An-Najah Staff

Public concerns over the groundwater quality of the Gaza Coastal Aquifer has grown significantly in recent years and has focused increasingly on anthropogenic sources for the problem. The Gaza Coastal Aquifer is an important source of water to over 1.3 million residents and is utilized extensively to satisfy agricultural, domestic, and industrial water demands. Evidence indicates that the nitrate (NO₃) levels routinely exceeded the maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 10 mg/L NO₃-N in 90 percent of the water supply wells. Degradation of groundwater quality in the Gaza Coastal Aquifer due to nitrate pollution and the continuously increasing demand for potable water have motivated the restoration of the aquifer. Restoration efforts have intensified the dire need for developing protection alternatives and management options (MOs) such that the ultimate nitrate concentrations at the critical receptors are below the MCL. This paper presents a generic conceptual framework for the management of groundwater contamination from nitrate for the Gaza Coastal Aquifer. The framework incorporates an assessment of existing data and future monitoring needs, conceptual models of groundwater flow and nitrate fate and transport, and decision-making tools to study the impact of different MOs considering both environmental and economic aspects.