Mapping Water Canals in Mansheyat Dahshur

Egypt is currently facing immense environmental pressure. With a rapidly growing population, the country has seen its natural resources—especially water and arable land—strained to the limit. Urban sprawl has consumed fertile land, while water scarcity and limited national food production compound the issue, forming a complex, interlinked crisis. Though the political situation has stabilized in recent years, Egypt still struggles under a heavy economic burden. This impact is especially severe in rural areas, where basic public services such as healthcare, education, and waste management are lacking.

Corentin Mouchard joined the Giza Lab activities as intern and delved into the waste management challenges in the Egyptian village of Mansheyat Dahshur, with a focus on how pollution affects the village’s intricate irrigation canal system, as part of his master dissertation in Géographie, Aménagement, Environnement et Développement (GAED) - Université de Paris Nanterre, in collaboration with the Laboratoire Architecture Ville Urbanisme Environnement (LAVUE) research unit.

Corentin’s work offers a nuanced view of the water-related challenges facing Mansheyat Dahshur, revealing the complex interplay between pollution, infrastructure, and local livelihoods. The village is interlaced with 19 canals, two of which serve as primary conduits to the larger national irrigation system. However, these canals aren’t just agricultural infrastructure—they also border roads and weave through both rural and urbanized zones. With no formal waste management system in place, open-air pollution, particularly plastic and organic waste in the canals, is an everyday reality, all find their way into the waterways, carried not only by human hands but by wind, gravity, and time. The implications are both technical and deeply human.

Fig 1 : Map of the level of Mansheyat Dahshur’s canals

Within this context, Corentin Mouchard conducted a detailed field study between May 23 and June 12, collecting data across several dimensions: waste accumulation on canal beds and banks, water clarity and presence, vegetation types, and overall canal usage and importance. A special focus was given to "accumulation points"—localized zones where waste collects either due to human disposal practices or natural canal flow patterns.

This on-the-ground research involved walking through the village, capturing photos, and holding informal discussions with local residents. Every interactions offered valuable qualitative insights.

Fig 2 : Map of waste presence in the bank of the canals

Mapping the Pollution: A Four-Zone Framework

Based on cartographic and statistical analysis, the research identified four distinct pollution zones in the village:

1. Northern Rural Zone – Low pollution (Canals 1, 5, 6, 16)

2. Central Urban Core – Severe pollution (Canals 2, 3, 4)

3. Southern Zone – Moderate pollution, despite being predominantly rural (Canals 10, 11, 12, 13)

4. Transversal Canals – Pollution levels fluctuate as they cross zones (Maryoutia, Dahshureya, Canal 7)

Interestingly, the southern region challenges initial assumptions. Although largely rural, it exhibits moderate pollution, driven by nearby dwellings including Bedouin communities and privately-owned villas. Infact, pollution correlates strongly with residential proximity. Even in fields with minimal direct human activity, plastic waste is ever-present—though overall pollution levels are not as severe as might be assumed. Over half (51.9%) of the observed canals showed low pollution, and another 29.3% fell into the medium pollution category.

Not All Pollution is Equal

The nature of pollution varied by canal type:

• Major canals (e.g., 1, 5, 7) undergo annual cleaning via mechanical dredging, which forms mixed mounds of soil and waste.

• Smaller canals accumulate waste differently due to physical access constraints.

• Urban canals, encased in concrete, exhibit concentrated waste but little bank accumulation.

Furthermore, four technical variables control how waste behaves within the canal system, influencing waste mobility:

• Flow velocity: Sluggish or stagnant waters trap waste more easily.

• Canal geometry: Narrow bends or sudden expansions can create eddies that collect debris.

• Vegetation: While plants can trap floating waste, they also block flow and may die off due to pollution, worsening water quality.

• Accumulation points: These are not accidental—they form where hydrodynamic and social factors converge, such as near footbridges or common washing spots.

Where flow is slow, waste tends to stay put, and over time, canals can become cesspools. In the absence of a municipal solution, residents often resort to burning waste—exchanging waterborne contamination for airborne toxins.

Fig 3 : The typology discrimination

Fig. 4 : A sample of urban canal, encased in concrete (photo by Kawkab Tawfik)

Beyond Waste: Canals as Cultural Landscapes

Yet, reducing these waterways to pollution sites alone would overlook their deeper cultural, ecological, and social significance. The canals are not only essential for agriculture and irrigation, but also serve as informal fishing spots, communal spaces, and even hold potential for rural tourism. They are deeply woven into the daily rhythms of village life and Egypt’s environmental history. while they also represent a specific ecosystem, largely linked with humans’s activities and thus strongly impacted by their pollution.

Mouchard’s work reveals a painful contradiction: these waterways are simultaneously a source of life and a repository of waste. But by mapping their condition with precision, he opens a path for targeted, locally-informed interventions. Improving waste mobility, rethinking dredging practices, and introducing decentralised waste collection could begin to restore balance—not only to Mansheyat Dahshur’s irrigation system, but to its entire environmental narrative.

Fig 5 : Typology map of Mansheyat Dahshur