Western Desert

When you think of the desert, the Western Desert in Egypt is likely to fit the image that you see. There are sand dunes alongside the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Pyramid of Khafre, and the Great Sphinx of Giza. However, did you know that this is just 10% of the Western Desert and the rest is mainly a rocky desert? There is more to the Western Desert than just sand dunes and pyramids! What kind of opportunities and challenges are there in the Western Desert? Why is it an important area? Let's look closer at how the unique hot environment affects the livelihood of the area.

Western Desert summary

Firstly, let's summarise some facts about the Western Desert. The Western Desert in Egypt is part of the Sahara Desert and covers two-thirds of the land surface of Egypt. It lies west of the river Nile, under the Qattara Depression, extending to the Libyan border and border of Sudan. It contains four diverse regions, the Giza Plateau, the Great Sand Sea, the Black Desert, and the White Desert.

The Giza Plateau is on the edge of the Western Desert, the outskirts of Cairo, where many visitors are attracted to the historical aspect of monuments and temples from Ancient Egypt. The Great Sand Sea is between eastern Libya and western Egypt with almost three-quarters covered by sand dunes. The Black Desert sits above the White Desert in the south and has distinctive volcano-shaped mounds that are capped with basalt sill which creates the black colour. The White Desert is a national park that has large white chalk rock formations.

Fig. 1 - White Desert

The Western Desert faces certain challenges in development as well as opportunities because of the hot climate and unique landscapes. Opportunities are seen in solar energy, tourism, natural resources, and farming. Whereas there are challenges in irrigation and expansion of land, inaccessibility, and temperature.

Western Desert importance

The importance of understanding and learning about the Western Desert as a case study is to see how communities adapt to the hot environment with distinct characteristics and unique ecosystems. Many living organisms rely on each other to survive. People rely on the animals that they keep for food and milk.

It is also important to acknowledge that the challenges the Western Desert faces are being amplified through climate change and are particularly vulnerable. There will be more pressure on the lack of water and rising temperatures which can affect farming, working conditions, and the worker's health.

Western Desert opportunities

Although the Western Desert has harsh climates and challenging landscapes, there are environmental and economic opportunities that are created.

Natural resources

There are natural resources that are extracted from the Western Desert. Production of petroleum started when it was found in 1908 in the Western Desert and the Gulf of Suez and developed. By the 1980s Egypt became an important oil producer. Along with the search for oil, natural gas was found and is also extracted for domestic consumption and for export.

Solar energy

There are 4000 hours of sunshine per year in the Western Desert which is one of the highest in the world making it well-suited for solar energy production. In 2019, Benban Solar Park was built and powers 420,000 households by producing 930Gwh a year. It is the fourth biggest solar park in the world. The building of the park created jobs for 9,000 construction workers and 70 locals hired to operate the park. Powering homes and businesses can help with the country's development and is more sustainable compared with fossil fuels as it is renewable energy.

Fig. 2 - A map to show where the sun hits Egypt

Tourism

The tourism industry is one of the leading incomes to Egypt's economy. Particularly in the Western Desert is the site of the Fourth Dynasty Giza Necropolis which includes the pyramid complexes, statues such as the Great Sphinx of Giza, several cemeteries, and a worker's village. The vast beauty of the natural environment of The Great Sand Sea, the Black Desert, and the White Desert attract tourists, and many go on tours with local guides. Every year 12.9 million tourists visit Egypt, which contributes to the economy through the multiplier effect.

Farming

In the Western Desert with its arid conditions, it is hard to imagine anything being grown. Nevertheless, there are land reclamation projects making parts of the desert available for farming. The water for the crops comes from the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer that lies underneath the desert.

Farms in the Western Desert produce potatoes, wheat, and barley, and reclaiming desert land can help with the lack of farmland that Egypt faces. However, the aquifer is a non-renewable resource and lies under not only the Western Desert but also neighbouring countries, so these factors need to be taken into account when using the water.

Western Desert challenges

The challenges in the Western Desert seem obvious. Let's will go into some detail to see to what extent they are affecting and limiting the development of the area.

Inaccessibility

The Western Desert covers two-thirds of Egypt and is 262,800sq mi / 680,650km². The inaccessibility of the Western Desert is due to the lack of infrastructure for daily necessities such as electricity, water, and access to key services like medical care. There is also a lack of infrastructure for transportation with few roads and no railway lines making it hard to export natural resources.

Temperature and climate

In the Western Desert, there are extreme temperatures ranging from 50 degrees during the day in the summer to below 0 degrees during the night in the winter. These temperatures make it hard for people to work outside to do physical work, such as farming or mining. In the summer season, it can become too hot for tourists. In the spring, there is khamsin; a dry, hot, sandy wind that creates sand-filled wind storms with a speed of up to 140 km per hour.

Western Desert water crisis

The Western Desert water crisis is due to the diminishing amount of water available. There are 560 cubic meters of water available per person every year in Egypt. This is much less than the amount available 50 years ago. This highlights the water scarcity of the country as the United Nations defines countries under 1,000 cubic meters as water scarce.

Another threat to the water supply is the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam which may affect the freshwater from the Nile. The Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam was built upstream on the Blue Nile River in Ethiopia to relieve the energy shortage by generating electricity as a hydroelectric power plant. This dam is seen to affect the water supply of Egypt due to the evaporation of water in the reservoir in Ethiopia.

Fig. 3 - Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam