Ground water appraisal of the Gash River basin at Kassala, Kassala Province, Sudan.

Abstract

The Cash River basin lies in the eastern part of Kassala Province, Sudan. The rock units in the area are the Basement Complex, Clays of the Plain, and the alluvial deposits of the Gash River. The average annual precipitation is 13,4 inches. The mean seasonal runoff of the Gash River at Kassala town is about 381,000 acre-feet, and the mean average period of flow is 88 days per year. The principal aquifer in the area is the alluvium. The aquifer is unconfined, and the average saturated thickness is 90 feet. The average transmissivity of the aquifer is 100,000 gallons per day/foot and the average specific yield is 13 per cent, The storage capacity of the ground water reservoir is about 484,000 acre-feet, The annual discharge from the reservoir for irrigation, domestic uses, and evapotranspiration is about 58,000 acre-feet, The aquifer is recharged seasonally from the Gash River during the rainy season by influent seepage and from direct precipitation over the basin, The ground water supplies of the area have small amounts of dissolved solids, The ground water is of an excellent quality for irrigation and domestic purposes.