Management Information Systems Department

Red palm weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Olivier is a key pest of date palm in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Since 1994, the Ministry of Agriculture has implemented a pheromone-based integrated pest management (IPM) strategy to control R. ferrugineus in the Kingdom. Geographic information system (GIS) technology can serve as a valuable tool to assess insect activity and in addition the impact of the control strategy. We used GIS-based techniques to ascertain the spatial and temporal spread of R. ferrugineus in 234 ha of date plantation in Al-Sohemia-1 in the Al-Ahsa region of Saudi Arabia. One hundred and fifty six pheromone (Ferroluree) traps in Al-Sohemia-1 were logged using the Trimble global positioning system to determine the east longitude and north latitude of each pheromone trap and transformed to the GIS as a shape file. The spatial and temporal variations for R. ferrugineus activity based on captures in pheromone traps were studied for each of the four seasons of the year and also year-wise during 2009 and 2010. Results revealed that during both 2009 and 2010, maximum weevil activity was recorded during late spring and early summer, with captures declining during autumn and winter. Spatial variations in the activity of R. ferrugineus indicated that in general 2009 registered lower weevil activity compared with 2010. Furthermore, most of the area exhibited medium to very high weevil activity in spring and summer during both 2009 and 2010, while most of the area recorded very low to low weevil activity during the autumn and winter seasons of both the years. The ongoing R. ferrugineus-IPM programme in Al-Ahsa needs to be strengthened in areas showing high to very high weevil activity.

Red palm weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Olivier is a key pest of date palm in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Since 1994, the Ministry of Agriculture has implemented a pheromone-based integrated pest management (IPM) strategy to control R. ferrugineus in the Kingdom. Geographic information system (GIS) technology can serve as a valuable tool to assess insect activity and in addition the impact of the control strategy. We used GIS-based techniques to ascertain the spatial and temporal spread of R. ferrugineus in 234 ha of date plantation in Al-Sohemia-1 in the Al-Ahsa region of Saudi Arabia. One hundred and fifty six pheromone (Ferroluree) traps in Al-Sohemia-1 were logged using the Trimble global positioning system to determine the east longitude and north latitude of each pheromone trap and transformed to the GIS as a shape file. The spatial and temporal variations for R. ferrugineus activity based on captures in pheromone traps were studied for each of the four seasons of the year and also year-wise during 2009 and 2010. Results revealed that during both 2009 and 2010, maximum weevil activity was recorded during late spring and early summer, with captures declining during autumn and winter. Spatial variations in the activity of R. ferrugineus indicated that in general 2009 registered lower weevil activity compared with 2010. Furthermore, most of the area exhibited medium to very high weevil activity in spring and summer during both 2009 and 2010, while most of the area recorded very low to low weevil activity during the autumn and winter seasons of both the years. The ongoing R. ferrugineus-IPM programme in Al-Ahsa needs to be strengthened in areas showing high to very high weevil activity.

Abstrac: Al Uyoun Evaporation Lake is a wetland located to the north of Al Hassa Oasis, eastern province, KSA. The water of this lake is originated from the excess of drainage water which collected by earthen drainage network and discharged into the lake. Wetlands are important link between water and land ecosystems. They provide habitats and refuges for wildlife, flood protection and contribute to abatement of impact of pollution and promoting groundwater recharge. The main morphologic features of Al Uyoun Lake area are wetlands, sabkhas and sand dunes. Salt tolerant vegetation (halophyte) is found in some of the less salt affected sabkha areas. The present paper aims to study the environment of Al Uyoun Lake through integration of remote sensing and geographical information systems (GIS) coupled with Sedimentological, hydrogeological and chemical investigations. A complementary objective of this study was to demonstrate the GIS capabilities in exploring the full value of environme...

In Al-Hassa, Saudi Arabia, the red palm weevil (RPW) Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier) is managed through the use of a pheromone trap based area-wide Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programme, covering nearly 3.0 million date palms. In this study, Geographic Information System (GIS) based techniques were used to study the spatial spread of RPW in two RPW-IPM areas of Al-Hassa viz. Al-Khadoud (297 ha) and Sodah (168 ha) with high and low weevil activity, respectively. The position of RPW pheromone traps in both Al-Khadoud (140 traps) and Sodah (84 traps) were logged using the Trimble Geographic Positioning System (GPS), to determine the East Longitude and North Latitude of each pheromone trap. The Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinates for each trap were also recorded. The weevil captures in pheromone traps, and the infestation reports for 2008 in the above operational areas were reported, Based on the reports, the territorial spread of the weevils and spatial distribution of infestations due to RPW on date palm, was depicted for both Al-Khadoud and Sodah at five levels. Further, regression analysis was carried out to ascertain the relationship between annual weevil captures (Y) in pheromone traps and infestation (X) reports for 2008, on a 10 ha scale, in Al-Khadoud and Sodah, through linear regression. Based on high R² values (> 0.70), we selected Y = 121.0+4.515X as the model that could quantify the above pest-infestation relationship in Al-Hassa. This study can serve as a basis for incorporating GIS technology for improving the on going RPW management strategy, in Al-Hassa, Saudi Arabia.

This paper aims to develop a suitability model based on several spatial models for groundwater characteristics. These models produce raster maps for the predicted values of the previous characteristics at smaller scale. The proposed model integrates all the grids related data in one table and provide decision makers with the necessary information about water quality at different locations in Siwa Depression, Egypt. The deliverables are represented as text reports and suitability maps. ArcGIS with Spatial Analyst extension is used in building the proposed model. A Graphical User Interface (GUI) is designed to allow and present various levels of integration. This location suitability model and the multilayered database represent a spatial decision support system (SDSS). This SDSS can support decision makers for water management and provide accurate, relevant and timely information on groundwater quality and suitability. The model produces different maps of suitable locations for diffe...

There is a growing concern in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to exploit water resources of acceptable quality to meet demands in domestic, industrial and agricultural sectors. Al Hassa Oasis is one of the largest natural oases of the world and one of the main and old agricultural centers in the Kingdom Saudi Arabia. The enormous size of the farming area was made possible by the immense volume of groundwater discharging from the underlying aquifers. The underlying aquifer system at Al Hassa comprises Neogene aquifer complex, Dammam aquifer complex, Umm Er Radhuma aquifer and Aruma aquifer. The groundwater resources still contribute the largest share in the water budget of Al Hassa area. Nowadays, a new campus for King Faisl University (KFU) is executing at Al Hofuf and it is planned to drill 17 well at the KFU site to tape water from Umm Er Radhuma aquifer to meet the new campus demands for different purposes. So, the aim of this paper is to map the underlying aquifers systems at the study area and to help in choice of the best locations of the proposed site wells in the more potential areas. Two Dimensional (2-D) electrical imaging/tomography surveys, remote sensing, hydrogeological and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are implemented to achieve the objectives of this study. One of the new developments in recent years is the use of 2-D electrical imaging/tomography surveys to map areas with moderately complex geology. A more accurate mode of the subsurface is a two-dimensional model where the resistivity changes in the vertical direction, as well as in the horizontal direction along the survey line. In this study, (2-D) earth resistivity survey were conducted along five transects crossing the site of the (KFU) campus. These 2-D resistivity transects were extending in northsouth direction for about 2 Km for each transect. At each transect, Dipole-Dipole, Wenner-Schlumberger and Pole-Dipole configurations were implemented and merged during the processing and the interpretation of resistivity data. Available wells data, geological and hydrogeological information were used to help in the interpretation of the resistivity tomograms. Resistivity tomograms of the five profiles indicate remarkably the different hydro-stratigraphic units of the principal aquifers, the aquitard (Rus Formation), karstified areas of the Neogene and Dammam aquifers and the hardpan layer. The high potential area was found to be located to the southern part of the investigated site. A map based on this high resolution geophysical investigation was prepared and the sites of the proposed wells are relocated and the drilling program is started and the already drilled wells, so far, show excellent match between the 2-D resistivity tomograms and the well lithology and hydrogeology information.