Coordinator: Dr. Ali Al-Maktoumi / Water Research Center 

Abstract:

Research on the topics related to water resources and management in Oman (and other arid areas) is of paramount importance for the national economy and strategic development in agriculture, urban farming and landscaping, industries, urban supply of potable water and sanitation, urban planning, tourism, and ecosystems, as outlined in Oman Strategy 2040, where virtually all goals and projections are connected to the availability of safe water. The currently available natural water resources in Oman are limiting many development projects, exerting severe stress on farmers, communities, the private sector, and potential international investors. Therefore innovative practically-scientifically-based solutions, technologies, and policies in water and associated sectors are needed for Oman to progress. Among numerous avenues in water sciences and engineering, we selected three focal themes, viz.

Managed aquifer recharge and recovery, i.e. a smart and safe storage of freshwater in the subsurface during periods of relative abundance of this water and abstraction of rock-banked water during periods of water deficit or during contingency situations.

Efficient irrigation in farms and urban gardening, and Aflaj systems. i.e. thrifty and smart watering of crops and ornamental plants with minimal losses of water by evaporation and/or deep percolation by storing soil water in the root zone and  “channeling” this water to the plants’ bodies and, eventually, to the  “fruits”. An important system to ensure a sustainable water conveyance at the level of rural communities and catchments is the protection and optimization of the national heritage: a unique Aflaj system of subsurface drainage of infiltrated rainfalls and collection of this water into intelligently designed tunnels and channels

Urban hydrology i.e. understanding and a conspicuous design of urban drainage (rainstorm and sewerage) and control of what is becoming a “ticking” bomb” under the feet of citizens of Muscat, Sohar, Salalah and other rapidly growing metropolitan areas in Oman, where waterlogging of urban subsurface infrastructure and wet soils due to rise of shallow water tables are already a daunting problem.
The following daunting hydrological problems of arid zone aquifers - vadose zone –soil systems will be studied: 

Replenishment of groundwater resources depleted/deteriorated due to over pumping and seawater intrusion in coastal zones of Oman.
Combatting/mitigation of water table and piezometric surface rise, waterlogging and secondary salinization of urban areas in Oman.
Engineering of soil composites as porous substrates on farms, in private home gardens, and landscapes of municipal parks towards increasing water-saving and improving higher water use efficiency.
Improvement of traditional Aflaj water collection-distribution systems by novel technologies of gauging, flow control, institutional upgrading, water metering and water trade with urban communities.

Smart technologies to optimize storage and recovery of subsurface water using engineering (e.g. injection wells, infiltration ponds, horizontal and vertical drains, and abstraction wells) and bioengineering (e.g. planting actively transpiring vegetation in waterlogged areas or – vice versa  - utilization of deficit irrigation techniques for crops) methods will be explored. Catchment scale management of water resources, viz. engagement into productive cycles of treated wastewater, irrigation water use efficiency at farm level, will be theoretically studied, tested in pilot projects at SQU labs and Agricultural Experiment Station (AES).