Geomorphological features of the Nile Delta coastal plain: a review

Abstract

       The study of the coastal plain features of the Nile Delta coast from Alexandria to Tineh Bay, east of Port Said reveals remarkable geomorphological units. Running land­ward from the Mediterranean coast, these units are: 1— the nearshore zone, up to 6—7 m water depth, generally shows texture distribution fining seaward across the surf­zone, breaker zone and sand bar. 2— beach and coastal flat, made up of fine and very fine sand with limited patches of medium and coarse sand. 3— coastal accretion sand ridges represent a tracer of old beaches fringing the coastal deltaic plain in some localities. Older carbonate rid­ges (Pleistocene) extend westward from Alexandria towards the Lybian border. 4— coastal dunes; barchan and longi­tudinal belts of fine and very fine sand usually located at the southern margins of the backshore flat parallel to the coast. Other inactive accumulation of sand and silt old dunes are lying further inland south of the recent ones and south of the coastal lakes. 5 — coastal lakes; the distri­bution pattern of the bottom sediments of Burullus and Manzala Lakes is similar, where the relict sediments in both lakes are surrounded by modern sedimentation. On the other hand, the pattern is mainly modern in case of Idku Lake.