Assessment of Water Supply System Case Study (Elfasher – North Darfur)

Abstract

This study was conducted on North Darfur State Water resources, taking El fasher water supply as a case-study. The study includes review on the available water resources for the state, either surface or ground water. The surface water is from surface runoff generated by rainfall, the groundwater resources are either alluvial aquifers: Wadi Kutum and Wadi El Ku, or the Nubian Sandstone aquifer. The study also gives review on the water supply systems known in the state as: traditional, Hafirs and Dams, Hand dug wells, Hand Pumps, which were introduced by the UNICEF since 1992, and Water yards. The available water resources for El fasher town are surface water from rainfall and ground water from Shagera and Sag El Naam basins. The state suffers from acute deficit of water due to low rainfall and short duration of surface runoff. The study aims to allocate a suitable option which will provide Elfasher Town with adequate quantity of water for the coming 20 years after which the consumption is projected to be 55000 m3 /d. The Golo dam and the two Hafirs as well as Shagera boreholes which were now the essential sources of water for Elfasher town are viewed to secure a sustainable supply source for the rural people living in the area. A rural water supply plant using slow sand filtration technique is proposed to treat the surface water collected behind Golo dam and the two Hafirs, it is to serve about 14000 people for a life time of 10 years. The system is suggested to be of common water points at suitable sites, with the possibility of making house connection in the future. A FORTRAN program was made to design a pipeline 10km long (the proposed distance of the farthest stand post) and the pump required. The cost of the rural treatment plant is estimated to be about 400,000 USD, the community has to participate with the government in affording this amount as well as in running it.