Background

Ancient Waters, Unique Landscapes

Ancient sands, ancient waters

The Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System (NSAS) is one of the largest and most important underground aquifers of any kind in the world. It is also the world’s largest ‘fossil’ water aquifer system meaning that the water is very, very old — perhaps even one million years old in some parts. While its massive reserves are estimated to be around 375,000 cu km of water, it is seen as a closed water system that is only marginally rechargeable and therefore largely non-renewable.

Above the surface: NSAS countries and peoples

The NSAS lies beneath parts of the four northeast African countries of Chad, Egypt, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya (Libya), and Sudan covering some two million sq km of land. Each country shares similar characteristics including extremely arid climates, scarce surface water resources, low irregular rainfall, persistent drought, and fragile ecosystems. Groundwater is a primary source of water for the many peoples of the NSAS who present a wide variety of histories and cultures such as the ‘Nubians’.

Rich biodiversity and landscapes

The NSAS has surprisingly rich landscapes and species. For example, Libya’s Kufra Group is a set of oases in shallow depressions with eagles and ostriches. In northwest Sudan, the Wadi Howar National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the largest national parks in the world. During the 1930s in Egypt, the Gilf Kebir Plateau was explored by the famous Hungarian desert explorer Count Laszlo de Almasy, chief character of the film The English Patient, who discovered several vegetated canyons he professed to be the ‘Lost Oasis’. In northern Chad, the Tibesti Mountains are home to species such as the scimitar-horned oryx, barbary sheep, cheetah, hook-billed blind snake, and desert locust.