Abstract: Cities have experienced rapid urbanization-induced harsh climatic events, especially flooding, inevitably resulting in negative and irreversible consequences for urban resilience and endangering residents’ lives. Numerous studies have analyzed the effects of anthropogenic practices (land use changes and urbanization) on flood forecasting. However, non-structural mitigation’s effectiveness, like Nature-Based Solutions (NBS), has yet to receive adequate attention, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, which have become increasingly significant and indispensable for operationalizing cities efficiently. Therefore, our study investigated the predictive influence of incorporating one of the most common NBS strategies called low-impact development tools (LID) (such as rain gardens, bio-retention cells, green roofs, infiltration trenches, permeable pavement, and vegetative swale) during the urban planning of Alexandria, Egypt, which experiences the harshest rainfall annually and includes various urban patterns. City characteristics-dependent 14 LID scenarios were simulated with recurrence intervals ranging from 2 to 100 years using the LID Treatment Train Tool (LID TTT), depending on calibrated data from 2015 to 2020, by the Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency index and deterministic coefficient, and root-mean-square error with values of 0.97, 0.91, and 0.31, respectively. Our findings confirmed the significant effectiveness of combined LID tools on total flood runoff volume reduction by 73.7%, revealing that different urban patterns can be used in flood-prone cities, provided LID tools are considered in city planning besides grey infrastructure to achieve optimal mitigation. These results, which combined multiple disciplines and were not explicitly mentioned in similar studies in developing countries, may assist municipalities’ policymakers in planning flood-resistant, sustainable cities.

Abstract: Combined large-scale rainwater harvesting (RWH) and flood mitigation systems are promising as a sustainable water management strategy in urban areas. These are multi-purpose infrastructure that not only provide a secondary, localised water resource, but can also reduce discharge and hence loads on any downstream wastewater networks if these are integrated into the wider water network. However, the performance of these systems is dependent on the specific design used for its local catchment which can vary significantly between different implementations. A multitude of design strategies exist, however there is no universally accepted standard framework. To tackle these issues, this paper presents a two-player optimisation framework which utilises a stochastic design optimisation model and a competing, high-intensity rainfall design model to optimise passively-operated RWH systems. A customisable tool set is provided, under which optimisation models specific to a given catchment can be built quickly. This reduces the barriers to implementing computationally complex sizing strategies and encouraging more resource-efficient systems to be built. The framework was applied to a densely populated high-rise residential estate, eliminating overflow events from historical rainfall. The optimised configuration resulted in a 32% increase in harvested water yield, but its ability to meet irrigation demands was limited by the operational levels of the treatment pump. Hence, with the inclusion of operational levels in the optimisation model, the framework can provide an efficient large-scale RWH system that is capable of simultaneously meeting water demands and reducing stresses within and beyond its local catchment.

Abstract: Complex pyrite textures associated with large changes in isotopic and trace element compositions are routinely assumed to be indicative of multi-faceted processes involving multiple fluid and sulfur sources. We propose that the features of ore-stage pyrite from roll front deposits across the world, revealed in exquisite detail via high-resolution trace element mapping by LA-ICP-MS, reflect the dynamic internal evolution of the biogeochemical processes responsible for sulfate reduction, rather than externally driven changes in fluid or sulfur sources through time. Upon percolation of oxidizing fluids into the reduced host-sandstones, roll front systems become self-organized, with a systematic reset of their activity cycle after each translation stage of the redox interface down dip of the aquifer. Dominantly reducing conditions at the redox interface favor the formation of biogenic framboidal pyrite (δ34S from −30.5 to −12.5‰) by bacterial sulfate reduction and the genesis of the U mineralization. As the oxidation front advances, oxidation of reduced sulfur minerals induces an increased supply of sulfate and metals in solution to the bacterial sulfate reduction zone that has similarly advanced down the flow gradient. Hence, this stage is marked by increased rates of the bacterial sulfate reduction associated with the crystallization of variably As-Co-Ni-Mo-enriched concentric pyrite (up to 10,000′s of ppm total trace contents) with moderately negative δ34S values (from −13.7 to −7.5‰). A final stage of pyrite cement with low trace element contents and heavier δ34S signature (from −6.9 to +18.8‰) marks the end of the roll front activity cycle and the transition from an open to a predominantly closed system behavior (negligible advection of fresh sulfate). Blocky pyrite cement is formed using the remaining sulfate, which now becomes quickly heavy according to a Rayleigh isotope fractionation process. This ends the cycle by depleting the nutrient supplies for the sulfate-reducing bacteria and cementing pore spaces within the host sandstone, effectively restricting fluid infiltration. This internally-driven roll front activity cycle results in systematic, large S isotope and trace element fractionation. Ultimately, the long-time evolution of the basin and fluid sources control the metal endowment and evolution of the system; these events, however, are unlikely to be preserved by the roll front, as a direct result of its hydrodynamic nature.

Abstract: CONTEXT Ancient irrigation systems (AISs) have been providing a multitude of ecosystem services to rural farming and urban communities in Asia and Africa, especially in arid and semi-arid climatic areas with low rainfall. Many AISs, however have now been degraded. A systematic analysis of AISs on their typologies, causes of degradation, and their ecosystem services is lacking. OBJECTIVE The objective of this review was to synthesize the knowledge on AISs on their typologies, status and causes of degradation, ecosystem services and functions, and identify gaps in research in Asia and Africa. METHOD A critical review of peer-reviewed journal papers, conference and workshop proceedings, book chapters, grey literature, and country reports was conducted. Qualitative and quantitative information from journal papers were used to conceptualize the typologies and analyze the status and causes of degradation, and ecosystems services and functions provided by the AISs. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION Based on the review, we classified AISs into three groups by source of irrigation water: Rainwater harvesting system (RHS) with small reservoirs, ground water based system, and floodwater based system. The RHSs, which used to receive reliable rainfall and managed by well cohesive social organizations for their maintenance and functioning in past, have now been silting due to extreme rainfall pattern and breakdown of the cohesive organizations in recent decades. In ground water based systems, indiscriminate development of deep tube wells causing siltation of channels has been a major challenge. In floodwater irrigation systems, irregular rainfall in the highlands and the breakage of irrigation structures by destructive floods were the main causes of degradation. Lack of maintenance and increased soil erosion, inadequate skilled manpower, and declining support from the government for repair and maintenance were the main causes of degradation of all AISs. The main ecosystem service provided by all AISs is water for agriculture. In tank- and pond-based systems, fish farming is also practiced. Tank irrigation systems provide various types of provisioning, regulatory, cultural and supporting services, especially in India and Sri Lanka. Ground water based systems provide water for domestic purposes and various cultural services. Floodwater based systems provide water for power generation and wildlife habitat maintenance and help in flood control. SIGNIFICANCE The knowledge generated through the review provide evidence-based information, and help aware governments, private sectors and development agencies for improved policy planning and decision making, and prioritizing the restoration, rehabilitation, and management of various AISs.

Abstract: Data are presented for nitrate, dinitrogen and argon concentrations and 15N14N ratios in groundwater, with radiocarbon ages up to 40,000 yr. for three confined sandstone aquifers in the western Kalahari of South West Africa/Namibia. The nitrate is probably generated within the soil of the recharge areas, and its production rate during the period 3000-40,000 B.P. has remained between 0.5 and 1.6 meq NO−3l−1 of recharge water, with ° 15N between + 4 and + 8‰. Variations in the amount of nitrate and of “excess air” in groundwater recharge are found, and can only reflect changes in the environmental conditions during recharge. They must therefore be caused by the climatic changes that have taken place during the past 25,000 yr.