Great Man-Made River

The Great Man-Made River is a Libyan network of pipelines that carries fossil groundwater from Sahara aquifers to coastal cities and agricultural areas.

Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System: A vast fossil-water aquifer system beneath parts of Libya, Egypt, Sudan, and Chad. Its groundwater supplies much of the river's eastern and southern production.
Fossil water: Groundwater recharged in the distant past and renewed too slowly to replace current withdrawals. The project's source water is ancient and effectively nonrenewable on human timescales.
Tripoli: The capital and largest city of Libya, located on the Mediterranean coast. The network delivers water to the country's largest urban center.
Nonrenewable groundwater: Groundwater whose rate of recharge is negligible compared with its rate of withdrawal. Continued pumping draws down reserves that cannot replenish on project timescales.
Kufra Basin: A sedimentary basin in southeastern Libya containing deep groundwater-bearing formations. Wells in this basin feed the network's southeastern source fields.
Groundwater exploration: The investigation of subsurface formations to locate and assess groundwater resources. Exploration in Libya revealed large reserves beneath desert regions.
Benghazi: A major Libyan city on the Mediterranean coast in the northeast. The eastern system supplies this important coastal population center.
Groundwater depletion: A decline in groundwater storage caused when extraction exceeds replenishment. The river's large withdrawals can lower pressure and water levels in source aquifers.
Sarir Basin: A groundwater-rich sedimentary basin in southeastern Libya. Its well fields supply water routed north toward the Libyan coast.
Muammar Gaddafi: Libyan political leader who ruled the country from 1969 until 2011. His government made the river a flagship national infrastructure project.

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