Qattara Depression Project

The Qattara Depression Project or Qattara Project is a cancelled macro-engineering project concept in Egypt. Rivalling the Aswan High Dam in scope, the intention is to develop the hydroelectric potential of the Qattara Depression by creating an artificial lake. The Qattara depression is a region that lies 60 metres (200 ft) below sea level on average and is currently a vast, uninhabited desert. Water could be let into the area by connecting it to the Mediterranean Sea with tunnels or canals. The inflowing water would then evaporate quickly because of the desert climate. A controlled balance of inflow and evaporation would produce a continuous flow to generate hydroelectricity. Eventually, the depression would become a hypersaline lake or a salt pan as the evaporating seawater leaves the salt it contains behind. This would return the Qattara Depression to its current state but with its sabkha soils tens of meters higher, allowing for salt mining. The concept calls for excavating a large canal or tunnel of about 55 to 100 kilometres (30 to 60 mi), depending on the route chosen to the Mediterranean Sea, to bring seawater into the area. An alternative would be a 320-kilometre (200 mi) pipeline north-east to the freshwater Nile River south of Rosetta. In comparison, Egypt's Suez Canal is 193 kilometres (120 mi) in length. By balancing the inflow and evaporation, the lake's w

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