposed during the

construction phase:

• Proper loading, routing, and unloading of construction vehicles

• Store construction materials in pre-identified storage areas.

• Cover friable materials during storage.

• Wet the unpaved tracks on site. The use of water should be restricted to extremely active areas.



• Use of available gravels to pave tracks minimizes dust emissions and the use of water for wetting

purposes.

• Regulation of speed to a suitable speed (30 km/h) for all vehicles entering the site.

• Implement preventive maintenance program for vehicles and equipment working on site and

promptly repair vehicles with visible exhaust fume.

• Implement a traffic management plan aiming at reducing the number of trips to a minimum.

• Proper working times and arrangement with neighbours.

• Using the long term experience of EPADP (the nation leader in this aspect) in handling dredged

soil and removed hysenthis

• Proper signage is to be used at the construction sites, especially the drain re-routing reaches

• Proper hydraulic design for the drain re-routing side-escape (surplus escape) to avoid drain water

back-logging into sewage pipes or flooding the drain berms

7.3.3 Mitigation measures

The mitigation measure during the operation phase can be summarized as follows:

• Using the long term experience of EPADP (the nation leader in this aspect) in handling dredged

soil and cultivated plants

• It is advisable to find local market for the harvested plants

• Implement a proper system for complaints management

• Equip the weirs with gates to be used in case of emergency if the water level upstream the weir

is to be raised to the extent that the drain is to flood or the sewage pipelines draining into the drain

are to suffer backlogging

• Proper and regular maintenance of weirs to ensure adequate free-board at all times

In conclusion, the proposed project has positive impacts that by far outweigh the negative

environmental and social impacts. If properly managed, the project can provide a viable temporary

option for treatment of agriculture drainage water until a full source reduction system is implemented.



8. Cost Analysis and Implementation Schedule

8.1 Willingness to Pay

From the survey of Khalifa (2015), it can be concluded that households prefer a situation where they do

not have a responsibility as soon as the waste water leaves the house. They are also willing to pay for

it. On the moment there is an inequality. Household connected to the sewer system do not have to pay

anything and they are not aware where the waste water is going to. Households having a septic tank

have to pay LE 20-80/month. The overall average to pay fees for a better service is 57 Egyptian

pound/year, moved up to 222/year in Elokda and move down to 12.2/year in Senetit Abo Twala.

8.2 Value of Sludge and Compost

It is important to show that the activities in the area can already be successful on the short term. These

activities have to be based on the present situation and not on unavailable and unsure infrastructure.

As described in previous chapter, reuse of material will be the key for successful waste management.

Without reuse large areas will be necessary for final disposal or waste will be dumped uncontrolled.

Historically waste is used as fertilizer and soil improver. Picture 13, taken in the 80th of last century

shows a farmer collecting the dredged sediment from a drain to be used on his land. For him the material

improved the fertility of his land, but also already in that period the drain had to be dredged because of

discharge of waste and waste water.

Picture 13 : Farmer collecting dredged sediments from a channel (1985)

Reuse in agriculture can be and has to be a tool to reuse the sludge from waste water and the

compostable material from the solid waste (50% of total solid waste). Taking into account the human

factor that your own waste is less dirty and the waste of others, especially if they live further away cannot

be trusted, a local reuse is advisable. As mentioned before compost produced on the farms is already

used.



Without reuse, it will be necessary to deposit the sludge on a landfill. Transport over 60 to 100 km to the

desert will be necessary as no suitable land is available in the Okda/Tellin area and valuable nutrients

and organic matter will be lost, which is not a sustainable solution.

Reuse of sludge and compost is therefore essential for a proper solution. Compost has a commercial

value. People are willing to pay the price if they use it for gardens. The same price will be not affordable

for farmers and the future will produce large amounts of sludge and compost asks for use by farmers. It

is important to know how much farmers are willing to pay. The profit for tem must be clear, safe money

on fertilizers and higher yields.

8.3 Planning Schedule

As shown in Picture 13 farmers are probably willing to organize their own transport, which will reduce

the costs for them. For longer distances tractors may be necessary. In order to prevent a chicken and

egg discussion, what to do first, the production of dried sludge and compost or having a market for dried

sludge and compost, also here a step wise approach is proposed.

1. Appoint the responsible authority within MWRI and establish a responsible organization for

implementation

2. Create a possibility for drying sludge next to a drain, reachable by traffic used to transport sludge

bio-waste and organic part of solid waste and also reachable by the farmers using the produced

materials. To stay within the responsibility of the Ministry of water Resources and Irrigation the

bank of the drain is the most suitable place. This is only possible if other functions of the bank,

maintenance of the drain, are ensured. The bank near the waste water treatment site at Kafr

Ar-Rubumayah is a proper place to start the activity.

3. Use existing infrastructure for emptying waste water tanks for transport to the site and proposed

structure for solid waste for transport to this site,

4. Transport bio-waste of agriculture to this site and stop burning,

5. Compost the combination of sludge, solid waste and bio-waste,

These actions (point 2) will ask for investment in construction of the site and materials for composting.

Transport of the organic part of waste and organic residuals from farms have also to be organized. Point

3 is an existing infrastructure. People pay already for it. Workers have to be trained to transport it to the

new facility instead if dumping into the drain.

8.4 Costs

1.1.1 Solid waste

The Feasibility Study prepared by the EWRMP for the SWM Pilot in Okda and Tellin has showed that it

is economically feasible to collect the solid waste and transport it to a landfill if a fee is paid of LE 4

/family/month. It will become more profitable if products (compost, recycled materials) can be separated

and sold. This has been investigated in a second scenario. It will yield profit that secures financial

sustainability provided different actors perform their respective roles and responsibilities, and the

planned awareness campaign and capacity building activities achieved their planned results.

The second scenario includes facilities to compost organic waste. This is the link to sludge management

(obtained from waste water treatment) and agricultural bio-waste.

In case land was made available and a treatment site was established, transport to the composting area

of the organic part of the waste has to be organized. The Feasibility Study mentioned above included

piloting source separation within the household covered in the targeted area. The same practice can be

scaled up if residents were made more aware of the health and economic benefits. Farmers can be



invited to deliver their agriculture wastes to the treatment site for composting. This can be on the way

back to the villages, which will reduce transportation costs. A fee can be paid for delivered waste by the

operator of the treatment site.

The products have to be made available for farmers. There are two possibilities, individual farmers

organize their own transport or a distribution system has to be part of the total system. This will be a

market mechanism. To support the market mechanism, it is advised to show in pilots the advantage of

using the sludge and compost. If the demand is high, this will result in a higher price of the product. With

a low demand, the price has to be low or even free and the financial resources of the activities have to

come from the fee paid for the treatment of waste water and solid waste.

It will be clear finances will be necessary to start the activities.

Costs of equipment need further investigation but a first estimate for the equipment shown in figure 20

is from Approx. LE 300.000. Be aware of the pitfall to go for larger equipment and build a complete

composting factory.

A transport trailer LE 320.000 will make internal transport possible.

Drying beds can be made using small concrete walls and will need a small investment.

A good quality of compost is essential in this system, which means that the resources, waste water and

solid waste have to be of good quality. Mixing of urban waste and industrial waste has to be prevented.

Future industry in the area should therefore be made responsible for their own waste, both treatment

and discharge. Also inhabitants must be aware of the reuse and their own responsibility. The organic

waste should not contain for instance chemical waste like batteries. This will increase the heavy metal

content of the agricultural soil and has a negative influence on food quality.

8.5 Waste water

In this EMP a solution is described to treat the waste water in villages in the Tellin area. The treatment

is a combination of sedimentation and a constructed wetland. The original choice a WWTP designed by

HCWW is not possible on the short term due to lack of finances. It has no doubt that land will be

necessary for the treatment plants as soon as finances are available to build this plant. For the short

term more simple solution are necessary, in which primary sludge will be produced. If land can already

be made available, the future land can already be used to dry the sludge and to produce compost. This

can be considered as a no-regret solution, because the future plant will also produce sludge.

On this moment land will be necessary for drying of sludge and composting. If the sludge and compost

are used by agriculture as fertilizer and soil improver, no land will be necessary as final destination only

for drying (2 months).

Because several steps and a long time will be necessary to reach the final goal, a clean drain, it has

no sense to give an estimate of the total costs to clean all water. An overview of the costs of large and

small short term measures is given below;

Decentral WWTP for 46.000 capita LE 46 million

Collection system from existing outlet to WWTP LE 4.4 million

Large Wetland after functioning WWTP (>75% efficiency) LE 550,000 – 750,000 (EMP

Khadrawia)

Large Wetland including sedimentation tanks (Tellin) LE 823.000

Large septic tank for 650 capita LE 65,000 (Harmsen et al., 2014)



Small Constructed wetland after large septic tank LE 50,000 to100,0003

Composting facility LE 300,000

Transport unit LE 320,000

Connection to sewer system LE 600/household

Individual septic tank, prefab LE 1000 (estimate). Depends on

number

Individual septic tank homemade LE 3002)

Small wetland after individual septic tank LE 3002)

Not included in the costs are the costs of the land, because it is assumed that the banks of the drain will

be available for the treatment. Also no operational costs are included. After the design this can be easily

done using local expertise.

1.2 Key issue, the availability of area

For solid waste and waste water the availability of a suitable area is the key issue. For solid waste, the

Faddan area is possible and for sludge treatment area is present near the Waste Water Treatment Plant

is present at Kafr El Robe’Ma’a. However it is a difficult discussion with a lot of stakeholders involved.

The text block gives a summary of this discussion.

However without an available area, the only activity that can be done is to collect the solid waste and

bring it to the nearest landfill. Without a place to dry the sludge coming from waste water, it will be

discharged into the drain thereby eliminating the effect of the treatment foreseen, Building an expensive

tertiary water treatment will also produce sludge, and is also not a real alternative.. In this situation we

are back in the assessment circle and nothing will occur.

An area should at least be available for the first pilot. With success it will be easier to find more areas.

Having success, will also mean that the products (compost and dry sludge) are used. Commercialisation

will become possible by private companies or Public Private Partnership. Part of commercialization is

buying the land. How the commercial activities have to be paid will depend on the market. Farmers will

safe on nutrients and improve the soil fertility and might be willing to pay. Inhabitants pay the fee, which

can also be used by the private partner. Comparing it with The Netherland, Solid Waste management

moved from municipalities to private companies in the last 50 years. Waste water treatment is still a

public activity (Water Boards). Both are paid by the fees collected by the municipality. Waste collection

and waste treatment are tendered. Following profits from recycling are for the private company.

As mentioned, the bank of the drain may also be a space for sludge drying and composting. Essential

in this solution are clean banks. The hardware of the solid waste collection can also be used to remove

the already disposed solid waste in the area and on banks. Hardware includes collection materials and

transport and a site for safe disposal. Due to this combination, the extra costs will be limited. It is a public

responsibility and reuse of the materials on the banks is expected to be limited.

3 Rough estimate.



8.6 Collection of Solid Waste

The consultant involved in the solid waste study started discussing the item of available area with the

local authorities during the first quarter of 2015 when the draft Feasibility Study was presented for

comments. There was a need to identify a lot of land at the vicinity of the targeted population that can

be leased and used as a recycling facility. The initial response of the local authorities was to have this

facility at the Faddan site. However, this has proven to be difficulty due to plans of the Governorate of

Sharqia to outsource SWM service in urban communities (including El Faddan site) to a single investor.

During the third quarter of 2015, the issue of land surfaced as an urgent need to start the pilot

implementation, especially that the equipment were being procured and needed to be securely stored

before being donated to the local authority. The consultant worked with local counterparts to identify a

suitable site for the recycling facility and was able to shortlist four possible land lots. Two of these lots

were farm lands very close to the residential clusters in the targeted areas, hence they were rejected.

A third lot was identified located at the gate of El Tellin Village overlooking Bahr Mowass. It is legally

registered as non-farm land and leased as an organic fertilizer factory. A fourth option was a land

overlooking El Okda Drain next to the waste water treatment plan (WWTP) in El Robi’meia Village (two

km from El Tellin Village). The latter lot was also registered as a none-farm land. The third and fourth

lots have the same landlord.

The consultant met with the landlord and consulted him about the price required to lease 1500 sq.m

from any of the two lots. The fourth option was favoured by the consultant since there was a source of

electricity from the nearby WWTP. Following a number of meetings and deliberations, the landlord

decided not to lease any of the lots to the project despite initial willingness to cooperate.

In October 2015, the Governor of Sharqia instructed the Menia El Kameh Markaz to clear the Faddan

site and issued a ban that prohibited receipt of any collected wastes on site. NGOs working in service

delivery of all the villages of the Menia El Kameh Markaz were not provided with an alternative

intermediate collection site. They resorted to dumping collected wastes near or inside waterways,

abandoned land or on the rood. The efforts to identify a site for an intermediate collection and treatment

site continued.

The project, in cooperation with EPADP, identified a site at the starting point of a drain. The location of

the site was at a close proximity to the targeted area. The consultant organized and held a number of

consultations with the local community in the area who resisted allocating a waste collection point near

their land or homes for concerns about public health and land value implications. They also were under

the impression that this would be an alternative site to receive the garbage of the entire markaz after

closing down the Faddan site. Faced with this challenge, the project developed a scenario of

implementing the pilot without a treatment site, i.e., collection and transportation to the nearest landfill

site or the possible landfill site in case the nearest was closed.

The Governor had ambitious plans to establish a number of service projects in the Faddan site. He

ordered a number of design options and announced them to the media. The original owners of the land

waived with the legal possibility of claiming their legal right to the land in case of changing its use in

solid waste management, which was the condition in the donation agreement. The Governor realized

that the site, or at least a part of it, must continue to be used in SWM to avoid losing the entire land.

Early December 2015, and after numerous attempts from the consultant, HE the Governor finally

agreed to meet the PCU Coordinator of the Project and members of the TA team. In that meeting, he

promised to allocate a part of the Faddan site to the SWM pilot to be used as an intermediate collection

point where treatment can also take place. He reiterated his promise in the project workshop held in

Sokhna a few days after this meeting.

The Governor was replaced in the latest reshuffle of governors. The project is working towards

sensitizing the newly appointed governor about the project and the need to have a collection and

treatment site to have a higher feasibility of the proposed SWM pilot.

The consultant involved in the solid waste study started discussing the item of available area with the

local authorities during the first quarter of 2015 when the draft Feasibility Study was presented for

comments. There was a need to identify a lot of land at the vicinity of the targeted population that can

be leased and used as a recycling facility. The initial response of the local authorities was to have this



8.7 Setting Priorities, Multi-Criteria Analysis

In the EMP for the Zefta district, El-Zawahry and El-Sayed Ismail 2005 used a multi-criteria analysis

(MCA) in which the following criteria were used; 1) The relevance of intervention action to EPADP

drainage projects, (2) The relevance to Water Resources Management at sector level, (3) Community

Acceptance and Participation, (4) Limitation of Financial Resources, (5) Technical Feasibility, (6)

Harmony with other Development Plans and (7) Legality and EPADP Authority. The different criteria are

scored in the MCA from which priorities can be given to actions. MCA is a good instrument for setting

priorities.

However, an MCA does not define criteria that prevent an action and the past has learned that these

criteria are present in Egypt. Critical criteria are firstly the availability of financial resources and secondly

the organizational aspect. An organization has to take the lead and take the responsibility for the

implementation, also on behalf of other organizations.

It is therefore advised to rearranged the criteria in two sets

1. Limitation of financial resources

2. Responsible and leading organization is appointed and has a mandate to manage the project

If these two criteria are fulfilled the other criteria can be used to set priorities or to identify the

weak points.

3. The relevance of intervention action to EPADP drainage projects, 4. The relevance to Water Resources Management at sector level,

5. Community Acceptance and Participation,

6. Technical Feasibility,

7. Harmony with other Development Plans

8. Legality and EPADP Authority.

By using criteria 3-8 priorities can be set where to start if scores are high. If scores or individual scores

are low, the MCA has to be used to define actions to make scores higher (e.g. community acceptance

and participation). To really start an implementation, all scores have to be high.

For Okda/Tellin an MCA is not made. Priorities have already been set by the proposal to make a

decentralized WWTP in combination with a constructed wetland for the Tellin villages. For the other

proposed water treatment measures in the Okda /Tellin region, septic tanks if possible in combination

with a constructed wetland, are advised. This is a simple and economic feasible solution, which can be

combined with the production of sludge and compost to be reused in agriculture. Reuse of the organic

part in solid waste and biomass from agriculture is an important aspect in this solution. Having sufficient

land within the responsibility of MRWI, will be the main criteria to start a pilot. Only one site is identified,

which is suitable to start such a pilot, which makes an MCA unnecessary.



9. Institutional Set-Up and Potential Sources for Fund

Constructed Wetland and Decentralized Wastewater Treatment Plant

In this EMP, the choice has been made to find solutions within the responsibility of one single ministry.

MWRI has the responsibility on the drain and the bank of the drain. The EMP therefore focusses on the

drain including the bank and MWRI should take the lead probably by EPADP. Building of a waste water

treatment plan is the responsibility of HCWW. It has to be clear what the two institutions expect from

each other’s. IWRM has a system (drain + bank) that has a natural cleaning capacity, but is overloaded

in the present situation. However, some contamination can be treated.

During the preparation of this EMP it was recommended that a WWTP should be constructed by the

MHUUD through the forthcoming NRSP or any other on-going rural sanitation project (e.g., IWSP or

ISSIP II). There are coordination committees between the MWRI and MHUUD that can flag the need for

the proposed treatment plan. The facility should remove at least 75% of the organic load.

Unfortunately, the treatment facility will not be build, which means that all waste water will still end in the

drain. The constructed wetland alone is not capable to remove the load. Some pre-treatment is

necessary. It was chosen to include a sedimentation trap in the construction. This trap should be built

under the responsibility of EPADP and also maintained by EPADP. As explained already in 4.5, EPADP

primary responsibility is the proper dimensions of the drain. To fulfil these, the design of the waste water

treatment became sub-optimal. MWRI will have a role. In finding a better optimum for the design

Cleaning of the waste water is only possible if the banks of the drains can be used for treatment, drying

of sludge and composting. EPADP is the competent administrative authority of the drains. Constructing,

operating and maintaining constructed wetlands are their responsibility. EPADP can allocate budget

from drain maintenance programs or any other possible budget for open drains works. For the proposed

in-stream wetlands, EPDAP in coordination with EWRMP and GIZ Water Programme are the funding

sources. Monitoring and evaluation activities can be supported through the Environment Unit of EPADP

by allocating budget from a drain maintenance program or other possible budget for open drains works.

Investments will be necessary to construct sewer systems, decentralized waste water treatment plants

and increasing the natural treatment in constructed wetlands. Small changes may be within the regular

maintenance of the drain and can be organized and financed by EPADP. For larger changes and

investments money is needed from larger projects and funding organization like World Bank and GEF.

Solid Waste Management

There will be a solid Waste Management pilot introduced by the EWRMP. The SWM pilot will have an

institutional set up separating service management, governance, and delivery as follows:

• Service Management: the local units in the location of the pilot will conduct the function of

service management. They will open a bank account under the Local Development and Service

Fund purposefully for the SWM pilot. They will issue stamped receipts to be given to service

users / customers upon payment of the monthly fee. The local units will announce and

administer competitive bidding among local NGOs and SMEs to select the entity that will



conduct service delivery. The selected entity (ies) will have a contractual relationship with the

local units. Ownership of equipment (that will be made available through the project) will be the

respective local authority and leased to the service delivery entity as a part of the contract

against insurance to be paid to the local unit and deposited at the bank account at the beginning

of the contract period. The local units will be expected to prepare quarterly status report

depicting all financial and technical details of the system to be presented to the local

stakeholders in a public hearing session to ensure transparency. The staff of the local unit

involved in this system will be entitled to receive a pre-defined percentage of the proceeds of

the system in compensation for the extra work load.

• Service Governance: the BCWUAs will conduct the service governance function. They will

monitor compliance of the service delivery and service management entities with their

mandates. They will also monitor and ensure timely payment of user charges by service users.

The BCWUAs will participate, as observers, in reviewing the financial and technical offers of the

service delivery entities to ensure probity and fairness. They will host the contract signing

ceremony and the quarterly public hearing sessions. The BCWUAs will act as the ombudsman

of the system, i.e., they will receive complaints and grievances of service users and service

delivery entities and make sure they are duly and timely addressed by the service management

entity. They will advise the service management entity on whether or not the contract of the

service delivery entity to be renewed.

• Service Delivery: the local NGOs and SMEs will be competitively selected for the function of

service delivery. This include dissemination of coloured bags to households to enable source

sorting, door-to-door collection according to agreed-upon and widely propagated time schedule,

timely transport of collected wastes to the sorting and recycling station, sorting and separation

of recyclables, sale of recyclables, using organic wastes to prepare compost, sale of compost,

transport of refuse to transfer station or the nearest landfill.

Before implementing the system in the selected location, the project has been consulting municipal

leaders, water users, BCWUAs, NGOs, CDAs, and other stakeholders. The project conducted a

Feasibility Study to define technical details of the system and calculate the cost per household that

guarantee financial sustainability of the service. According to the above, the deposition of solid waste

on the banks and in the drains should be stopped. Collection of waste is a local responsibility. The

Feasibility Study of the proposed pilot has shown that there is sufficient willingness to pay for the

collection of waste.

The organic part of solid waste is a good resource for compost. This can be composted very well in the

combination with sludge from waste water. EPADP, HCWW and the local authorities can consider

combining sludge with organic waste in the planned composting activities. Location of composting is yet

to be decided, in light of availability of land for waste treatment site. Small scale pilots can be considered

on the banks of the drains.

The same is true for agricultural wastes like rice straw. On the moment this is often burned giving air

pollution even noticeable in Cairo. Straw is very well compostable in combination with sludge and the

organic part of solid waste. Cooperation between farmers and the composting facilities has to be

organized. Responsible ministry for wastes from agriculture is the Ministry of Agriculture.

As investigated in Feasibility Study of Solid Waste Management, there is a willingness to pay for waste

collection and waste water treatment. This will be sufficient to pay the operational costs. The total costs

for investments, even including the waste water treatment are limited and it can be expected that it can

be paid from fees of inhabitants and the value of the produced compost/sludge and recyclables.

However, Investments will be necessary and it is not expected that without proof of the concept investors

are waiting. The concept can be proven in Tellin and money from donors should be made available to

start this pilot.



10. Monitoring & Evaluation Program of Measures Performance

Monitoring has to be divided in:

1. Monitoring for assessment;

2. Monitoring to support measures;

3. Monitoring to monitor the effect of measures;

4. Monitoring for further improvement of water quality.

On the moment the direct discharge is the main problem in the area. This is a serious problem and can

be quantified by:

• Organoleptic observation, presence of waste and smell;

• Monitoring organic load (BOD, COD, TSS);

• Monitoring effect of organic load (dissolved oxygen);

• General heath parameter like Faecal Coliform Bacteria;

• pH and salinity

• Wellness of local people (interviews).

The first monitoring phase has passed. It has been assessed that the drains are heavily contaminated

and more monitoring will not change this conclusion. Monitoring should now support the measures

(monitoring phase 2). Question to be answered can be related to the amount of waste water and quality

of waste water on a specific location to be able to design the treatment (e.g. size of septic tank, WWTP

or constructed wetland. Specific for the Okda/Tellin area estimation on quality have to be confirmed.

Because industry is absent low concentration of heavy metals are expected in the sediment, which is

confirmed by recent analysis. Monitoring phase 2 did already start to support the design of the

constructed wetland and sedimentation.

Measures should improve the water quality. Because removal of the organic load is the intention, oxygen

should increase and COD, BOD and TSS should decrease. Also the amount of coliform should

decrease. Wellness should improve. All these parameters can be monitored on present locations after

a measure to improve the quality (monitoring phase 3). This phase will start after implementation of

measures. As soon as quality improves, the transparency in water becomes an easy to measure

parameter. This can be measured using a Secchi disk. Costs will be comparable to the costs as

estimated in the EMP for Khadrawia.

As soon as the discharge of waste water is eliminated a next step can be made in monitoring phase 4.

For instance monitoring of pesticides in order to reduce this amount by better agricultural management

or monitoring to estimate the ecological quality. This type of monitoring is well described in the European

Water Framework Directive (WFD).

In all phase the frequency of monitoring should be sufficient to give a proper answer. Monitoring for

phase 1 is not necessary anymore; we know the drains are contaminated. Monitoring in phase 2 has to

support the design of measures. It can be stopped as soon as we know the proper answer. The



frequency in phase 3 should be sufficient to observe differences. A frequency of once a month is often

used, but this frequency can be reduced if the result of the measure is clear or if it takes more time to

take the measures. The same counts for phase 4. If an ecological good quality (WFD) is obtained and

pressures are under control it is possible to reduce the sampling points and the frequency even to one

monitoring/year.

It will be important to make constructors aware of the impact of their work on the environment. On this

way he can make reasonable estimates of the cost related. The project management must have the

legal and financial power to enforce the necessary activities and monitor the performance



11. Conclusions

The function of an Environmental Management Plan is to be the link between impacts predicted and the

mitigation measures and implementation and operation measures. Regarding the solid waste and waste

water, the environmental quality in the Okda/ Tellin region can be considered as very poor. Solutions

that can be realized in the short term are available.

1. It is possible to improve the environmental quality in the coming years by setting-up a solid

waste collection system including a destination of the waste. Discharge on a landfill is possible

and costs of collection and discharge can be paid by a monthly fee of the inhabitants. More

sustainable is a separation system and selling the recyclable fractions and compost the organic

bio-waste. If well-organized this may even cover the costs.

2. Agricultural bio-waste of farmers, especially rice-straw, is often burned and causes an air

pollution problem even in Cairo. This bio-waste can be considered as an important resource for

farmers, It can be composted and improve fertility and reduces the need for fertilizers.

3. To improve the water quality in the drain, a solution is worked out for the Tellin drain. After a

primary treatment in a sedimentation tank, the water is led in a constructed wetland in the drain.

The sludge can be reused in agriculture. At the end of the wetland it is predicted that 30-58 %

of BOD will be removed. Although this might not be sufficient, this solution can be realized in

the short term and is therefore the best choice for the moment. If it becomes possible to realize

a WWTP in the area, the constructed wetland will still have a function in polishing the water and

the water will become more suitable for reuse.

4. To enable the use of the drain for a constructed wetland, but also as measure to improve the

environmental quality, it is necessary to remove all the waste disposed on the banks. This

amount is estimated on 30,000 m3.

In all four situations, it is necessary to do something with the solid material, bio-waste, sludge and

agricultural bio-waste. Bio-waste can be composted and reused in agriculture. Sludge can also be

composted, but can also be dried on beds and reused in agriculture, comparable with the situation in

many European countries. The sludge in the Okda/Tellin region is suitable for reuse, because it is all

domestic and polluting industries are absent. However an area is necessary to do the necessary

activities in compost piles or drying beds. If the necessary area does no become available, bio-waste

and sludge have to be discharged into landfills, which have to be considered as waste of resources

(nutrients and organic matter). In this project two suitable areas have been identified to be used in the

first pilot, he Faddan area and the area near the WTTP at Kafr Ar-Rubumayah. Small size composting

and drying fields can be organized on the banks of the drain.

As long as activities are limited to the drain and the bank MWRI is the responsible ministry with EPADP

as operating organization. This means that the activities around the waste water treatment as described

for the Tellin area can be organized. Improvement of the primary treatment will need cooperation with

HCWW. For the solid waste more organizations have to be involved.



12. References

Harmsen, J., K.O. Ghodeif, M.S. Saad S. El Tony, H. El Wagieh, E. Mekhaeal, E. Helmy, F. van der

Veen, 2014. A new and scalable Approach for rural sanitation in Egypt, The village of Deir Gabal El Teir

as a pilot, Wageningen, Alterra report 2584.

Pescod, M.B. 1992. Water treatment and use in agriculture. FAO Irrigation and drainage paper 47. FAO,

Rome.

Rashed, A.A., and A. Abdel-Rashid, 2008. Polluted Drainage Water Natural On-Stream Remediation.

Conference paper

Reymond, Ph., 2012. Small-scale sanitation in Egypt: challenges and ways forward. Eawag, Swtzerland-

Egypt.

Reymond, Ph., C. Demars, A. Papangelou, M.H. Twavik, K. Hasan, R. Abdel Wahaab, M. Moussa,

2014. Small-scale Sanitation in the Nile Delta: Baseline Data and Current Practices. 2nd edition Eawag,

Seco, HCWW, Cairo

Tilley, E., L. Ulrich, C. Lüthi, P. Reymond and C. Zurbrügg, 2014. Compendium of Sanitation Systems

and Technologies 2nd Revised Edition. Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology

(Eawag). Dübendorf, Switzerland.

Van Lier, J.B. and R. Abdel Wahaab, 2015. Rural Sanitation in the Nile Delta “Constrains and way

Forward”. Report for RVO.

EWRMP reports

Enhanced Water Resources Management Project – Egypt Environmental and Social Impact

assessment (ESIA) for Instream wetland in Okda/Tellin Pilot Area

Enhanced Water Resources Management Project – Egypt. Feasibility Study of the Solid Waste

Management (SWM) Pilot in Okda/Tellin – Sharqia

Enhanced Water Resources Management Project – Egypt. Constructed Wetland in Channel (CWC)

Tellin Drain

Activities within EWRMP

Water quality surveys conducted under EWRMP for the Environmental Assessment in the Okda-Tellin

pilot area – May and October 2014

Wastewater survey conducted under EWRMP, 2014

Design of an in-stream wetland system under EWRMP, ongoing



Feasibility Study of Solid Waste Management Component in Tellin, Abu Towala, Kafr El-Dair, and

Sanetat Abu Towala Villages Minya Al-Qamh, Sharqiya Governorate – December 2014

Design of instream wetlands for the Khadrawia EMP, Prof. Alaa Eo-Zawahry - January 2008 and BoQ

& Costs

Report about EWRMP Questionnaire on environmental impact assessment On El Okda drain Mania

Elkamh district- Skarkia governorate

Environmental Management Plan El El Khadrawia Pilot Area, September 2015

enhanced water resources management project – egypt okda ... · 07-05-2016 · euroconsult mott...

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