GIS-based Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) mapping for oil ...

INTERUNIVERSITY PROGRAMMEINPHYSICAL LAND RESOURCESUniversiteit GentVrije Universiteit BrusselBelgiumGIS-based Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) mappingfor oil spillsCase study in Sharm El-Sheikh, EgyptPromoter:Dr. Okke BatelaanMaster dissertation in partial fulfillmentof the requirements for the Degree ofMaster of Science inPhysical Land Resourcesby: Ihab Nafie LotfySeptember, 2004

AcknowledgementsIACKNOWLEDGEMENTSMy deep gratitude and appreciation to my promoter Dr. Okke Batelaan, for his guidance, kindness,expertise and his patient supervision during the development of this research and editing themanuscript.I am grateful for Prof. Dr. S. Wartel and Dr. M. S. Chen for their valuable advices regarding thepart of coastal zone dynamics.I am grateful for Dr. Hamdy El-Gamily, who proposed the topic of this study and provided me withideas and data during the two years.I wish to express my appreciation to Prof. Dr. Abdalla Gad, who strongly recommended me for thestudy grant and for his useful advices before and during my stay in Belgium.I’m also grateful to Vlaamse Interuniversitaire Raad (VLIR) for financing my studies.Thanks are due to Prof. Dr. T. Aisa, Eng. H. Farouk and Dr. A. Marai for providing usefulinformation about biological resources.I am grateful for Dr. Ahmed Moharam, for providing GIS-ready maps that were very useful indoing the GIS analysis.I wish to express my gratitude to my friend Mr. Hamdy El-Desouky for his kind support and helpin collecting the relevant literature from Egypt and improving the manuscript.I am grateful for my friends and colleges in Egypt: Dr. M. Swillam, Eng. M.Ghadiry, Mr. BadrMostafa, Mr. A. Hanafy, Mr. Ihab Abdel Aleem and Miss. Nabila Ibrahiem, for providing me withmost of the needed data and their remote support during the two years.Thanks are due to the organizing group of Physical Land Resources, this is extended to all the staffmembers (VUB & RUG) and my classmates and friends, who accompanied me here in Belgium.My deepest sense of gratitude is for my parents, brother and sisters, and for my father- and motherin-lawfor their trust, faith and continuous encouragement during my stay in Belgium.Last but not least, special thanks to my wife for her patience, support and love throughout our lifeand for my little daughter “Mariam”, the lovely face, who came to the life with a lot of luck for us.I would like to express my acknowledgements to all of the people who assisted andsupported me during these two years, and I have involuntarily forgotten to mention here.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

SummaryIISUMMARYSharm El-Sheikh area is situated in a region that suffered for long time from oil pollution.The area is characterized by a unique biodiversity (birds, fishes, coral reefs). In addition, itis a very famous resort destination. This thesis discuss the production of GIS-basedEnvironmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) map that gives the oil spill responders a summary ofthe coastal environments those would be seriously damaged by an oil spill so that theyshould receive priority protection.Overlay analysis have been used to produce the ESI map of the shoreline habitats throughthe development of a simple cartographic model. Physical factors, those controlling oilbehaviors in the coastal zone, have been integrated in this model to classify shorelinehabitats according to their sensitivity for oil spills. While, biological and human-useresources, in the study area, were displayed as separate GIS layers on the final ESI mapand linked with available information about them in the attribute tables.The final result was a map with four sensitivity classes represented by different shorelinehabitats in the study area. On 1-10 sensitivity scale, the coralline limestone ridges havetaken the rank of 3B. Coarse-grained sand beaches found to have relatively highersensitivity with sensitivity rank of 4. Mixed sand and gravel beaches took the sensitivityrank of 5, as deeper oil penetration and burial is expected in such habitats. Shallow coralreefs have taken the highest rank of sensitivity, 9B, due to the severe expected damage ofthe reef habitats from oil spills.Use of GIS in general was an advantage because it provided powerful tools for spatialanalysis (especially with raster data), data conversion, data storage, georeferancing,display, and incorporation of data of different types.The proposed ESI map is expected to be an integral component of the notional oil spillcontingency plan in Egypt. Gulf of Aqaba was categorized, in this plan, as a region needsurgent attention regarding oil spills.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Table of contentsIIITABLE OF CONTENTSACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ------------------------------------------------------------------------ISUMMARY ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------IITABLE OF CONTENTS ------------------------------------------------------------------------ IIILIST OF FIGURES--------------------------------------------------------------------------------VILIST OF TABLES ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ VIIICHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ---------------------------------------------------------------- 11.1. GENERAL--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11.2. RESEARCH OBJECTIVE ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 21.3. INTEREST IN STUDY AREA -------------------------------------------------------------------- 31.4. RESEARCH SIGNIFICANCE -------------------------------------------------------------------- 31.5. THESIS OUTLINE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW------------------------------------------------------- 52.1. ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVITY INDEX (ESI)----------------------------------------------- 52.1.1. Background ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 52.1.2. Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) mapping system--------------------------- 72.1.2.1. Shoreline habitats classification-------------------------------------------------- 72.1.2.2. Biological resources --------------------------------------------------------------112.1.2.3. Human-use resources -------------------------------------------------------------122.2. GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS (GIS) ---------------------------------------------142.2.1. Background -----------------------------------------------------------------------------142.2.2. Spatial Data models--------------------------------------------------------------------152.2.2.1. Vector data model-----------------------------------------------------------------152.2.2.2. Raster data model -----------------------------------------------------------------162.2.3. Spatial analysis and Cartographic modeling----------------------------------------172.3. GIS-BASED ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVITY INDEX MAPPING ---------------------------192.4. ESI MAPPING IN EGYPT----------------------------------------------------------------------19GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Table of contentsIVCHAPTER 3: STUDY AREA -------------------------------------------------------------------213.1. SPATIAL CONTEXT ---------------------------------------------------------------------------213.2. GEOMORPHOLOGIC SETTINGS---------------------------------------------------------------223.3. GEOLOGY -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------233.4. CLIMATE --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------253.5. LANDUSE--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------253.6. BIOLOGICAL RESOURCES--------------------------------------------------------------------263.6.1. Birds -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------263.6.2. Fishes ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------273.6.3. Coral reefs-------------------------------------------------------------------------------283.6.4. Other types of biological resources --------------------------------------------------293.7. OIL SPILLS AT SHARM EL-SHEIKH----------------------------------------------------------29CHAPTER 4: ESI MAPPING METHODS AND PROCEDURES ----------------------314.1. INTRODUCTION -------------------------------------------------------------------------------314.2. DATA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------314.2.1. Spatial data------------------------------------------------------------------------------314.2.2. Non-Spatial data------------------------------------------------------------------------324.3. SOFTWARES-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------334.4. FIELDWORK -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------344.5. SHORELINE HABITATS CLASSIFICATION ---------------------------------------------------354.5.1. Data preparation ------------------------------------------------------------------------354.5.2. Area of Interest (AOI) delineation ---------------------------------------------------364.5.3. Creation of factor maps----------------------------------------------------------------374.5.3.1. Shoreline slope --------------------------------------------------------------------374.5.3.2. Shoreline exposure----------------------------------------------------------------404.5.3.3. Substrate map----------------------------------------------------------------------424.5.3.4. Biological productivity -----------------------------------------------------------444.5.4. Model Development -------------------------------------------------------------------454.5.5. Applying non-physical criteria -------------------------------------------------------474.6. COMPILING BIOLOGICAL RESOURCES INFORMATION -------------------------------------494.6.1. General ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------49GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

List of figuresVILIST OF FIGURESFigure 2-1: Examples of beach types and their ESI classes ---------------------------------------- 9Figure 2-2: Geometry building elements in vector GIS ------------------------------------------- 16Figure 2-3: Raster representation of reality --------------------------------------------------------- 17Figure 2-4: Basic idea of map algebra --------------------------------------------------------------- 18Figure 2-5: Basic idea of cartographic modeling --------------------------------------------------- 18Figure 3-1: location map of the study area ---------------------------------------------------------- 21Figure 3-2: General topography of the study area -------------------------------------------------- 22Figure 3-3: Rock units of the study area------------------------------------------------------------- 24Figure 3-4: Mean monthly wind speed in 2003 ---------------------------------------------------- 25Figure 3-5: Landuse map of the study area---------------------------------------------------------- 26Figure 3-6: Sketch shows important bird migration routs through Egypt ----------------------- 27Figure 3-7: Coral reef coverage along the Egyptian coastline ------------------------------------ 28Figure 4-1: Digital elevation model of the study area.--------------------------------------------- 38Figure 4-2: Slope map of the whole terrain --------------------------------------------------------- 39Figure 4-3: Categorized slope map of the shoreline------------------------------------------------ 40Figure 4-4: Map shows the local relative exposure to wave action ------------------------------ 42Figure 4-5: Different substrate types in the study area--------------------------------------------- 43Figure 4-6: Shallow coral reefs in Coral bay-------------------------------------------------------- 44Figure 4-7: Flowchart of the cartographic model used to produce shoreline classificationmap ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 46Figure 5-1: Relative Environmental Sensitivity Index (RESI) map of shoreline habitatsregarding oil spills -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 56Figure 5-2: RESI classes represented as percentage of the total mapped area------------------ 59Figure 5-3: RESI 1, moderately sheltered coralline limestone ridge----------------------------- 60Figure 5-4: RESI 2, sheltered Coralline limestone ridge ------------------------------------------ 61Figure 5-5: RESI 3, highly sheltered coralline limestone ridge ---------------------------------- 62Figure 5-6: RESI 6, moderately sheltered Shallow coral reefs ----------------------------------- 64Figure 5-7: Photograph taken from low altitude aircraft shows the regions of Sharm El-Sheikh and Sharm El-Maya. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 66GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

List of figuresVIIFigure 5-8: photograph taken from low altitude aircraft shows Namma bay ------------------- 67Figure 5-9: diving plans shows the shallow coral reefs-------------------------------------------- 68Figure 5-10: simplified RESI map after incorporation of non-physical factors ---------------- 70Figure 5-11: ESI map of shoreline habitats ranked according the sensitivity indexdeveloped by NOAA ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 76Figure 5-12: Map shows the biological resources those might be impacted with oil spills inthe study area-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 78Figure 5-13: Map shows the regional distribution of common dolphins ------------------------ 80Figure 5-14: Map shows the human-use resources of the study area ---------------------------- 81Figure 5-15: ESI map of Sharm El-Sheikh ---------------------------------------------------------- 83GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

List of tablesVIIILIST OF TABLESTable 1-1: Thesis outline -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4Table 2-1: Summary of proposed environmental classification in order of increasingVulnerability to oil spills damage ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 6Table 2-2: ESI shoreline classification for the three types of environmental settings ---------- 8Table 2-3: commonly mapped Human-use resources---------------------------------------------- 13Table 3-1: Shipping accidents along the Egyptian coastlines. ----------------------------------- 29Table 4-1: available Spatial data. --------------------------------------------------------------------- 32Table 4-2: General considerations taken into account in developing the Sensitivity Index -- 48Table 4-3: General guidelines for mapping biological resources -------------------------------- 49Table 5-1: resultant Local Relative sensitivity classes and areas represent them on the map 58Table 5-2: Comparison between oil spill index in Sharm El-Sheikh with indices producedby Nansingh (1993) and NOAA (2002) ------------------------------------------------------------- 73GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Introduction 1Chapter 1INTRODUCTION1.1. GeneralOf all the different ways in which the use of energy can harm the environment, the mostfamous for many people may be oil spills. An oil spill, which occurs near a coastline as aresult of intentional or accidental release of oil from a tanker, can severely damage thecoastal ecosystem. Birds, marine mammals, fishes and shallow coral reefs are the bestknownbiological resources that are affected by spills. Human-use resources (i.e.recreational areas) are also disturbed by oil slicks.In Egypt, the Gulf of Suez and the Red Sea coasts are rapidly becoming among the largestmarine oil production areas. The Gulf of Aqaba, in the same region, is considered to be animportant navigation rout for tankers. The danger from oil pollution is not only comesfrom exploration activities, but also from transport of oil, in which up to 100 million tonsof oil per annum may pass through the area (PERSGA, 2001). The necessity for oilcontingency plan have been brought to the Egyptian national attention after the famousNabila oil spill in 1982 (Hanna, 1995). It is also important to note that Red Sea in generaland Gulf of Aqaba particularly contain some of the world’s most unique and sensitivecoastal and marine environments (IUCN/UNEP, 1988).An integral component of a successful contingency plan is the determination and mappingthe coastal environments those would be seriously damaged by an oil spill to receivepriority protection. The idea was originated in the mid 1970’s when scientists withNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the US Coast Guardsbegan to study and numerically classify the Sensitivity of shorelines to oil spills. The resultwas what so called Environmental Sensitivity Index map (ESI). An ESI map contains: 1)shoreline classification ranked according to a scale relating to sensitivity, naturalpersistence of oil, and ease of cleanup; 2) Biological Resources including oil-sensitiveGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Introduction 2animals and rare plants; and habitats, which are used by oil-sensitive species or arethemselves sensitive to oil spills; and 3) Human-Use Resources including specific areasthat have added sensitivity value because of their use (i.e. recreational areas).Geographical Information Systems (GIS) have been used as a powerful tool to produce theESI maps. And in the present research, the typical methodology for sensitivityclassification has been followed and applied in the form of a simple cartographic model.The final result of the logical combination of different factor maps is the shorelinesensitivity map.Many GIS packages are currently available for constructing the GIS database andperforming different kinds of spatial analysis. ARCGIS (8.1) was the core software for thewhole study. The spatial analysis has been done using ARCGIS spatial Analyst. And thecartographic model was designed and performed using the ArcView model builder.Another software’s such as Arc/Info workstation (7.2.1), Microsoft Excel, and ERDASImagine (8.4) were used as supplementary softwares in the GIS analysis.This case study has been carried out to produce the ESI map of Sharm El-Sheikh coastalarea. The study area is located just at the entrance of the Gulf of Aqaba near its junctionwith the Red sea in the south of Sinai peninsula.1.2. Research objectiveThe present study aims to map the sensitive natural and socio-economic resources for oilspills. That extends to the production of a digital ESI map. However, the most importantobjective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of using GIS technologies inproducing digital ESI maps. The main approach is the integration of different types of data,GIS technology and field observations, in order to achieve the overall objectives of thestudy.Although one needs a huge set of data (of various types and from different disciplines) toproduce a typical ESI map, an attempt have been made to effectively use the available dataand allow for further updating or modifying the current procedure. This is an advantage inusing cartographic modeling, in which the use of flowchart offers insight into the strategythat is followed and makes it easy for others to examine the approach. Also, furtherGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Introduction 4Table 1-1: Thesis outlineChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6AppendicesGeneral introduction about the aim of the study, interest in study area andthe research significance.Literature Review on ESI mapping, GIS, cartographic modeling, GISbasedESI mapping and previous Studies on ESI mapping in Egypt.Gives an overview about the major aspects of the study area and thehistory of oil spills in the area.Explains the methodology and procedure followed to produce the ESImap of the study area, emphasizing on the procedure of using cartographicmodeling in shoreline habitats classification.Contains the results of the study with comments and discussions on theseresults.Conclusions of the study.Standard symbolization of ESI map components, list of birds, some coralreefs types, complete attribute table of human-use resources.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 5Chapter 2LITERATURE REVIEW2.1. Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI)2.1.1. BackgroundIn the mid 1970’s, scientists with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA) and the US Coast Guards began to study and numerically classify the Sensitivityof shorelines to oil spills. The classification based on the vulnerability index that proposedby Gundlach and Hayes (1978), in which the vulnerability for oil spills is depending uponthe physical and geological characteristics of a coast line (RPI, 1996). On the basis of fieldstudies of five different oil spills, the coastal environments have been classified and theresult was a ten-point sensitivity scale (Table 2-1), on which different shore types rankedfrom 1 to 10, the least to most vulnerable respectively (Gundlach and Hayes 1978).The Vulnerability Index (VI), which published in 1978, has become a benchmark forcoastal managers, planners, and scientists in determining the effects of oil on theirshorelines (Gundlach and Hayes, 1978). This index has been modified and refined overtime, and that led to the development of the Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) (RPI,1996). ESI have been an integral component of oil-spill contingency planning and responsesince 1979, when the first ESI maps were prepared days in advance of the arrival of the oilslicks from the IXTOC 1 well blowout in the Gulf of Mexico (NOAA, 2002).In the 1980’s, The Research Planning Inc. (RPI) took this idea and produced ESI Atlasesfor every state in U.S.A to be used for oil spill planning and response (RPI, 1996). Theseatlases, however, were one-dimensional presentation of the 3D world with all informationprinted on a paper map, which made it difficult to be reproduced and updated (RPI, 1996).GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 6Table 2-1: Summary of proposed environmental classification in order of increasing vulnerability to oilspills damage. (After Gundlach & Hayes, 1978)VulnerabilityIndexShoreline typeComments1 Exposed rockyheadland2 Eroding wave-cutplatform3 Fine-grained sandbeach4 Coarse-grained sandbeach5 Exposed, compactedtidal flat6 Mixed sand and gravelbeachWave reflection keeps most of the oil offshore. No clean-upnecessary.Wave-swept shoreline. Natural processes remove most of theoil within a few weeks.Oil may sink and/or be buried rapidly, making clean updifficult. Under moderate-to-high energy conditions, oil maypersist for several months.Oil may sink and/or be buried rapidly, making clean updifficult. Under moderate-to-high energy conditions, oil willbe removed naturally within a few months from most of thebeach face.Most of the oil will not adhere to, or penetrate into, thecompacted tidal flat. Clean up is usually unnecessary.Oil may undergo rapid penetration and burial. Undermoderate-to-low energy conditions, oil may persist for years.7 Gravel beach Same as above. Clean up should concentrate on the high-tideswash area. A solid asphalt pavement may form underconditions of heavy oil accumulation.8 Sheltered rocky coast Areas of reduced wave action. Oil may persist for many years.Clean up is not recommended unless oil concentration is veryheavy.9 Sheltered tidal flat Areas of great biologic activity and low wave energy. Oil maypersist for years. Clean up is not recommended unless oilaccumulation is very heavy. These areas should receivepriority protection by using booms or oil-sorbent materials.10 Salt marsh andmangrove forestThe most productive of aquatic environments. Oil may persistfor years. Cleaning of salt marshes, by burning or cutting,should be undertaken only if heavily oiled. Mangroves shouldnot be altered. Protection of these environments by booms oroil-sorbent materials should receive first priority.The ESI system has been a widely accepted system in mapping sensitive resourcesregarding oil spills. However, the numbers on the scales does not represent actualquantified sensitivity (i.e. ESI 5 is not five times as ESI 1). This led to many regionalmodifications, for example the six-point sensitivity index used in the Coastal SensitivityAtlas of southern Africa (IPIECA, 1994).GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 7Shoretypes have varying sensitivities in different regions due to the variation of the localenvironmental conditions (Owens and Robilliard, 1981; Hayes and Michel, 1997). So, theEnvironmental Sensitivity Index has to be adapted and modified according to theenvironmental conditions of a particular region. And this is the approach followed in thepresent study, in which the local environmental and socio-economic conditions have beentaken into account in performing sensitivity analysis.2.1.2. Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) mapping systemTypical ESI map includes information for three main components: shoreline habitatsclassification, biological resources and human-use resources (NOAA 2002). Eachcomponent of the ESI map will be discussed in details, emphasizing on the shorelinehabitats classification, in the following section.2.1.2.1. Shoreline habitats classificationIn coastal environments the shoreline habitats have a high likelihood of being directly oiledwhen the oil spill impact the shoreline (NOAA, 2002). It has been recognized that the oilfate and effects are shoretype-dependant, and most of the clean up methods are, therefore,shoreline-specific (Hayes and Michel, 1997; Gundlach and Hayes, 1978). As it ismentioned before, the Vulnerability Index proposed by Gundlach and Hayes (1978) hasbeen modified and refined and the present ESI system is the widely used one. The presentranking system for shoreline habitats is mostly developed for Sub-Arctic, Temperate andTropical zones. The system has also been modified to include lacustrine and riverineshoreline types (NOAA, 1995). Table 2-2 shows the complete list of standard ESIshoreline rankings (Fig. 2-1) is composed of categories for four environmental settings:estuarine, lacustrine, riverine, and palustrine. It is recommended, to facilitate data use andexchange, to use these shoreline types and ranks in all sensitivity-mapping projects(NOAA, 2002).Shorelines are mapped with different colors to indicate their sensitivity to oiling. On ESImaps, warm colors like orange and red are used to indicate the shorelines that are mostsensitive to oil, such as tidal flats, and swamps. Cool colors like blue and purple denote theleast sensitive shorelines, such as rocky headlands and sand and gravel beaches. Shades ofgreen denote shorelines of moderate sensitivity (NOAA, 2002).GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 8Table 2-2: ESI shoreline classification for the three types of environmental settings ( After NOAA,2002)ESINO.ESTUARINE LACUSTRINE RIVERINE1A Exposed rocky shores Exposed rocky shores Exposed rocky banks1B Exposed, solid man-made structuresExposed, solid man-made Exposed, solid man-madestructuresstructures1C Exposed rocky cliffs with boulder talus baseExposed rocky cliffs with Exposed rocky cliffs with boulderboulder talus basetalus base2AExposed wave-cut platforms in bedrock, mud orclayShelving bedrock shores Rocky shoals & bedrock ledges2B Exposed scarps and steep slopes in clay - -3A Fine- to medium-grained sand beaches - -3B Scarps and steep slopes in sandEroding scarps in unconsolidatedsediments consolidated sedimentsExposed, eroding banks in un-3C Tundra cliffs - -4 Coarse-grained sand beaches Sand beachesSandy bars and gently slopingbanks5 Mixed sand and gravel beachesMixed sand and gravel Mixed sand and gravel bars andbeachesgently sloping banks6A Gravel beaches (granule sand pebbles)* Gravel beachesGravel bars and gently slopingbanks6B Riprap Gravel Beaches (cobbles and boulders)* Riprap Riprap6C* Riprap - -7 Exposed tidal flats Exposed tidal flats -8ASheltered scarps in bedrock, mud, or clay & Sheltered scarps in bedrock,Sheltered rocky shores (impermeable)*mud, or clay-8BSheltered, solid man-made structures & Sheltered Sheltered, solid man-made Sheltered, solid man-maderocky shores (permeable)*structuresstructures8C Sheltered riprap Sheltered riprap Sheltered riprap8D Sheltered rocky rubble shores - -8E Peat shorelines - -8F - - Vegetated, steeply-sloping bluffs9A Sheltered tidal flats Sheltered sand/mud flats -9B Vegetated low banks Vegetated low banks Vegetated low banks9C Hypersaline tidal flats - -10A Salt- and brackish-water marshes - -10B Freshwater marshes Freshwater marshes Freshwater marshes10C Swamps Swamps Swamps10D Scrub-shrub wetlands & Mangroves† Scrub-shrub wetlands Scrub-shrub wetlands10E Inundated low-lying tundra - -ESI NO.10B10C10DPALUSTRINE**Freshwater marshesSwampsScrub-shrub wetlands* Denotes that a category or definition applies only in Southeast Alaska.† In tropical climates 10D indicates areas of dominant mangrove vegetation**Palustrine environment ESI codes are assigned based on the National WetlandInventory (NWI) habitat classification system.The ESI ranking for a particular shoreline habitat is the integration of the physical, socialand biological character of the shoreline environment, not just the substrate type and grainsize. “Key to the rankings is an understanding of the relationships among physicalprocesses, substrate type, and associated biota, which produce specificgeomorphic/ecologic shoreline habitat types, and predictable patterns in oil behavior,GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 9sediment transport patterns, and biological impact”. (Michel et al., 1978; RPI, 1996; Jensenet al., 1998)Exposed rocky shoreline (ESI=1)Coarse-grained sand beach (ESI=4)Exposed tidal flats (ESI=7)Mangroves (ESI=10)Figure 2-1: Examples of beach types and their ESI classes (modified after NOAA, 2003).In practice, the sensitivity of a particular shoreline habitat is the integration of thefollowing factors (Hayes and Gundlach, 1975; Michel et al., 1978; RPI, 1996; NOAA,2002):a) Relative exposure to wave and tidal energyEarly marine biological studies showed a strong relation between the make up of theintertidal biological communities and the relative exposure to waves and tides. Biologistsclassified the coastal habitats of the central California coast into exposed and shelteredshorelines. Exposed shorelines are habitats subject to intense pounding by the large waveson that coast. While sheltered settings, on the other hand, are those sheltered by offshorerocks, barrier beaches, and other protective features. Another geomorphologic studies thatGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 10carried out on past oil spills (i.e. Metula, Urquiola, and Amoco Cadiz oil spills), showedthat the level of impact of oil spills is closely related to the relative degree of exposure ofthe impacted habitats (Hayes and Gundlach 1975; Gundlach and Hayes, 1978; Gundlach etal., 1978; Michel et al., 1978; Fenton and Ricketts, 1994; NOAA, 2002).Wave-energy flux and tidal-energy flux (referred to as the hydrodynamic energy level) arethe main factors determining the degree of exposure. Wave-energy flux is a function of theaverage wave height, measured over at least one year. Where exposed habitats aresubjected to large waves (e.g., heights more than one meter occurs frequently), the impactof oil spills is considered to be minimal because: 1) Wave reflection, that pushes the oilaway from the shoreline and 2) Mixing of the coastal sediments by the wave-generatedcurrents, which tends to remove the stranded oil. The tidal-energy flux, on the other hand,is also important in determining the oil spill impacts on coastal habitats. However, the mostimportant is the action of strong tidal currents in removing stranded oil (NOAA, 2002).b) Shoreline slopeOne of the most important factors that determine the shoreline sensitivity is the slope of theintertidal zone. Shoreline slope has a pronounced effect on wave reflection and breaking.Waves usually broken or even reflected in place in steep intertidal areas, which enhancenatural cleanup. While flat intertidal areas promote dissipation of wave energy furtheroffshore, and in which oil remain longer (NOAA, 2002). Shoreline slope is normallyclassified into steep (> 30 degrees), moderate (between 5 degrees and 30 degrees) and flat(< 5 degrees).c) Substrate typeIn ESI mapping, substrate types are classified as following (NOAA, 2002):• Bedrock, which can be further, divided into impermeable and permeable;• Sediments, which are divided by grain size as:- Mud, consisting of silt and clay less than 0.06 mm- Fine- to medium-grained sand from 0.06-1 mm- Coarse-grained sand from 1-2 mm- Granule from 2-4 mm- Pebble from 4-64 mmGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 11- Cobble from 64-256 mm- Boulder greater than 256 mm• Man-made materials, such as:- Riprap, or broken rock of various sizes, usually cobble or larger, that arepermeable to oil penetration.- Seawalls that are composed of solid material, such as concrete or steel,which are impermeable to oil penetration.However, the most important distinction is between the bedrock and unconsolidatedsediments. Some properties such as, permeability, trafficability, grain size, sorting andgrading are of most important in describing the substrate type regarding oil spill behaviors.For example, deepest penetration of oil is expected in well-sorted poorly grade coarsegravels. While, on the other hand, saturated muddy sediments have much lowerpermeability and penetration and/or burial of oil is limited. Hence, gravely shorelines areusually given higher ESI values than fine-grained ones. Thinking about the use of heavymachinery in cleanup method, trafficability of the substrate is an important aspect thatshould be taken into account in assigning ESI rankings (Hayes, 1996; NOAA, 2002).d) Biological productivityA distinction should be made between biological productivity of the shoreline and themapped biologic resources on the ESI map. Biological productivity is the permanent biotathat characterizes a particular shoreline habitat. For, example vegetated habitats likemarshes and mangroves have the highest ESI ranking. Shorelines with shallow coral reefsand their accompanying ecosystems have also very high ranking in The ESI system. While,on the other hand, mapped biological resources as a component of ESI map shows theseasonal presence of other biological resources (NOAA, 2002).2.1.2.2. Biological resourcesSome animal and plant species are especially vulnerable to the effects of oil spills. In theESI method, species normally classified into seven categories: (based on major taxonomicand functional groupings) Marine mammals, Terrestrial Mammal, Birds, Reptiles andAmphibians, Fishes, Invertebrates, Habitats and plants and wetlands (see table 4-3). EachGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 12category is further divided into sub-categories of species similar in their sensitivity tospilled oil (RPI, 1996).Mapping the entire distribution of a large number of species potentially located in an area,and showing it on the ESI map, may not be very helpful to responders setting protectionpriorities. Therefore, it is more reliable to identify only the types of species that tend to bevulnerable to spilled oil and the most sensitive life-stages. Biological resources are thoughtto be most at risk when (NOAA, 2002):- Large numbers of individuals are concentrated in a relatively small area;- Marine or aquatic species come ashore during special life stages or activities,such as nesting, birthing, resting, or molting;- Early life stages or important reproductive activities occur in sheltered, nearshoreenvironments where oil tends to accumulate;- Specific areas are known to be vital sources for seed or propagation;- A species is threatened, endangered, or rare; or- A significant percentage of the population is likely to be exposed to oil.Compiling data about biological resources within an ESI map is one of the most difficulttasks in ESI mapping. It needs lots of information about species themselves, their areas ofconcentration, and their vulnerability to oil spills, critical life-stages and migration seasons.A comprehensive fieldwork is also needed to understand the biological context of aparticular habitat. Hence, total prediction of biologic response to oil spill is extremelydifficult (Gundlach and Hayes, 1978; Hayes et al., 1992).2.1.2.3. Human-use resourcesAlso known as the socio-economic features, human-use resources are those placesimportant to people. The features shown on the map are those that would either beimpacted by oil spill or provide access to the cleanup operations (NOAA, 2002). Humanuseresources are normally divided into four major components (Table 2-3):- High-use recreational and shoreline access areas: such as boat ramps, marinas,recreational beaches, and sport-fishing and diving areas;- Management or protected areas: such as national parks, marine sanctuaries,national wildlife refuges, preserves, and reserves;GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 13- Resource extraction sites: such as aquaculture sites, locations of subsistence andcommercial fisheries, log storage sites, mining leases, and surface waterintakes;- Archaeological and historical locations.Table 2-3: commonly mapped Human-use resources. (After NOAA, 2002)Data Element Sub-Element Mapped AreasRecreation/Access Access Vehicular access to the shorelineAirportIncludes airports, landing strips, etc.Artificial reefAttracts high concentrations of fish and diversBeachHigh-use recreational beachesBoat RampHigh-use marine/estuarine facilitiesDiving SiteHigh-use recreational areasFerryHigh-use ferry routesHelipadDesignated helicopter landing sitesMarinaHigh-use marine/estuarine facilitiesRecreational FishingHigh-use recreational areasSurfingHigh-use recreational areasManagement Areas Designated Critical Habitat Officially designated by USFWSIndian ReservationIndian Reservations and Tribal LandsMarine SanctuaryWaters managed by NOAANational ParkLand managed by NPSNature ConservancyProtected land owned by TNCParkState and regional parksSpecial Management Areas Usually water-associatedWildlife Refuge, Preserve, Reserve Federally and state managedResource Extraction Aquaculture SiteHatcheries, ponds, pens, etcCommercial FishingImportant, high-use areasLog Storage SitesAreas of high economic importanceMiningIntertidal/subtidal mining leasesSubsistenceDesignated harvest sitesWater IntakeIndustrial; drinking water; cooling waterCultural Resources Archaeological Site Water, coastal, or wetland-associatedHistorical SiteWater, coastal, or wetland-associatedGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 142.2. Geographic Information Systems (GIS)2.2.1. Background“GIS is a young field. Although its antecedents go backhundreds of years in the fields of cartography andmapping, GIS as such began in the 1960s, and thusmany of the individuals involved in the earliest stages ofthe invention and definition of GIS are alive today”.David et al., 1997Being a rapidly developing technology, one may face difficulties to find one definition ofGeographic Information Systems (GIS) (Nguyen Quoc Dinh, 2001). Also, The literature onGIS is vast and spread over large numbers of journals representative of many disciplines(Burrough, 1986). So, it might be better to quote few definitions of GIS as found inliterature:“ A powerful set of tools for collecting, storing, retrieving at will, transforming, anddisplaying spatial data from the real world for a particular set of purposes” (Burrough,1986).“Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are computerized systems for the storage,retrieval, manipulation, analysis, and display of geographically referenced data. Since theycan include physical, biological, cultural, demographic, or economic information, they arevaluable tools in the natural, social, medical, and engineering sciences, as well as inbusiness and planning” (David et al., 1997).“ An arrangement of computer hardware, software, and geographic data that peopleinteract with to integrate, analyze, and visualize the data; identify relationships, patterns,and trends; and find solutions to problems. The system is designed to capture, store,update, manipulate, analyze, and display the geographic information. A GIS is typicallyused to represent maps as data layers that can be studied and used to perform analyses”(ESRI, 2004).Objects of the real world are described in geographic data in terms of their position on theearth with respect to a particular coordinate system, their attributes (thematic or non-spatialGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 15data) that are unrelated to position and the spatial relations with each others (through thedefinition of topology). And this is the added value of GIS with respect to other non-spatialinformation systems, linking spatial and non-spatial data (Burrough, 1986). GIS isconsidered also as representing a model of the real world not just a tool for retrieving,coding and restoring data (Bouille, 1978).This was not everything about GIS, but the objective of the preceding paragraphs was togive very general overview about GIS. And more importantly is, how one can effectivelyuse these functionalities in ESI mapping. This, by turn, led to the next section in whichsome concepts and methods will be discussed, as they are the basic tools that will be usedin GIS-based ESI mapping.2.2.2. Spatial Data modelsData about the real world should be defined and organized into a consistent digital data setfrom which, various information can be gathered. The process of defining and organizingdata is called “data modeling” and the logical organization of data according to a scheme iscalled “data model”(Bonham-carter, 1994).There are two fundamentally different methods for describing the spatial reality: fieldapproach and object approach (Canters, 2004). Field approach is mostly describing data ofcontinuous spatial variation (i.e. elevation), and in which measured values (attributes) forirregular set of location are often transformed into a regular grid by means of aninterpolation method. Object approach, on the other hand, is used to describe phenomenacharacterized by discrete spatial variation (i.e. parcels, roads). Data are normallyrepresented in the object approach by means of points, lines and areas (polygons)(Burrough, 1986). Two commonly used data models are the vector data model and theraster data model.2.2.2.1. Vector data modelIt is called also object GIS. In vector model, objects are represented by two maincomponents: a set of thematic attributes that linked to a specific object class through aunique identification code, normally referred to as “object ID” and geometry buildingelements (Fig. 2-2). Geometry building elements are points, lines, polygons, nodes andchains (Burrough, 1986). Depending on the GIS software one works with, there are twoGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 16alternative vector models for representing the objects geometry. The first one is the ringmodel or spaghetti model, in which all point, line and polygon features are represented byseparate geometric elements (only point, line and polygon) without explicit definition oftopology (properties such as adjacency, inclusion …etc).Figure 2-2: Geometry building elements in vector GIS (After NCGIA, 1990).The second vector model is the topological model, in which there is a definition oftopology through the use of chains (also called arcs) and nodes (Burrough, 1986; Bonhamcarter,1994).2.2.2.2. Raster data modelIn raster data model, spatial reality is represented by means of regular grid that covers thewhole study area. Each cell of the raster grid receives only one value that describes thethematic content of that cell (Fig. 2-3). Rater is normally defined by: its origin (xycoordinates), its resolution (the pixel size) and its dimensions (number of rows and numberof columns). Since each raster cell can only have one attribute value, combining differentrasters leads to the typical layer structure that characterizes the GIS. Raster model makes itGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 17computationally easy to combine different themes using various operations (overlayanalysis). And this is the main concept that will be used in the present research (Burrough,1986; Tomlin, 1990).Figure 2-3: Raster representation of reality. (After NCGIA, 1990)2.2.3. Spatial analysis and Cartographic modelingIt was in the beginning of 1960s when, a new trend in landscape analysis and spatialplanning has been initiated. The idea simply based on thematic maps from differentdisciplines (i.e. soil, landuse, topography…etc) that have been used by landscape architectsand planners to study the spatial interactions by overlying transparent copies of these mapson a light table. The first computer software for performing automatic overly was calledSYMAP (Synagraphic MAPping), which developed in 1963 by Howard T. Fisher. He useda raster model composed of different raster layers, in which each raster grid represents oneattribute. In the program the spatial relation between different themes are studied byapplying simple arithmetic operations (Tomlin, 1990; Canters, 2004).On the basis of this idea, C.D. Tomlin and others developed a method for spatial analysiscalled “Map Algebra” (Fig. 2-4). Map algebra is based on the definition of a large set ofGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 18operations, which applied to one or more input layers to produce a new layer. This enabledthe solution of very complex spatial problems by combining different operation in ameaningful way (Burrough, 1986; Bonham-Carter 1994, Canters, 2004).Figure 2-4: Basic idea of map Algebra. (After NCGIA, 1990)Cartographic modeling is the logical combination different operation in such a way so thatthe output of one operation is the input of another one (Fig. 2-5). Cartographic model oftencontains a flowchart that show the procedure and the order, in which different input mapsare combined to give the final deductive map.Figure 2-5: Basic idea of cartographic modeling.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 192.3. GIS-based Environmental Sensitivity Index mappingTraditional ESI maps were normally produced as a color analog maps (paper maps), with avery limited distribution due to the cost of production, and without means of updatingexcept reproducing new maps. Since 1989, ESI atlases have been generated from digitaldatabases using GIS techniques (NOAA, 2002).The effectiveness of using GIS in ESI atlases production has proved in the response actionsfollowed the catastrophic spill of the Exxon Valdez. Response officials and scientists usedthe paper ESI atlases for the first wave of action, but both NOAA and the Coast Guardsquickly agreed that one of the best information management strategies to respond to thespill would be to develop a GIS of the shorelines and coastal resources (Jensen et al.,1990).Jensen, et al. (1990), wrote a paper discuss using remotely sensed data and GIStechnologies to enhance the ESI maps production. Remote sensing would provide more upto-dateaccurate coastlines, land use, and land cover. GIS would enable the data to begeographically represented, while its relational databases could be queried to answerparticular questions and updated for the most accurate information possible.Fenton and Ricketts (1994) developed 1:10,000 scale maps and inventories of shoretypes,biological resources, and human use resources of Cole Harbour Region in Nova Scotia,Canada. They used the well-documented ESI to rate their habitat sensitivities. Interestingpart of this study, is the classification of public beaches according to the number of visitorsper year.2.4. ESI mapping in EgyptSome researchers in Egypt have applied the concept of ESI mapping on the Egyptiancoasts, especially those characterized by their natural resources (i.e. Red Sea coasts). Someof these case studies are discussed briefly in the following section.Hanna (1995) wrote a paper about the response to a 450-km oil spill in 1982. The authorhas done an extensive coastal and ESI survey along the Egyptian Red Sea coast to act asbaseline knowledge for subsequent environmental impact assessments over the next 11years. The data was compiled and analyzed with the traditional techniques of ESI mapping:GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Literature review 20hand-held photographs, ground level and airplane surveys, database tabulations, statisticaltests, and hardcopy mapping. No attempt has been made in this study to engage the GIScapabilities.Abdel-Kader et al. (1997), made a case study on the oil spill sensitivity analysis of the Ras-Mohammed National Park in South Sinai, Egypt. The authors ranked their 11 shorelinesand coral reef areas on the ESI scale from 1 (low) to 10 (high) under several categories: oilpollution vulnerability, cultural and social values, economic/recreation values, scientificvalues, and other environmental considerations. GIS coverages of priority protection wereproduced for the shorelines, critical natural resources, and land use and land cover. A finalenvironmental sensitivity map was produced for the study area including GIS coverages ofroads, predominant wind and wave directions; sites for oil spill response centers, andclean-up equipment.El-Gamily et al. (2001), build two GIS-based environmental models, to be used in thedecision-making processes of managing and protecting the coastal zone. The firstenvironmental sensitivity model is designed to set systematic procedures for mappingenvironmental sensitivity of shoreline and foreshore natural resources and habitats. Thesecond one is an analytical tool for determining the most suitable sites, for building newtourism villages and hotels. Thus, the authors used the power of GIS, as an analytical toolto handle some environmental issues, related to the coastal zone, in the form ofcartographic models.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 21Chapter 3STUDY AREA3.1. Spatial contextFigure 3-1: Location map of the study area.The study area, Sharm El-Sheik, is located just at the entrance of the Gulf of Aqaba near itsjunction with the Red sea in the south of Sinai peninsula (Fig. 3-1) in the North East ofEgypt. The whole area covers about 114.5 km 2 . Geographically, the following coordinatesdelineate the study area:GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 22Longitudes: 34° 16' 09" E & 34° 25' 11" ELatitudes: 27° 50' 42" N & 27° 50' 42" NHowever, and as shown in figure (3-1), the area of interest (for ESI mapping) is the narrowstrip, which extends about 9 kilometers along the coast from Sharm El-Sheikh in the southtill the south of Ras Nasrani. The word Sharm El-Sheikh (locally known as “Sharm”)normally describes the south most bay of the study area a place, which is very famous withits marina and tourist activities. But administratively, the whole area is belonging to thecity of Sharm El-Sheikh. The area is probably the best-known town of the Southern Sinai,for the simple reason that it is characterized by a unique biological diversity (i.e. coralreefs, fishes, birds…etc). Sharm el-Sheikh area has also become in its own a world-classresort destination, with the construction of plenty of hotels and resorts. The followingsections will give a quick overview about the geomorphologic, geologic, climatic, socioeconomicand biologic settings of the coastal area (area of interest for ESI mapping).3.2. Geomorphologic settingsFigure 3-2: General topography of the study area shown by ETM true color composite (321) drapedwith the DEM (Looking north with vertical exaggeration = 3).The study area has the following geomorphologic units (Hathout, 1988; Nawar, 1989;Strasser et al., 1992; NARSS and ENVIRO-PRO, 2001) (Fig. 3-2):a) Mountainous Terrain:GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 23This terrain consists of basement rocks of granitic rocks and occupies the southern part ofSinai (represented by two mountains north west of the study area). It is characterized byelevated mountains and comprises a series of mountain clusters with some detached peaksand intensely dissected by a large number of valleys.b) Pediplain:This comparatively low-lying unit could be observed along the footslopes of the northwestmountainous basement terrain. It is mainly made up of alluvial components of basementrocks. It is bounded from northeast and southwest by numerous drainage lines from theadjacent highlands.c) Coastal plain (area of interest):Generally, the shores of Gulf of Aqaba are characterized by a narrow or absence of coastalplain. This may be attributed by the presence of the ridges of fringing coral reefs (corallinelimestone) that is well developed in the area, where they are extending parallel to thewestern coastline of the gulf and descending directly under the sea. The study area isdominated by these ridges in the form of elevated terraces above the see level, whichreaches in some places up to 20 m. exceptions are the areas of Shark bay, Namma Bay,Sharm El-Maya and Sharm El-Sheikh. These areas are the embayment that frequentlyspreading and dissecting the coralline limestone ridges. Most of them are consisting of amixture of sands of various grain sizes and composition.3.3. GeologyThe rock outcrops of the study area (Fig. 3-3) aged to the following geological ages:Precambrian, lower Miocene, Cretaceous, Pliocene and Quaternary (based on geologicmap of Sinai 1:250,000 published by the Egyptian Geological Survey and MiningAuthority (EGSMA, 1994). However, the most important part is the coastal zone geology,which will be discussed briefly in the following section.The rocks exposed north and west of Sharm El-Sheikh forming the northern part of therocky land at the coastal plain. These outcrops are composed mainly of alternate beds ofmarl and sandstones with fossillerferous carbonate beds in the lower part. Pliocene rocksare exposed along the coastal plain from Ras Mohammed (in the south of the study area) toGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 24Ras Nasrani forming the rocky lands of the coast. They comprise dark coloredconglomerates that alternate with sandstone beds. Quaternary deposits represented bycontinental to littoral sediments. These deposits are made up of coralline limestone, wadideposits, and alluvial deposits (Omara, 1959; Friedman, 1972; Nawar, 1989; Strasser et al.,1992).Figure 3-3: Rock units of the study area.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 253.4. ClimateSinai is characterized by arid climatic conditions dominated by long hot, rainless summerand mild winter .The monthly mean temperature varies between 23-33 °C during summer,and 9-14°C during winter. The relative humidity varies between 32% in summer and 62%in winter. The prevailing winds (Fig. 3-4) are north and north west (in Winter).averge monthly wind speed (2003)Wind speed (knots)1614121086420Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov DecMonthsFigure 3-4: Mean monthly wind speed in 2003 (Sharm El-Sheikh Meteorological station).It is important to note that, wind is the most effective factors that control sea wavesbehavior. And hence, in measuring the relative exposure of the shoreline to wave and tidalenergy wind direction and speed are key element. Generally, the study area is characterizedby calm sea with wave heights does not reach one meter most of the year.3.5. LanduseFrom the first look at the landuse map of Sharm El-Sheikh (Fig. 3-5), one can concludethat most costal zone is dominated by touristic activities. A lot of hotels, touristic villagesand resorts are found there. The Tourism development on the Gulf of Aqaba coastprogressed rapidly between the years 1988 and 1995 (Ali, 1998). This is an importantaspect in applying the ESI system in this area where the recreational value contributes inassigning the ESI values for a particular shoreline segment.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 26Figure 3-5: Landuse map of the study area (Modified after Moharam, 2002).3.6. Biological ResourcesThe study area is very famous for its biological diversity. Different species of birds, fishes,corals can be found there. And that is one reason behind the existence of national parks andprotectorates around the area. The following section gives a brief overview of theseresources.3.6.1. BirdsGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 27South Sinai region has surprisingly large number of bird species. The reason behind this isthat Sinai lies at the cross roads between the Balkan, the Middle East and Africa. It is animportant bird migration rout (Fig. 3-6). It is believed by many bird watchers that as muchas 200 kinds of birds are migrating through the area. In addition to migrating birds thereare also 150 kinds of residents, including 24 kinds specialized in living in the desert.Among all kinds of birds, wheatears, gulls, plovers, raptors and owls are represented in thearea (Pedersen, 2000; Wallace, 2002). There is no endemic bird species in Egypt.However, about 12 species reported to be endangered (Macdonald, 2001).Figure 3-6: Sketch shows important bird migration routs through Egypt. (After NARSS/ENVIRO-PRO, 2001)3.6.2. FishesRed Sea has a total of about 261 coral-associated fish species in 46 families. Exposed reefscontained higher diversity of fishes than sheltered ones due to the lower incidence of diversand fishermen in these areas. The most abundant family is the Pomacentridae(damselfishes), represented by 16 to 26 species, followed by the Labridae (wrasses),represented by 20 species. The most common damselfish is Chromis dimidiata, and themost common wrasse is Labricus quadrilineatus. The least abundant family is the Scaridae(parrotfishes); represented by only nine species (Pilcher and Abou Zaid, 2000; Hassan etal., 2002).GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 283.6.3. Coral reefsThere are three different types of reefs in the Red Sea (Fig. 3-7), barrier reefs, patch reefsand fringing reefs. The study area is characterized by fringing reef, which attract diversfrom allover the world to enjoy these unique ecosystem. They are narrow fringing reefsalong the steep cliffs of the shoreline. At the mouths of wadies and across bays the fringingreefs extend outward up to 1 km from shoreline. Generally reefs of the northern part of theRed Sea (Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba with about 137 species, see appendix 2) aremore diverse than those in the southern part. (Pilcher and Abou Zaid, 2000).Figure 3-7: Coral reef coverage along the Egyptian coastline. (After Pilcher and Abou Zaid, 2000)Coral reefs, in the study area are associated with a wide range of anthropogenic impacts, ofwhich oil spills, land reclamation and sedimentation are responsible for a large extent ofdamage. Another type of threats is the recreational SCUBA diving practices, which alsoGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 29include anchor damage. A number of natural phenomena, including flooding, disease andpredator outbreaks also affect coral reef habitats (Pilcher and Abou Zaid, 2000).3.6.4. Other types of biological resourcesMany other kinds of animal life are represented in the study area. Among them there ismarine mammals, which represented by different types of dolphins; reptiles, whichrepresented by sea turtles and invertebrates, which is represented by bivalves, cephalopodsand gastropods.3.7. Oil spills at Sharm El-SheikhPilcher and Abou Zaid (2000) reported three incidents of oil spills at Sharm El-Sheikh(Table 3-1). All the spills result from accidental release of oil from tankers navigatethrough the Straight of Tiran.Table 3-1: Shipping accidents along the Egyptian coastlines. (After Pilcher and Abou Zaid 2000)Another accident reported by Callum and Sheppard (1988). It was September the 23 rd ,1982 when Lanai ship carrying meat from Brazil to Eilat, ran aground on Woodhouse reefGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Study area 30in the straight of Tiran. An estimated 700 tones of fuel oil were spilled and some of 50 kmof the coastline had been oiled with varying degree of severity. The worst affected was thearea of Namma bay and its surrounding coral reef areas and Sharm El-Sheikh City and itssurroundings.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 31Chapter 4ESI MAPPING METHODS AND PROCEDURES4.1. IntroductionEnvironmental Sensitivity Index Guidelines (known also as 10 points procedure) thatproduced by NOAA is probably the best-known procedure for ESI mapping. Thisprocedure aims to produce one map contains information about: 1) shoreline habitatsclassified according to a scale relating to sensitivity, natural persistence of oil, and ease ofcleanup; 2) Biological Resources including oil-sensitive animals and rare plants; andhabitats, which are used by oil-sensitive species or are themselves sensitive to oil spills;and 3) Human-Use Resources including specific areas that have added sensitivity valuebecause of their use.The same procedure has been followed in the present study. Basic concept of shorelineclassification (factors controlling the sensitivity ranking) has been applied but withmodification in the way, in which GIS are used in the classification scheme. The idea wascombining the different factors in a cartographic model with the final output is theclassified shoreline segments according to their sensitivity.4.2. DataA huge data set (of various types and from different disciplines) is needed to producetypical ESI map. However, one can overcome the initial lack of a particular kind of data byconsulting different sources of information and carefully studying the existed literature.The data used in the present research are classified into the following categories:4.2.1. Spatial dataTable (4-1) summarizes different kinds of digital data (maps, images…etc) that wereavailable for performing the ESI mapping for Sharm El-Sheikh area.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 32Table 4-1: Available spatial data.Data type Format NotesBase mapDigitized from the Most recent topographic map(Roads, main*.Shp & cover (Sheet NH.36.c3.d, Scale 1:50000). Produced bycities, boundaryEgyptian General Survey Authority (1987)of study area)Contour map *.Shp & coverDigitized from topographic map with contour interval10 mShoreline *.Shp & coverInterpreted and digitized from Landsat ETM+ images(2000)Geologic map *.Shp & coverRock units’ boundaries digitized from the Geologicalmap of Sinai (sheet No.1, scale 1: 250000). Producedby EGSMA 1994Geomorphology *.Shp & cover Produced by NARSS (2001)Landuse *.Shp & coverinterprested from Satellite image, existed landusemaps and field workDEM TIN, GRID Produced from contour mapBathymetricmap*.Shp & cover Produced from topographic and diving mapsCoral reefs *.Shp & coverProduced from Satellite image, topographic and divingmapsDiving sites*.Shp & cover Produced from diving mapsA subset from a True color composite (321) datedLandsat ETM+ *.Img2002 and Produced by Dr. Hamdy El-Gamily, NARSS*.Shp: Arcview shape file cover: Arc/info coverage *.Img: ERDAS Imagine image fileEGSMA: Egyptian Geological Survey and Mining AuthorityNARSS: National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space SciencesThe data showed by table (4-1) is the basic data set to start ESI mapping. Although, Aerialphotographs are a basic component in the original procedure (produced by NOAA), it isreplaced here by Landsat ETM+ satellite image.4.2.2. Non-Spatial dataNon-spatial data can be classified into the following− Previous studies about the coastal zone especially those contains extensivefieldwork on grain size distribution, permeability, trafficability andstratigraphy.− Public reports on biological survey.− National biological databases those produced by the Egyptian EnvironmentalAffairs Agency.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 33− Bird watching trip reports worldwide.− Global information system on coral reefs available at“http://www.reefbase.org/”.− Global information system on Fishes available at “www.fishbase.org”.− Reports produced by UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Center(UNEP/WCMC).− IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, available at “http://www.redlist.org/”.4.3. SoftwaresMany GIS packages are currently available for constructing GIS databases and performingdifferent kinds of spatial analysis. However, GIS packages those produced byEnvironmental Systems Research Institute Inc (ESRI) are used in the present research. Thefollowing is a quick overview about these Softwares.ArcGIS 8.1: The core software of the whole study, it has been used depending on itspowerful functionalities and ease of use. ArcGIS is an integrated collection of differentGIS softwares enables performing all kinds of GIS work (i.e. map creation, editing,georeferencing, database management and visualization). Interesting feature in ArcGISregarding ESI mapping is the built-in symbol palettes those created especially forsymbolizing ESI map components.ArcGIS 3D Analyst: Special module of ArcGIS allows the 3D visualization and analysisof surface data. It has been used to develop the digital Elevation Model (DEM) of the studyarea, from which the slope map of the area was derived.Arcview Spatial Analyst: It is a special module of Arcview 3.2 (older ESRI product forGIS analysis) for spatial analysis adds advanced spatial modeling and analysis tools to theArcview. With Arcview Spatial Analyst, one can analyze spatial relationships, and buildspatial models. Used in the present research for converting vector data to grid and forcreating the cartographic model.Arcview Model Builder: A tool in the Arcview Spatial Analyst extension that used in thecreation of the cartographic model. Using model builder, large cartographic models can bebuilt by combining several processes together in a meaningful way.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 344.4. FieldworkTypical ESI mapping needs a comprehensive fieldwork with specialists from differentdisciplines (i.e. biologists, geologists, and coastal engineers) working parallel to eachother’s. That is the reason why ESI mapping is normally conducted as a part of big projectson oil spill contingency planning. As an example, the geologist mostly does the shorelinehabitat ESI ranking in the field. That is often done using low-altitude, fixed, high-wingaircraft and/or helicopter. Also, samples are taken from different parts of the intertidal zonefor mechanical analysis and permeability procedures.Due to time and facilities limitations, an attempt has been made to effectively use theprevious studies on the study area (field surveys, geological studies, existeddatabases…etc) to have at least the minimum requirements for conducting the research. Inaddition, hand written reports and photographs taken during short visits of the author in thearea have been used in order to complete the view. Personal communications with peopleworking in the study area were a very useful source of information.Another important point is that the main goal of the present research is testing the GIScapabilities in performing the ESI mapping; with all or at least most of the needed data areavailable. Otherwise each component of the ESI map could be considered as a separateresearch with its own methodology and procedures.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 354.5. Shoreline habitats ClassificationThis is probably the most important component of any ESI map as well as of the presentstudy. The final sensitivity rank of a particular shoreline segment is the integration of thefour main factors (shoreline exposure, slope, substrate and biological productivity). In theprocedure developed by NOAA, the final shoreline habitat ranking (that done manuallyafter field work and combining different factors) is digitized into a GIS-ready maps withtemporal attributes enables further update. So, with NOAA procedure GIS are not used todevelop the rankings (RPI, 1996).This is the key point in the present research, in which GIS were used for developing theranking itself. That was done using a simple cartographic model, in which different factormaps used as input layers. And by combining these factor maps using overlay analysis, thefinal output was the shoreline habitats classified according to their sensitivity. Followingare the main steps in performing the modeling process:4.5.1. Data preparationSome of the needed maps provided in a GIS-ready form such as; the contour map whichobtained in Arc/Info coverage format with their attribute table contains a field with theelevation value for each contour line. Most of the needed layers (base map, shoreline,geology, diving, coral reefs…etc), however, were digitized from scanned maps ordelineated from the Satellite image (see table 4-1). Following are the steps of creating GISreadybasic maps for the spatial analysis:− Analogue maps were scanned with A0 scanner in TIF-grouopIV format.− On-screen digitizing of each map separately with appropriate feature type foreach layer on the map (e.g. roads are digitized in as line features while geologicunits were digitized as polygons). And Arc/info workstation (component ofArcGIS) used for digitizing.− During digitizing, a unique identification code for each object on the map hasbeen given to enable the further assignment of more attributes through thelinkage of this code with any available external attributes.− A separate editing phase of digitizing errors has been carried out using thepowerful editing tools of the same package (Arc/info workstation).GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 36− All map layers have been georeferenced using Affine Transformation andground truth points from the topographic map.− Available attributes about the maps (i.e. lithology, permeability and Landuse),in addition to the same identification codes that created before, are created intables using Microsoft Excel software and these tables were then exported intoDBF-IV format (database tables).− Resultant vector maps were linked to the attribute tables through theidentification code.− All map layers are converted to shape file format.In order to achieve a correct overlay analysis; all the input layers should have the samecoordinate system. So, using ArcGIS projection tools all maps and images are assigned thesame coordinate system with the following parameters:Projection: UTMUnits: MetersZone: 36NDatum: D_WGS_1984Spheroid: WGS_1984Another important step is the conversion of each factor map from vector to raster, as theoverlay analysis will take place in raster environment. More importantly, is the grid celldimensions (resolution), a value of 3 meters have been selected for all factor maps. Thisvalue is found to be the most convenient in two ways: it is not a very large value whichcould cause data loss, and in the same time it is not very small resolution which result in ahuge files that will be very difficult to be handled and processed.4.5.2. Area of Interest (AOI) delineationThe target area for performing the sensitivity analysis is the shoreline, which previouslydigitized from the satellite image as a line map. In NOAA procedure, the line segments areassigned the ESI value by the geologist in the field. With the possibility of having the samesegment with different ESI values due to the landward or seaward change in habitat (e.g. aseawall fronted by a fine-grained sand beach is assigned as 1B/3A). In the present research,GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 37however, a buffer zone of 100 m (see Fig. 3-1) is created around the shoreline and used asthe AOI for doing the sensitivity analysis. That was done for the following reasons:− It found be easier or even more correct to do spatial overlay on a raster createdfrom an area (the buffer zone), than to have it converted from a line feature(thinking about rasterizing error).− Allows further classification inside the buffer zone itself regarding the changein habitats for the same shoreline segment and avoid assigning complex classcode.− For the sake of portrayal on the ESI map, a polygon area will be clearer to beinterpreted than a colored line segment (and especially in the present research,on which all the maps will be produced in A4 size).The area of interest is also converted into raster with the same cell size (3m). It is also usedto clip all the factor maps into this AOI.4.5.3. Creation of factor mapsA necessary step in performing cartographic modeling, is the representation of the modelcriteria (input data layers) in the form of GIS layers (Pavasovic, 1993). Four main physicalfactors are determining the shoreline habitat sensitivity:− Shoreline slope− Relative exposure to wave and tidal energy− Substrate type− Biological productivity of the shorelineThe following section explains how each of these factor maps was created.4.5.3.1. Shoreline slopeShoreline slope is a measure of the steepness of the intertidal zone. A Digital ElevationModel (DEM) of the study area (Fig. 4-1) was created using ArcGIS 3D analyst fromcontour map. Bathymetric values are also incorporated into the DEM to give the depths ofthe under-water features. The bathymetric contours were digitized from the topographicmap also and supplemented with diving maps to give more details about the sea floor nearGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 38shore.Figure 4-1: Digital elevation model of the study area.Slope map of the whole terrain (Fig. 4-2) was first derived from the DEM. This slope mapclipped afterwards by the area of interest in order to delineate the slope map of theshoreline. The slope map is normally derived as a raster grid with each pixel in the rasterrepresents a slope value measured with regard to the immediate neighborhood pixels. It isnot easy to clip a raster map with an area of irregular shape. And hence, the raster AOI wasrecoded with a constant value of one and eventually multiplied by the slope map using theGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 39map calculator of the Arcview spatial analyst. And the final output was the slope map ofthe intertidal zone.Figure 4-2: Slope map of the whole terrain.The resultant slope map of the AOI was not the final map to be used in the model, as doingso would create a huge number of ESI classes. The slope map of the intertidal zone is oftenclassified as steep (greater than 30°), moderate (between 30° and 5°) and flat (less than 5°)(NOAA, 2002). So, the slope map was classified into a raster with those 3 classes only(Fig. 4-3) with each qualitative class given a representative numerical value, as it is easierto work with numbers in the spatial overlay process.The concept that the sensitivity of any shoreline segment decreases with the increase in theslope of the intertidal zone, also taken into account while assigning the numerical values toGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 40the slope categories. And hence, flat intertidal zones have the highest number while areaswith steep slope, on the other hand, have taken the lowest number.Figure 4-3: Categorized slope map of the shoreline.4.5.3.2. Shoreline exposureThe exposure of a shoreline segment to the hydrodynamic forces is an important concept inboth oil-spill response and biological studies. Wave action is one of the most effectivenatural cleaning agents of oiled shorelines. Wave-energy and tidal energy fluxes are thefactors determine the exposure of shoreline. However, the primary focus is on wave-energyGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 41flux, which requires sophisticated wave gauges that measures wave conditions throughseveral seasons. One always face a problem to find detailed statistical data about waves,and the approach then followed is analyzing the wind data and use them instead, as foundin many procedures in ESI mapping literature (Harper, 1991; Hayes, 1996; Nansingh &Jurawan, 1999).On the other hand, the concept of exposure level could be usefully applied in general way,as is done in The ESI procedure developed by NOAA. In this procedure, the most exposedshorelines have the lowest sensitivity while the most sheltered ones have the highestsensitivity value. This system has been used to map most of the coastline of U.S.A. forshoreline sensitivity (Hayes et al, 1980; Hayes, 1996).The general way that developed by NOAA was the approach used to develop the exposuremap of Sharm El-Sheikh shoreline, especially with the lack of detailed information aboutwind and waves. The exposure map was produced using information derived from winddirection and speed. Diving maps and guidelines that produced by the local diving centerswere a very useful source of information about wave dynamics in the area. Admiraltycharts are also very useful in developing the exposure map. Unfortunately the admiraltymap of the area could not be obtained.The prevailing wind in Sharm El-Sheikh is coming from north. And the area is reported bylocal diving centers to be sheltered from wave action. However, in developing theexposure map of the area. Shoreline segments are locally classified relative to each other’sinto 3 classes (Fig. 4-4): moderately sheltered, sheltered and highly sheltered habitats.Those three classes have been digitized within the area of interest using Arcview GIS. Thevector map is then converted into raster map with those three classes to be used as thesecond factor map in the model.The same approach, followed in assigning the numerical values in slope map, also used inthe exposure map. As sensitivity decreases with increase in the exposure level, themoderately sheltered shoreline habitats are assigned the lowest value and the highlysheltered ones have taken the highest rank.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 42Figure 4-4: Map shows the local relative exposure to wave action.4.5.3.3. Substrate mapThe geological map of South Sinai (see Fig. 3-3) was the main source for delineating thegeological rock units that found the study area. However, the attributes concerning theserock units (permeability, grain size, trafficability and sorting) were derived from theprevious geological and sedimentological studies on Sharm El-Sheikh region. Theextensive fieldwork on the study area that has been done by Omara (1959); Nawar (1989);GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 43Youssef (1988); Hathout (1988); Strasser et al (1992); El-Asmar & Attia (1996) and Shata& Hussein (1999) was the main source of information about the study area substratelithology and characteristics.Figure (4-5) shows the substrate types of the study area. There are four major classes in thecoastal zone. This map was linked to a simple table describe the properties of these classesthat influence the sensitivity.Figure 4-5: Different substrate types in the study area.The substrate map is converted into raster map with numerical values ranked accordingsome considerations that control oil behavior and by turn the sensitivity of the shoreline.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 44These considerations are, oil penetration and persistence, ease of clean up, andtrafficability regarding heavy machinery that could use in removing the stranded oil.4.5.3.4. Biological productivityA distinctive feature of the study area is the shallow coral reefs (0.5 meter deep) that isfringing in some place up to 100 meters seaward (Fig. 4-6). This feature covers almost thewhole area and dissected occasionally by embayment (i.e. Namma bay).abReef plate 0.5 mFigure 4-6: Shallow coral reefs in Coral bay (a) photograph shows shallow coral reefs, which appear ingreenish blue in the middle of the view (b) part of diving map for the same area shows the reef depth.A simple map has been created to represent the relative biological productivity of the area,in which the shallow algal coral reefs have been considered biologically as highlyproductive. While other places like embayment has considered relatively as lowGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures 45productive. This map is also converted into a raster grid being the fourth factor map thatused in the cartographic model.4.5.4. Model DevelopmentThe ESI map for different shoreline habitats was generated based on the flow chartdescribed in figure (4-7). The development of ESI map is map calculation implemented ina raster GIS environment. Arcview model builder was the module that used to create thissimple cartographic model. The model executes through the following steps:Step 1: Vector-to-Raster conversion of three input mapsMaps of Biological productivity, Shoreline exposure and Substrate type were all convertedinto raster grids and the following is the rasterization parameters:− Cell size: 3m− Rows: 4563− Columns: 4797− Type: integer− Status: permanentStep 2: Reclassification of the raster gridsEach raster map was reclassified into appropriate classes with numerical values to be usedin the arithmetic overlay process. The relation between sensitivity and the input parameterswas taken into account. In reclassifying the slope raster, for example, flat slope has takengrid value of 5 while steep slope has taken 2 as grid value.Step 3: OverlyThe concept of map algebra (see Fig. 2-4 & Fig. 2-5) was applied here, whereby the outputof one operation the input for another one. Each pair of the four maps has been overlaidand the resultant two maps also overlaid (multiplied) to give the shoreline classificationmap. Jhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI Mapping methods and procedures46Figure 4-7: Flowchart of the cartographic model used to produce Shoreline classification map.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI mapping methods and procedures 47The arithmetic overlay process creates an output grid theme by building an equation thatoperates on the values in themes and constants to calculate the values of the output theme.There is no equation describes the sensitivity in a quantitative way, and that is logicbecause it is a concept rather than a physical phenomenon that controlled by laws ofphysics. However, it is convenient to describe the qualitative classes of the input factors ina numerical way and assume the final sensitivity as the end product of the multiplication ofall of these factors (El-Gamily et al., 2001). This explains the reason behind givingnumerical values for each factor map increase with excepted increase in sensitivity. Andhence, in the interpretation of the final map, the increase in values implies increase in theoverall sensitivity.Another overlay procedure that could be used in doing the calculation is the weightedoverlay process. This approach could not be used in the present study, as one needs todecide about the weights of the factors and this needs very detailed work on the relationbetween the sensitivity and each affecting factor, which was behind the scope of the study.The result of the overlay process is considered to be the local Relative Sensitivity IndexMap (RESI) of the shoreline habitats. This map was consequently a subject for applyingother considerations those affect the sensitivity locally due to the conditions found in thestudy area. The Sensitivity index was then compared with the ones produced by NOAAand other workers in the same field.4.5.5. Applying non-physical criteriaThe map produced by the cartographic model was the integration of the physical factorsthat control the sensitivity of the shoreline. However, other considerations could be takeninto account after production of the shoreline habitats classification. Most of theseconsiderations are related to the nature of the study area. In the work of Abdel-Kader et al(1997) and El-Gamily et al (2000) on areas found the same region (Ras Mohamed andHurghada) they found that some considerations regarding the scientific, ecological andrecreational values of the area also affect the sensitivity in terms of setting priorities in thedefense plan. These factors could be referred to as “Non-physical Criteria”.In the present research, the scientific, ecological and recreational values as well as theexpected damage of the classified habitats were used as weighing factors to reclassify theGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI mapping methods and procedures 48RESI map into final sensitivity index from. Table 4-2 shows how the shoreline habitatclasses were scored according these weighing factors.Table 4-2: General considerations taken into account in developing the Sensitivity Index (Modifiedafter El-Gamily et al., 2001.ShorelineHabitatsCorallinelimestoneridgeCoarsegrainedsandbeachMixed sandand gravelbeachShallow coralreefsExpectedDamageEconomic/RecreationValueScientificValueEcologicalvalueVal. Wt. Sc. Val. Wt. Sc. Val. Wt. Sc. Val. Wt. Sc.TotalScore1 3 3 1 2 2 1 2 2 1 3 3 102 3 6 2 2 4 1 2 2 1 3 3 153 3 9 2 2 4 1 2 2 2 3 6 214 3 12 4 2 8 4 2 8 4 3 12 40Val.= value Wt.=weight Sc. = scoreAs shown with table (4-2) each of the shoreline habitats has given a value on a four-pointevaluation scale, from least significant to high significant, in terms of their excepteddamage, recreational, scientific, and ecological value. Also, the factors themselves havebeen assigned a weight in terms of their general importance (El-gamily et al., 2001), suchthat the sum of all weights must equals 100%. A particular habitat is multiplied by theweight of each factor and the sum of the scores represents the sensitivity of this habitat tooil spills.The final step was the comparison of the proposed index to the one developed by NOAA.Also the produced index is compared with other indices those created in other regionsGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI mapping methods and procedures 494.6. Compiling biological resources information4.6.1. GeneralProducing an ESI map involves gathering biological data from a variety of sources,compiling it into maps, entering the data into GIS and link them with attributes that areimportant regarding oil spills. The key biological resources of the area those are mostlikely at risk in the event of an oil spill are depicted on the maps. Table (4-3) shows whattype of biological information is typically gathered and how this information is mapped.Table 4-3: General guidelines for mapping biological resources (After NOAA, 2002)ELEMENT SUB-ELEMENTDolphins andwhalesMarineMammalsManateesPinnipeds (sealsand sea Lions,Walruses)Polar bearsSea ottersSmall, semi-aquaticTerrestrial Forbearing BearsMammals Other mammalsBirdsAlcidsDiving birdsGulls and ternsLand fowlPasserine birdsPelagic birdsDESCRIPTIONRestricted to water. There are no restrictions to offshore or inshore extent.Restricted to water. Manatees are generally shown in estuarine waters andoften associated with cold-weather refuge areas such as springs, river mouths,power plant cooling water outfalls, etc. They may also concentrate in inletmouths.Can be displayed on water and land. On land, pinniped haul out and puppingsites may be shown as points or polygons occurring on beaches, rockyheadlands, and across small islands.Can be displayed on land or water as polygons, or as points to identifydenning sites. They are often associated with pack ice, but do not range farinland. They are described as marine mammals because they are classified assuch in the Marine Mammal Protection Act.Occur in nearshore waters. They may also be associated with kelp beds andinvertebrate concentration areas.Typically shown throughout salt, brackish, and freshwater wetlands, andoccasionally in other shoreline habitats.Mostly threatened, endangered, or other important species are mapped caseby-case.Occur in offshore waters and on islands or cliffs where they nest.Typically shown in nearshore areas along shorelines, and on tidal flats,islands, and in sheltered bays, estuaries, lagoons, etc.Usually shown as buffers along shorelines, and on tidal flats, islands, and insheltered bays, estuaries, lagoons, etc.Occur in terrestrial areas, sometimes in and around wetland areas.Endangered, threatened, or rare passerines that rely on coastal or wetlandhabitats are included when appropriate, especially if nesting occurs in thearea.Occur in offshore waters and on islands or cliffs where they nest.RaptorsOccur along rivers, coastal shorelines, in wetlands, and in sheltered waters.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI mapping methods and procedures 50Table (4-3) continued.ELEMENT SUB-ELEMENTDESCRIPTIONTypically mapped using a 75-100m buffer (onshore and offshore) along sandShorebirds and gravel beaches. They are also mapped on tidal flats and in wetlandhabitats.Usually restricted to wetlands, tidal flats, tidal creeks, and the margins ofWading birdssheltered waters (bays, estuaries, lagoons, sloughs).Waterfowl (ducks and geese) are usually mapped in nearshore areas, such asbays, estuaries, and lagoons, and are also commonly shown extending throughWaterfowlsalt, brackish, and fresh wetlands, and into rivers. Some species groups, suchas sea ducks, may be mapped further offshoreTurtlesReptiles andAmphibiansAlligators andcrocodilesFishesInvertebrate-sLizards, snakesAbalones,Cephalopods,Clams, crabs,Echinoderms,Gastropods,Lobsters, mussels,Oysters, scallops,and shrimpInsectsHabitats and Algae, coral reefs,Rare Plants hard-bottom reefs,eelgrass, kelp,SAV, FAV, wormBedsUpland plantsWetland plantsMay include sea turtles and diamondback terrapins. Sea turtle nesting andhaul-out areas are usually mapped as points or as 75-100m onshore/offshorebuffers along sand beaches. Important marine foraging and nurseryconcentration areas may also be shown. Diamondback terrapins are usuallymapped as polygons in wetlands.Often restricted to sheltered waters (estuaries, bays, etc.), streams, wetlands,and nesting along sand or vegetated shorelines.In some cases other threatened, endangered, or rare species may be included,such as salt marsh snakes.Almost always restricted to water. General distributions are usually defined bybathymetric contours, distance from the shoreline, habitat type (such as reefs),or salinity zone. Anadromous fish are usually mapped as polygons and arcs instreams and rivers, but occasionally a point representing the stream mouth isused instead. Some important concentration areas and spawning areas are alsomapped in addition to more general distributions. Occasionally rare speciesoccurrences are mapped as points or polygons.Almost always restricted to water and tidal flats. General distributions areusually defined by bathymetric contours or distance from the shore. There mayalso be special concentration areas defined by habitat type or fishingconcentrations.Typically only depicted if they are threatened, endangered, or rare andassociated with coastal, wetland, or aquatic habitats.Generally restricted to water and tidal flats.Upland (terrestrial) plants, habitats, or communities; usually restricted to rarespecies.Wetland plants, habitats, or communities; usually restricted to rare species.Not all of the resources in table (4-3) are found in the study area. However, anyone likes towork with ESI mapping should study this table carefully, as it is the basic guideline formapping biological resources. There are two main components for representing biologicalresources in ESI mapping, the spatial component, in which different biological resourcesGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI mapping methods and procedures 51are digitized on the base map as points, lines and polygons; and the tabular component,where the attributes of each resources (species, concentration and seasonality) were createdin a simple data forms using Microsoft excel. And finally the spatial and non-spatial datawere linked together in the attribute table of the map.4.6.2. Spatial componentArcview GIS used to digitizes the spatial distribution of the species. Polygons, lines, andpoints, as appropriate, represented spatial distribution of the species on the base map.However, most of the resources found in the study area were represented by polygonsindicate the concentration of the species. With each of these polygons there was anassociated icon depicting the types of plants or animals that are present in the polygon.Spatial representation was done on the level of elements and sub-elements, as devotingseparate polygon for each species would result in too much busy map and many featureswould become obscured.Some species are found to have a regional distribution (i.e. dolphins and turtles). While itis important to note the presence of these species, showing these distributions as polygonswould cover large areas. And it would make the maps very difficult to read. The approachthat often used to overcome this problem is to show these resources in separate maps. Inaddition, these resources are identified in a box stating that they are “COMMON INAREA”. This approach informs the user of the presence of these species, whilemaintaining readability of the ESI map.4.6.2.1. Biological features symbolizationIt is a universal trend now in ESI mapping to standardize the symbolization scheme of allfeatures in ESI map. The Polygons showing the distribution of biological resources werefilled with a hatched colored pattern (appendix 1). The pattern and color components arethe standard ones those normally used by most of the people working in ESI mapping. Thepolygon colors and patterns are the same for all species in on group. Icons, with the samecolors, shown in on the ESI map (appendix 1) are connected with a line or an arrow to therepresenting polygons. The advantage in using such icons is that they guide the user to thetype of sub-element found in the area.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI mapping methods and procedures 52ArcGIS proved to be very useful tool in the symbolization process. All the colors, patternsand icons are found in the styles of the software under a category called “ESI MAPPING”.It also allows the creation of user-defined patterns that are suitable for most disciplines.4.6.3. Non-spatial (tabular) componentAfter biological features (polygons, line and point) are drawn on the map, attribute data(species, concentration and seasonality) are recorded in associated data forms. Attributedata are collected and recorded on the species level. All of these data forms are normallydeveloped within a huge database in the form of relational databases linked finally to theESI map.In the present study that was by far the most difficult task, as sources of information didnot give all the attributes about the biological resources. For example, a separate table mustbe created for seasonality and life history of the species that contains critical life stages(i.e. nesting, laying and hatching) and that was not available. Information about birds wasthe most detailed information gathered. While for fishes, invertebrates and mammals, verylittle information was available. But at the end the distribution of these resources were atleast noted on the Map.It is found, therefore, convenient to make a very simple attribute table that is linked to theESI map and contains the available information about species such as concentration places,seasons and both scientific and common names. And the full species lists were attached inthe appendix.A very useful information sources for biological resources was the worldwide web,whereby some databases are available about biological resources. But these databases giveonly the basic information about classification and places of concentration. Anotherinformation source was the biological survey reports that developed by The EnvironmentalAffairs Agency in Egypt and the birds watching reports, where the later give sometimeseven the location of the resources with GPS readings.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI mapping methods and procedures 534.7. Human-use resourcesHuman-use resources (also known as socio-economic resources) shown on the map arethose would either be impacted by the spill or provide access for the cleaning upoperations. Like biological resources, human-use resources consist of two components,spatial and not spatial component.4.7.1. Spatial componentMost of the human-use resources were depicted on the ESI map by point symbols (i.e.recreational areas, access locations and resource extraction), while management areas forexample were drawn as polygons. These resources were also assigned a feature type (typeof resource) and feature code. The point features are digitized on screen using Arcview,while the polygonal features were derived from the Landuse map of the study area.4.7.1.1. Human-use resources symbolizationThe human-use resources were mostly depicted by an icon (appendix 1) but without colorcode. This icon is placed on the place where the resource is found. There are standard iconsused for the point features, while for polygonal features one has to define the color andpatterns. For this task an appropriate colors were chosen to define these areas.4.7.2. Non-spatial (tabular) componentFortunately, the study area is a famous touristic place and most of the human-use featuresare mapped for tourists to discover the place. That makes the gathering of data about thehuman-use resources easier than those for biological resources. A simple attribute table iscreated for the human resources (with Microsoft excel) include the resource type, place,contact person (if available) and the resource name (i.e. beach name). This table is thenlinked to the feature attribute table of the map using the identification number.4.8. Final layoutAfter preparing the maps for the three main components of the ESI map, all were showedon one map that represent the ESI map of the study area. The final layout is created in A4GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

ESI mapping methods and procedures 54size using ArcGIS layout viewer, which enables the production of the same map in biggersizes when needed.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 55Chapter 5RESULTS AND DISCUSSION5.1. Shoreline habitats classificationShoreline habitats, as the most important component of ESI map, were classified bydeveloping a simple cartographic model. Physical factors (Slope, exposure, biology, andsubstrate type) were combined together, in that model, through an arithmetic overlayprocess in raster environment. Three kinds of ESI map were the main results of thesensitivity classification method: the local Relative Environmental Sensitivity Index(RESI) map, refined ESI map produced by incorporation of non-physical factors, andfinally the ESI map compared and ranked with sensitivity scale produced by NOAA.5.1.1. Local Relative Environmental Sensitivity Index (RESI)The first output of the cartographic model was the RESI map. It is a local index because itis only applicable for the study area. And the word relative is describing the fact that theshoreline habitats were classified relative to each other’s on a scale with respect to theirsensitivity regarding oil spills. It is a raster map of discrete nature consists of 20 classes ofsensitivity.The number of classes seems, at the first look, a big number. That was excepted becausemost of the factor maps have had at least 3 classes each, and the multiplication of theseclasses four times could result in that big number of output sensitivity classes. However, itwas interesting to discover that 10 classes out of the 20 are wrongly coded pixels. Andthese pixels are distributed on the boundaries between classes. The area of interest has atotal number of pixels equals to 313986 pixels (pixel size is 3m) and the wrongly codedpixels were found to be 215. This is a very small number comparing to the total area,which could trustfully be neglected. The remaining ten classes were recoded on a scalefrom 1 to 10 and the resultant map (Fig. 5-1) is the local relative sensitivity map of theshoreline habitats.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 56Figure 5-1: Relative Environmental Sensitivity Index (RESI) map of shoreline habitats regarding oilspills.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 57ArcGIS used to produce The RESI map layout shown in figure (5-1). It was a custom todisplay all the basic features of the map (i.e. roads, Landuse and water) in transparentgrayscale and make the area of interest the only colored region. That was done to make themap clear and avoid any confusion in the visual interpretation. Important places (i.e.famous regions like Sharm, Ras Umm Sid and Namma bay) are noted on the map as wellas the local diving sites (i.e. Tower, Fiasco and Far garden) to refer to them whilediscussing the sensitivity of each region on the map.The RESI map shows ten classes of sensitivity over four different habitats. Thesesensitivity classes and their habitats with the locations represent each class are summarizedin table (5-1). And they will be discussed more in details later.There are some important notes one has to take into account while applying the RESI scaleand interpreting the map showed in Figure (5-1). These notes are summarized as following:1. The numbers on the scale does not represent actual quantified sensitivity (i.e. ESI 5is not five times as ESI 1). It is rather a representation of the local relativesensitivities of different shoreline habitats;2. Some habitats are different from those found in the original scale produced byNOAA (i.e. algal coral reefs and Coralline limestone cliffs) and these habitats arespecific for the study area. A separate section is devoted to discuss how to relate theproposed classes to the original ESI produced by NOAA as the same concepts ofclassification was applied;3. The same shoreline segment can has more than one sensitivity rank (table 5-1)depending on different habitats those might be found in the area. And this is theapproach often used by all people working in ESI mapping;4. The Area of Interest is an exaggeration of the shoreline width for the sake ofportrayal on the final sensitivity map; and5. This map is the raw product of the cartographic model and the resultant RESIclasses are fully controlled by the physical factors affecting the sensitivity in theform of the values assigned to each factor map. So, it was assumed that the inputmaps are completely correct and errors that often result from digitizing, rasterizingand georeferancing are ignored.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 58Table 5-1: resultant Local Relative sensitivity classes and areas represent them on the map.RESI Rank Shoreline Habitat Locations1 Moderately shelteredcoralli-ne lime stone ridge.2 Sheltered corallinelimestone ridge3 Highly sheltered corallinelimestone ridge4 Highly sheltered corallinelimestone ridge withmoderate slope5 Moderately sheltered coarsesand beach6 Moderately shelteredshallow coral reefs7 Highly sheltered mixed sandand gravel beach8 Sheltered shallow coralreefs9 Highly sheltered mixed sandand gravel beach10 Highly sheltered shallowcoral reefsLimestone terraces in the area from southNamma bay until Sodfa diving site.Limestone terraces in the areas from Sodfauntil Amphoras diving site and from whiteknight diving site until Shark bay.Limestone terraces in the areas betweenSharm El-Sheikh and Sharm Al-Maya; RasUmm Sid; Ras Katy diving site; coral bayand Shark bay; and northern flank of Sharkbay.Limestone terraces in the area from Pinky’sWall and Fiasco diving sites.Public beaches of Shark Bay and Coral Bay.Shallow coral reefs from Pinky’s Wall andFiasco diving sites.Public beaches of Sharm El-Sheikh andSharm El-Maya.Shallow coral reefs from white knightdiving site until Shark bay and from Sodfauntil Pinky’s Wall diving sites.Public beach of Namma Bay.Shallow coral reefs from Ras Umm Sid untilRas Katy, the area between Sharm El-Mayaand Sharm El-Sheikh and the area from FarGarden until the north of Namma Bay.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 59Sensitivity classes are often represented as a percentage of the total mapped area. This isimportant in order to have a general view about the overall sensitivity of the area in aquantified way. That is depicted with figure (5-2).Figure 5-2: RESI classes represented as percentage of the total mapped area.Trying to interpret the graph showed in figure (5-2) one can notice that the corallinelimestone habitats has four categories on the sensitivity scale namely RESI1, RESI2,RESI3 and RESI 4. Those classes are representing in total only 17% of the area, althoughthey spread over most of the study area. But the quantification here was done in terms ofthe possible affected area by the oil spill. And, hence coralline limestone ridges aremapped as very thin strip along the shoreline with very steep slope. These habitats arefronted in all places by the shallow coral reefs. These coral reefs represented by threeclasses of sensitivity, RESI 6, RESI 8 and RESI 10. These sensitivity classes have in totalthe highest percentage of the mapped area, which reaches up to 55%. This is seems to belogic because coral reefs are flat and the affected area is believed to be large. Theembayment of Namma bay has the sensitivity class of RESI 9, which represents about 7%.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 60Shark bay and Coral bay have had the sensitivity class of RESI 5 and occupy around 8% ofthe mapped area. Sharm El-Sheikh and Sharm El-Maya areas have had the sensitivity ofRESI 7 and represent around 13% of the mapped area.In order to evaluate the reliability of the resultant ten classes, each of these classes isdiscussed briefly in the following section taking into account the local conditions of thearea, in which this class is found and how these conditions are physically explaining theRESI rank.1) RESI 1: Moderately sheltered coralline limestone ridgeThe area that extends from the south of Namma bay until the local diving site called Sodfa(Fig. 5-3-a) represents this sensitivity class. The area is characterized by nearly verticalslope (between 85 and 90 degree) and it is moderately sheltered from wave action (Fig. 5-3-b). The area is lithologically composed of highly fossillerferous limestone (Fig. 5-3-b)and it is categorized to have low relative biological productivity.(a)(b)RESI 1NFigure 5-3: RESI 1, moderately sheltered coralline limestone (a) the area is shown in blue as it is foundon the RESI map (b) cross section of the same area (modified after Strasser et al. 1992) shows the slopeand lithology of the area.This area is supposed to be the least affected region in the study area regarding oil spills.The nearly vertical slope, which will reflect the oil away from the area, could explain thatand the possibility of oil penetration is very limited in such lithological characteristics.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 612) RESI 2: sheltered coralline limestone ridgeThe main difference between this class and class RESI 1 is the exposure to wave action.RESI 2 is characterized by sheltered exposure to wave action with some slight differencesin slope which still very steep in these habitats (70 to 75). Lithology, on the other hand, isthe same like in RESI 1, coralline limestone. Areas represent this classes are the limestoneterraces between White knight diving site and Shark bay and the shoreline strip betweenSodfa and Amphoras diving sites (Fig. 5-4).NFigure 5-4: RESI 2, sheltered coralline limestone ridge. The area is shown as thin green striplandward.There is virtually nothing to say, regarding the excepted oil behaviors in this area, than thatsaid about RESI 1. However, when one strictly applies the concept of determining thesensitivity, this area is relatively more sensitive than the previous one. This might be due tothe fact that the area is more sheltered from wave action, which could cause the oil toremain for longer periods. This is a theoretical thinking because in effect the area couldtake the same sensitivity rank and this will be discussed later.3) RESI 3: Highly sheltered coralline limestone ridgeThis class is dominating most of the limestone terraces in the study area. Areas representthis class are: the limestone terrace between Sharm El-Sheikh and Sharm El-Maya in thesouth of the study area (Fig. 5-5-a); the area between Ras Umm Sid and Ras Katy divingsite (Fig. 5-5-b); the area between Coral bay and Shark bay; and the northern flank ofGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 62Shark bay (Fig. 5-5-c & Fig. 5-5-d). These areas are characterized by gentler slope thanthe previously mentioned classes while remaining steep (from 40 to 60 degrees) withrespect to the slope scale on the slope map. The lithology is the same and biologicalproductivity is still low to moderate. However, these areas are highly sheltered from waveaction. Another interesting feature in these areas is the rock debris that characterizes the infront the limestone feature (Strasser et al. 1992; El-Asmar & Attia, 1996). Franklyspeaking this feature was not taken into account while developing the substrate map whileit attests the higher sensitivity rank given to the areas mentioned above.(a)(b)N(c)(d)NRESI 3Figure 5-5: RESI 3, highly sheltered coralline limestone ridge area appears as thin strip in magenta (a)and (c) the sensitivity class as shown on the RESI map (b) photograph of Ras Umm Sid area with thelimestone ridge noted with the arrow (d) cross section of the area noted with the arrow (modified afterStrasser et al., 1992) showing the slope and the rock debris in that location.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 63This class, is believed to have its higher relative sensitivity rank from the highly shelteredexposure characterizes the area representing it. This is supposed to affect the oil slickspersistence in terms of the oil residence time. Slope, substrate type and biologicalproductivity does not control the sensitivity ranking, as they are the same like the otherclasses. The rock debris those reported in the areas represent this class are believed toincrease the sensitivity, as oil always remain for longer time in such settings.4) RESI 4: Highly sheltered coralline limestone ridge with moderate slopeThis class is found in the area between Pinky’s wall and Fiasco diving sites. These areasare characterized by moderate slope (from 25 to 30 degrees). And this is by far is the mostaffecting factor here. And this was the only factor differentiating between this class and theother previous classes.5) RESI 5: Highly sheltered coarse-grained sand beachThe public beaches of Shark bay and Coral bay (see Fig. 5-1) are representing thissensitivity class. These areas are characterized by moderate slope (from 17 to 20 degrees)and the substrate is permeable coarse-grained sand. The beaches are also highly shelteredfrom wave action and the biological productivity of such settings is relatively low (NOAA,2002). These two beaches are important places for touristic activities with a lot of hotelsand diving sites found there. The aspect of the recreational importance of the study areaand how it can interact to increase the sensitivity was taken into account in the presentstudy. And there will be a separate section deals with this concept.Coarse-grained sand beaches have high potential for oil penetration and burial, aspermeability of these sediments was estimated to be moderate to high permeability.Cleaning up of these settings is difficult, as equipments tend to grind oil into the looselypacked sediments. The areas represent this class is highly sheltered from wave actions, inwhich oil will not be easily removed by waves. Moderate slope of these areas means awider intertidal zone, which does not help in the natural clean up of the stranded oil. Thesekinds of habitats in other environments with high wave actions do not need artificialcleaning up. But with these sheltered settings it needs quick and extensive clean up efforts.That is why these habitats have taken the rank of 5 on the relative sensitivity scale.6) RESI 6: Moderately sheltered shallow coral reefsGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 64Area that characterized by this class of sensitivity is the foreshore algal coral reefs foundbetween Pinky’s wall and fiasco diving sites (Fig. 5-6-a). These coral reefs are just half ameter below the sea level (Fig. 5-6-b). The area is moderately sheltered from wave actionand of course has a flat shape. Algal coral reefs are often characterized with high biologicalproductivity and have a well-known environmental value.(a)N(b)Figure 5-6: RESI 6, moderately sheltered Shallow coral reefs (a) RESI 6 appears in green as it is shownon RESI map (b) diving map of the local diving site called Turtle bay shows the depth of the coralreefs.Sdddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 65In the study area and worldwide, coral reefs are an integral part of the coastal zone ecologyespecially in tropical and subtropical areas (Gundlach and Hayes, 1978). Laboratorystudies have indicated that the degree and extent of damage from oil spills on coral reefsincreases with decrease in reef depth (Johannes, 1975). Applying this concept on the studyarea, with corals are sometimes exposed or nearly at the water surface as in Spring lowtides, one can conclude that the shallow coral reefs will be severely damaged whensubjected to oil pollution. Slope does not play any role here because reefs are flat bynature.Coral reef oiling will result in decrease in coral cover, decrease in coral fecundity, decreasein coral reproductive tissues and survival of coral larvae (Rogers, 1990; Guzman et al.,1991; Guzman and Holst, 1993; Guzman et al., 1994). It is not recommended for cleaningup process on corals unless there is heavy oiling, as cleaning up operation could damagethe coral reefs more than the oil itself (efforts are often made to prevent oil from reachingthe coral area).The question now is, why the coral reefs in this areas have taken the rank of RESI 6, whileit is supposed to be higher or even the highest in sensitivity ranking as already resulted forother areas have the same habitat. If fact, it was surprising and whole overlay analysis werechecked and repeated many times to find the error. But at the end there was no error foundand the result seems to be correct and dependent with respect to the input parameters.The area represents class RESI 6 is moderately sheltered from wave action andtheoretically, when compared to other areas, it will be lower in sensitivity. Coral reefs, dueto unknown reasons, were not included in the scale developed by NOAA. This absence ofcoral reef in the original sensitivity index have led to the thinking in other sensitivitycriteria, which could be used to refine the relative sensitivity map.7) RESI 7: highly sheltered mixed sand and gravel beach (with moderate slope)The public beaches zones of Sharm El-Sheikh and Sharm El-Maya (Fig. 5-7) represent thisclass on the RESI map (see Fig. 5-1). The area is lithologically composed mixed sand andgravels with the gravel component not lower than 20%. The slope of the present areas iscategorized moderate (rang from 12 to 17 degrees). They are highly sheltered from waveaction. A lot of touristic activities are taken place in these areas.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 66NSharm El-MayaSharm El-SheikhFigure 5-7: Photograph taken from low altitude aircraft shows the regions of Sharm El-Sheikh andSharm El-Maya. Both regions are highly sheltered from wave action.Coarse-grained sand beaches have high potential for oil penetration (50 cm) and burial, aspermeability of these sediments was estimated to be high permeability. Oil is believed toharm these habitats more severely when compared with coarse-grained sand beaches. Thecleaning up operation in such habitats is the removal of stranded oil from the face of thebeach. Many kinds of birds were recorded in these area which means also more attentionhas to be given to them. But cleaning up operations is faced with a lot of difficulties insuch habitats. One must think about removal of a very thick layer of oiled sediments.8) RESI 8: Sheltered shallow coral reefsThis class was given to areas between White Knight and Shark bay and between Sodfa andPinky’s wall (see Fig. 5-1). Again here, the exposure to wave action plays the key role indefining the sensitivity class. These areas are sheltered from wave action and that means ithas a higher rank in relative sensitivity when compared with classes have the same habitats(i.e. Class RESI 6 and RESI 10). The area is characterized by shallow algal coral reefs halfa meter deep and it is even exposed sometimes in the year.These habitats must take the priority to be protected from oil, as long-term degradation ofthe reefs is expected. And that is the reason to have high RESI rank.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 679) RESI 9: highly sheltered mixed sand and gravel beach (almost flat)Namma Bay (see Fig. 5-1) is the area that found to have this sensitivity class. Similarclasses on the Relative Sensitivity Index map is class RESI 7 with the only difference is inslope settings (RESI 7 has moderate slope). This area is characterized by flat slope(between 3 and 7 degrees). They are highly sheltered from wave action and have lowbiological productivity. The substrate of such habitats is permeable, very coarse sandsometimes reaches the gravel size. The area is probably the best-known touristic place inSharm El-Sheik with plenty of hotels and resorts (Fig. 5-8).NFigure 5-8: Photograph taken from low altitude aircraft shows Namma bay, which classified as RESI 9on the relative sensitivity scale.These habitats have higher potential for oil penetration (50cm according to NOAA, 2002)making it difficult to remove contaminated sediments without causing erosion andsediments disposal problems. Oil is expected to remains for years in this kind of habitats(Gundlach and Hayes, 1978). And hence, it is often ranked high on the relative sensitivityindex.10) RESI 10: highly sheltered Shallow coral reefsGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 68Areas represent these classes of sensitivity are theoretically the most sensitive areasregarding oil spills (Fig. 5-9). They are the foreshore coral reefs in the area between SharmEl-Sheikh and Sharm El-Maya, from Ras Umm Sid to Ras Katy and from Far GardenDiving site until the northern flank of Namma bay (see Fig. 5-1).Figure 5-9: Diving plans shows the shallow coral reefs, Ranked RESI 10, appears in Green in themiddle of the photos (a) Ras Katy diving site (b) Far Garden diving site. (Plans were provided byCamel Diving center, 2003)The same characteristics of other places have coral reefs are also here except for theexposure. Habitats represent RESI 10 are highly sheltered from wave actions, highlyproductive in terms of biological productivity, shallow and sometimes exposed. AndGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 69hence, they have taken the highest relative sensitivity rank amongst all the habitats foundin the study area.5.1.2. Generalized RESI mapIn the previous section the resultant RESI map was the output of the cartographic modelafter combination of affecting physical factors together. However, while discussing theresultant ten classes some conflicts in the assigned ranks have been found. Two classesseem to be not practically reliable. The first is RESI 6, which given to the shallow coralreefs while these habitats should take a higher rank of sensitivity. The second was therelatively high sensitivity rank (RESI 7 & RESI 9) that given to the mixed sand and gravelbeaches while these habitats should take lower rank when compared to Coral reefs.Another important thing, noticed while interpreting the relative sensitivity classes, is thevery slight differences that found between the areas having the same habitats. Such as:shallow coral reefs, mixed sand and gravel beaches and coralline limestone cliffs. Andwhen the input factor maps were examined for that it is found to be more reliable andconvenient to combine all the similar habitats together in one class regardless the slightdifferences in physical settings but without disturbing the overall consistency of theoriginal relative sensitivity index.Doing this generalization was very easy in the habitats of coralline limestone ridgesbecause they already followed by each other’s on the sensitivity scale. On the other hand,the generalization of sensitivity classes characterizing other habitats, such as shallow coralreefs and mixed sand and gravel beaches beach was not that ease, because they arealternating on the sensitivity scale. This led to the use of some other non-physical factorsthat locally affect the sensitivity of the place and could solve this problem. Other factorslike the excepted damage; ecological value, scientific value and recreational value wereused in previous studies as non-physical factors affecting the overall sensitivity of theshoreline habitats.The four main habitats of the study area were reclassified according their scores regardingthe non-physical factors (see table 4-2). Each factor was given a weight representing itsimportance such that the summation of all weights must equal 100 %. The relativeimportance of the factors was used as it’s found pervious literature on ESI mapping inGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 70Egypt, especially from the work of Abdel-Kader et al. (1997) and El-Gamily et al. (2001).There, the scientific value and recreational value (as it is important in the study area) weregiven lower weight, while ecological value and expected damage were give higherweights. Then each type of habitats was given a score from 1 to 4 and multiplied by theweight of factor. The total score for each habitat was used to represent the sensitivity of itregarding oil spills. The result was a generalized sensitivity map contains only four classesof sensitivity (Fig. 5-10).Figure 5-10: Simplified RESI map after incorporation of non-physical factors. With a close up view, inthe upper left corner of the map, shows the four sensitivity classes.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 71The resultant map shown in figure (5-10) could be considered as the final sensitivity mapof the shoreline habitats for oil spills. It is a raster map with four main classes of relativesensitivity. This map is the integration of both physical and non-physical factors. Thisgeneralized map seems to be more simple and applicable than the original relativesensitivity map. The task was not only to generalize and simplify the map. The task wasrather a kind of refining process, in which the conflict between some sensitivity classeswas solved.As shown in figure (5-10) the least sensitive areas (RESI 4) are those areas of corallinelimestone ridges. These habitats have taken the least score regarding the non-physicalfactors. Coralline limestone took the least score regarding the expected damage from oilspills and this also could be explained by applying the physical factors also. It took also theleast scores regarding recreational, scientific and ecological values when compared to otherhabitats. So, these habitats are recommended to be the last place in the implementation ofthe defense plan.The second class (2 nd least sensitive) on the generalized sensitivity map was the coarsegrainedsand beaches. These habitats took low score regarding scientific and ecologicalvalues. On the other hand, it took moderate score regarding the expected damage andrecreational values. For expected damage it is already explained how these habitats arereacts with the oil. While, for recreational use, these habitats found in the public beaches ofCoral bay and Shark bay, whereby a lot of touristic activities take place.Third sensitivity class is the mixed sand and gravel beaches. These habitats are oftenranked relatively high on the sensitivity scale after the integration of the physical factors. Italso took a high score regarding the non-physical factors. These habitats are severelyaffected by oil, which could penetrate in some occasions up to half a meter depth. So, ittook relatively high score regarding the expected damage. Regarding scientific andecological values it took a medium score as these mixed sand and gravel habitats can bethe ecology for some organisms. And also a favorite feeding places for birds. However,these habitats took its highest score regarding the recreational value as they found in threeregions, whereby there is no even one square meter without a kind of touristic andrecreational activities.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 72The most sensitive habitats present in the study area are the shallow algal coral reefs.These habitats have taken the highest score regarding all factors. They are ecologically andscientifically important as coral reefs is favorable ecosystem for many kinds of organisms.They also took highest score regarding expected damage and recreational value. Regardingrecreational value, it is in fact a different prospective here to say that the coral reefs hashigh recreational value as a lot of diving sites are found there. One must think also aboutthe damage to coral reefs caused by touristic activities even if this is out of the scope of thepresent research.The step of generalizing the relative sensitivity map and taking the non-physical factorsinto account seems to be a successful step in making the map more simple and applicablefor the place and solving the problem of assigning sensitivity ranks to different habitats. Itis also can be usefully implemented in setting priorities in the oil spill contingency plan.This map, however, is still a local index could be applied only in Sharm El-Sheikh and thesurrounding regions. So, the last step was to relate the proposed sensitivity classes to moreuniversal index systems those found in literature, emphasizing on the index produced byNOAA (see table 2-2), as it was the procedure followed in the present research. And hence,a new map of shoreline habitats sensitivity was created but now using the sensitivity indexof NOAA. This will be discussed in the following section.5.1.3. Comparison of the RESI map with existing oil spill indicesIt is important now to know the ranking of the local relative sensitivity classes with respectto the standard sensitivity index developed by NOAA. The environmental sensitivity indexthat developed by Nansingh and Jurawan (1993) will also be discussed here because itincludes coral reefs, which are not included within the index developed by NOAA. Table(5-2) relates the sensitivity classes proposed by the present research with those developedby NOAA and Nansingh and Jurawan (1993).The first column of the table contains the well-known ESI ranks those developed byNOAA (based mainly on the vulnerability index developed by Gundlach and Hayes, 1978)for different shoreline habitats arranged from 1 to 10 from the least to most sensitiverespectively. There are also subdivisions within some classes and these subclasses are alsoarranged according to sensitivity (i.e. 1A is less sensitive than 1B and 3B is less sensitiveGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 73than 3c and so on). The second column of the table shows the shoreline habitats thoseranked regarding sensitivity with the ESI ranks in the first columns. Third column containsthe shoreline habitats produced by Nansingh and Jurawan (1993) also ranked according theESI Ranks developed by NOAA. The fourth column contains the Shoreline habitats thosefound in Sharm El-Sheik but now ranked according the index developed by NOAA.The comparison based not only on the names of habitats but it also on the physical criteriathose used to classify the shoreline habitats. The coral reefs were the only class that rankedaccording to the system developed by Nansingh and Jurawan (1993).Table 5-2: Comparison between oil spill index in Sharm El-Sheikh with indices produced by Nansinghand Jurawan (1993) and NOAA (2002).ESIRank(NOAA)Environmental Sensitivity indexDeveloped by NOAAEnvironmental Sensitivity indexNansingh & Jurawan, 1993Environmental Sensitivity indexIn Sharm El-Sheikh1A Exposed rocky shores Eroding wavecut platforms Not present in study area1B Exposed, solid man-made structures - Not present in study area1CExposed rocky cliffs with boulder talusbase- Not present in study area2AExposed wave-cut platforms in Exposed medium to coarse-grainedbedrock, mud or claysand beachesNot present in study area2B Exposed scarps and steep slopes in clay - Not present in study area3A Fine- to medium-grained sand beaches Exposed tidal flats Not present in study area3B Scarps and steep slopes in sand - Coralline limestone ridges3C Tundra cliffs - Not present in study area4 Coarse-grained sand beaches Exposed rocky shores Coarse-grained sand beaches5 Mixed sand and gravel beaches Sheltered fine grained sand beaches Mixed sand and gravel beaches6A Gravel beaches (granule sand pebbles) Mixed sand and gravel beaches Not present in study area6BRiprap Gravel Beaches (cobbles andboulders)- Not present in study area6C Riprap - Not present in study area7 Exposed tidal flats Sheltered tidal flats Not present in study area8ASheltered scarps in bedrock, mud, orclay & Sheltered rocky shores Sheltered rocky coastsNot present in study area(impermeable)8BSheltered, solid man-made structures &Sheltered rocky shores (permeable)- Not present in study area8C Sheltered riprap - Not present in study area8D Sheltered rocky rubble shores - Not present in study area8E Peat shorelines - Not present in study area9A Sheltered tidal flats Coral-algal reefs Shallow coral reefs9B Vegetated low banks - Not present in study area9C Hypersaline tidal flats - Not present in study area10A Salt- and brackish-water marshes - Not present in study area10B Freshwater marshes - Not present in study area10C Swamps - Not present in study area10D Scrub-shrub wetlands & Mangroves Mangrove swamps Not present in study area10E Inundated low-lying tundra - Not present in study areaGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 74As shown in table (5-2), coralline limestone ridges have taken the rank of “3B”, whichgiven to scarps and steep slopes in sand. And this was the only class on NOAA scale thatmeets in most of characteristics with coralline limestone ridges except in lithology.Coarse-grained sand beaches took rank “4” as the same unit with the same physicalcharacteristics is found on NOAA scale. Following is the explanation given by NOAA(2002) about this rank and why it is given:“Rank of 4: Medium Permeability, Moderate Potential for Oil Penetration and Burial;infauna present but not usually abundant”“The essential elements are:- The substrate is permeable (coarse-grained sand), with oil penetration up to 25cm possible.- The slope is intermediate, between 5 and 15 degrees.- Rate of sediment mobility is relatively high, with accumulation of up to 20 cmof sediments within a single tidal cycle possible; there is a potential for rapidburial and erosion of oil.- Sediments are soft, with low trafficability.- There are relatively low densities of infauna.Shoreline types that meet these elements include:4 = Coarse-grained sand beaches (estuarine)4 = Sand beaches (lacustrine)4 = Sandy bars and gently sloping banks (riverine)”.And the above characteristics found to meat with those used to give the same rank inSharm El-Sheikh. That is why coarse-grained sand beaches were given Rank of 4.The same was also observed with mixed sand and gravel beaches which has taken rank “5”as the same habitats always ranked on NOAA scale:“Rank of 5: Medium-to-High Permeability, High Potential for Oil Penetration andBurial; infauna present but not usually abundant”“The essential elements are:− Medium-to-high permeability of the substrate (mixed sand and gravel) allowsoil penetration up to 50 cm.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 75− Spatial variations in the distribution of grain sizes are significant, with finergrainedsediments (sand to pebbles) at the high-tide line and coarser sediments(cobbles to boulders) in the storm berm and at the toe of the beach.− The gravel component should comprise at least 20 percent of the sediments.− The slope is intermediate, between eight and 15 degrees.− Sediment mobility is very high only during storms, thus there is a potential forrapid burial and erosion of oil during storms.− Sediments are soft, with low trafficability.− Infauna and epifauna populations are low, except at the lowest intertidal levels.Shoreline types that meet these elements include:5 = Mixed sand and gravel beaches (estuarine and lacustrine).5 = Mixed sand and gravel bars and gently sloping banks (riverine)”.Coral reefs are given an index value of “9A” according to Nansingh and Jurawan. Thisrank is given to sheltered tidal flats on NOAA scale. But it is believed for coral reefs tohave the same rank or even higher, as they have higher values in terms of diversity andbiomass, when compared to the other environments (Kenny et al., 1975 and Ramsaroop,1976).From the preceding discussion one can conclude that the shoreline habitats of Sharm El-Sheikh area are ranging from habitats with medium sensitivity (Ranks of 3, 4 and 5) tohighly sensitive habitats, which represented by the coral reef areas.The final step in shoreline habitats classification was the production of a new ESI mapwith the different habitats are ranked according to the index that developed by NOAA (Fig.5-11). The color codes those proposed by NOAA (see appendix 1) are also used tosymbolize the shoreline habitats. This map is also useful in data sharing as it has thesensitivity ranked with the standard codes. The generalized RESI map is also highlyrecommended in the case of an oil spill in Sharm El-Sheikh.There is always a kind of uncertainty within the analysis. The accuracy assessment of thepresent analysis can be a point of research in the future. However, errors in the GISprocedure are believed to mainly result from digitizing, rasterizing, transformation andgeoregistration of the data. Another important aspect is that the use of GIS in the rankingGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 76process itself is a new approach, which is a subject for a lot of questions regarding theevaluation of the cartographic model and validation of the procedure.Figure 5-11: ESI map of shoreline habitats ranked according the sensitivity index developed by NOAA.5.2. Biological resourcesThe shoreline habitats classification, which was discussed in the previous section, givesonly one part (and the most important part) of the picture. Another important component ofGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 77ESI maps is the biological resources present in the area. Generally, the biological resourcesare not ranked in terms of sensitivity and it is not even incorporated in the sensitivityranking. The reason behind this is the seasonal characteristics of these resources. And theapproach that always used in ESI mapping is to map the biological resources; those aresensitive to oil, separately and include them with appropriate symbolization on the ESImap. And hence, this information could also taken into account by the responder in thecase of real spill event.Using the available literature found about the biological resources in Sharm El-Sheikh, thespatial distribution of these resources is depicted by polygons on the base map (Fig. 5-12).Each polygon on the map shows the areas of concentration of one resource (i.e. birds). Thishas done on the level of Sub-elements. For example, birds are classified into 10 subelements,which are further divided into species. The polygon shows that a particular areahas high concentration of birds. And the types of sub elements (i.e. diving, wading andpelagic birds) are depicted using an icon with the same color of the polygon and connectedwith an arrow to it.Another part of the job was to collect the available information about each resource (i.e.species names, season and place) in the form of simple tables using Microsoft Excel, as theavailable data was not that much to develop a separate database. This step was done on thelevel of the species. And these tables are finally linked to the attribute table of eachresource. Data was available a bout five main resources in Sharm El-Sheikh area. Theseresources are birds, fishes, coral reefs, marine mammals (dolphins), and reptiles (turtles).The following section gives a quick overview about each of these resources.5.2.1. BirdsIt is reported by many bird watchers that as much as 200 kinds of birds are migratingthrough the region area. In addition to migrating birds there are also 150 kinds of residents,including 24 kinds specialized in living in the desert. Among all kinds of birds, wheatears,gulls, plovers, raptors and owls are represented in the area (Pedersen, 2000; Wallace,2002). However, and while reviewing the available literature and bird watcher reports,there are around twelve species of six sub-elements of birds are reported to be concentratedin the study area over different seasons (the list is enclosed in the appendix 2). These kindsof birds are found (as shown with Figure 5-12) in the areas of Sharm El-Sheikh, Sharm El-GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 78Maya, Namma bay, Coral bay and the sewage treatment station in the north east of thestudy area.Figure 5-12: Map shows the biological resources in the study area.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 79The existence of different kinds of birds and especially those concentrated along beachesmeans added sensitivity of the shoreline but only during the seasons of concentration.Concentration areas of birds are depicted on the map by polygon with attached set of iconsrepresents the type of birds, which could be used by the responder to have at least an ideaabout the resources found there.However, the list of the species must also be consulted to know which species is mostlygoing to be affected by the oil and if there is a critical life stage of that species at this time(i.e. nesting). Unfortunately these critical life stages were not available while conductingthe present research, which means that the responsible biologist of the defense team needsto seek another sources of information about these stages.5.2.2. FishesA complete list of the reported reef-associated fishes obtained from the global informationsystem called fishbase, which is available through the worldwide web. However theinformation available was only about the species common and scientific names. No moredetailed information about fish concentration areas or migration routs could be obtained.This information was collected in tables. And the aerial distribution of fishes is noted onthe map as “COMMON IN THE AREA “ with the appropriate icon.5.2.3. Coral reefsThis has been discussed in details in the part of shoreline habitats classification. The aerialdistribution of coral reefs is depicted on the map (Fig. 5-12) with hatched purple polygons.Each polygon is also connected to an icon representative of coral reefs. The polygons thoserepresent the aerial distribution of coral reefs were copied from the map of shorelineproductivity. Areas of shallow coral refs are already taken the highest sensitivity rank.There are many kinds of coral (sources speaks about 100 types) found in red sea and mostof them are observed in the study area and the surrounding regions (some are listed inappendix 2). The existence of such habitats is of course increasing the sensitivity of theplace to oil spills and other impacts.5.2.4. Marine mammals (dolphins)GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 80Dolphins normally have regional distribution over fast areas (Fig 5-13). Three kinds ofdolphins are common in the study area (UNEP-WCMC, 2004): the Saddle-backed Dolphin(Delphinus delphis), common dolphin (Stenella longirostris) and Bottlenose Dolphin(Tusiops truncates).Figure 5-13: Map shows the regional distribution of common dolphins. (After UNEP-WCMC, 2004)Due to the regional distribution of them, dolphins are also noted on figure 5-2 as“COMMON IN THE AREA” with the appropriate icon indicating that.5.2.5. Reptiles (sea turtles)The same as dolphins, turtles were found to have a distribution that extends out of thestudy area (UNEP/CMS, 2004). However, three kinds of turtles were observed in the studyarea and the surrounding regions: Sea Turtle (Caretta caretta), Green Sea Turtle (Cheloniamydas) and Hawksbill Sea Turtle (Eretmochely imbricata). Turtles are also noted on figure(5-2) as “COMMON IN THE AREA” with the appropriate icon.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 815.3. Human-use resourcesThis is the third part of any typical ESI map. The human-use resources map (Fig. 5-14)was produced from the detailed Landuse map of the area that developed by Moharam(2002). Some modifications have been done on the map like adding the locations of divingsites, marinas, boast ramps, and public beaches.Figure 5-14: Map shows the human-use resources of the study area.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 82It was not a difficult task to map the places important to people in the study area. The areais a very famous touristic place and that means a lot of details could be obtained abouthuman activities there. The coastal area is mostly dominated with hotels, diving centers,water sports clubs and resorts.Infra structures, services areas, and hotels are depicted on the map with polygons. Otherimportant locations on the other hand, such as local diving sites, marinas and location ofpublic beaches are depicted with an icon. The symbolization used for icons is the standardone produced by NOAA (see appendix 1). Names of diving sites are also shown in the mapas ground truths, which are well known by all people working in the area. It was difficultto add the names of all hotels and resorts in the map as this will result in a very busy mapand adversely affect the readability of the map. However, the complete list of the hotelnames and other areas is found within the attribute table of the polygon map, which couldeasily be queried for more information. Another attribute table is the one linked with thepoint features. These tables with all information included with them are enclosed asappendices (Appendix 3).The idea behind showing the human-use resources on the ESI map is simply to show thefeatures those would either be impacted by an oil spill (i.e. beaches) or provide access tothe clean up operations (i.e. marina). So, the goal is not to map all the human-use areasfound in the place. Contacts of the hotel owners resources managers (i.e. phone numbers)could be also included, when available, in the attribute table and this makes it easy for thedefense team to contact them in the case of an expected oil spill.Human-use resources are also not ranked with the sensitivity scale neither incorporatedwithin the ranking system of the shoreline habitats. That is also because the Landuse isfrequently changes. However, and when doing the generalization of the shoreline habitatsmap, the recreational value was used as non-physical factor. But this approach is notfollowed by most of the people working in ESI mapping.5.4. Final layoutThe previously produced three maps of Shoreline habitats classification, biologicalresources and human-use resources are combined in one map as shown with figures (5-15),as it is always easier and more convenient for the oil spill responders to have one ESI map.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 83Figure 5-15: ESI map of Sharm El-Sheikh. Polygons of human-use resources (i.e. tourism) aredisplayed on the land area of the map with 75% transparency to give more contrast for displaying ESIranks.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 84The map showed with figure (5-15) is the final ESI map of Sharm El-Sheikh area. Thedetails of the map maybe not so clear and that is due to the size of the layout. Typical ESImaps are normally produced in A3 or A1 size enabling the end-user to effectively use it.The reproduction of the proposed ESI map is an easy task now because it is in a digitalformat. Reproduction also includes changing the scale, layout size and adding new updatesof the ESI features.This map is often delivered to the spill responder along with the databases concerning thebiological and human-use resources. The map can be offered as paper map or in digitalformat depending on the needs of the end-user. ArcGIS data layers (*.lyr), Arcview shapefiles (*.shp), Arc/Info coverages and Portable Document Format (PDF) are the best-knowformats, in which ESI maps are normally distributed. However, with PDF format the endusercannot update the features of the map neither the attached attributes. PDFs maybeused online for net publishing and easy printing of the maps.The question now is how oil spill responders can use this map. The defense team can easilyknow from the map how their shoreline habitats are ranked in terms of sensitivity anddetermining their priorities depending upon that. The map has four classes of sensitivitynamely, ESI 3B, ESI 4, ESI 5 and ESI 9 from the least to the most sensitive respectively.So, priority is given to areas classified as ESI 9A, then to ESI 5 and so on until reachingESI 3B. Biological and human-use resources those showed on the map complete the viewof the overall sensitivity of the area and also can be used in setting priorities in the defenseplan.5.5. Expected implementation of the proposed ESI map in EgyptThe Egyptian Petroleum Sector in1986 produced the first National Oil Spill ContingencyPlan (NOSCP) and the Ministry of Maritime Transport (MMT) was designated as theresponsible lead Agency. The Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) took theresponsibility in 1994 after the promulgation of the new Law for the Environment (LawNo. 4 of 1994). Many oil pollution response centers were established along the Egyptiancoasts. And there is a newly established response center in Sharm El-Sheikh itself. Moreimportantly is that the region of Gulf of Aqaba is considered to need an urgent attentionregarding oil spills. (Bashat, 2003)GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Results and discussion 85From the preceding discussion it may be concluded that there is an urgent need for ESImaps in Egypt, as an integral component of any successful oil spill contingency plan. Thefirst target group is believed to be the response team in Sharm El-Sheikh response center.However, many other authorities and organization can effectively use the proposed ESImap.5.6. Reliability of the proposed ESI mapThe proposed ESI map is only applicable in the case of an oil spill. However, a good wayto have an idea about the reliability of the ranked sensitivity is to see how different placesof the study area were affected from past oil spills. There are 4 reported oil spills in thestudy area, three of which are dated 1994 (see table 3-1) and unfortunately no more detailsfound about these accidents. The forth accident is that one reported by Callum andSheppard (1988), in which the authors reported that the worst affected areas were the coralreef areas around Namma bay and the area of Sharm El-Sheikh, Sharm El-Maya and theirsurroundings. After the comparison with the proposed ESI ranks, these areas found to havemedium to high sensitivity on the ESI map (4, 5 and 9A), which could attest the reliabilityof the resultant ESI ranking.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Conclusions 86Chapter 6CONCLUSIONSThe coastal zone of Sharm El-Sheikh area is situated in a region suffered and still sufferingfrom oil pollution. The area, on the other hand, is characterized by a unique biodiversityrepresented by different kinds of coral reefs, birds, fishes and mammals. In addition, thesame area is a world-class resort destination, with the construction of plenty of hotels andresorts. The Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) map that proposed by the present studyis believed to be an integral part of the oil response plan in Sharm El-Sheikh area. The mapgives the oil spill responders a summary of the coastal environments those would beseriously damaged by an oil spill so that they should receive priority protection.Use of GIS in general was an advantage because it provides powerful tools for spatialanalysis (especially with raster data), data conversion, data storage, georeferancing,display, and incorporation of data of different types. In ESI mapping, GIS enables easyreproduction; ability for updates, storage of the huge set of attributes of biological andsocio-economic resources when available or link the attribute tables to external databasesand a powerful set of tools for symbolization and displaying of ESI maps.Overlay analysis have been used to produce the ESI map of the shoreline habitats throughthe development of a simple cartographic model. This is a new approach of incorporatingGIS in the ranking process itself, which was normally done in the field and the resultantclasses are converted into GIS layers. This approach showed a success in few previousstudies and it did so in the present research. That is concluded because the map producedby the model (contains ten classes of sensitivity) was a subject of extensive analysis of theresultant classes, with respect to the combination of input factors, as if the classificationhas been done manually. These sensitivity classes seemed to be reliable and theoreticallyreflect the physical characteristics of the coastal zone.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Conclusions 87The analysis of the resultant ESI map showed that Sharm El-Sheikh area could beconsidered as highly sensitive place for oil spills. This is concluded after the comparison ofthe local sensitivity index with the standard sensitivity index of NOAA, on which about60% of the study area has taken very high sensitivity rank (9A) and the remaining areashave taken medium to high ranks.The sensitivity of the shoreline habitats is controlled by physical factors operating in thecoastal zone, from which the exposure to wave action, lithology of the intertidal zone andthe biological productivity were the most important ones.The incorporation of other non-physical factors such as ecological and recreationalimportance of different shoreline sectors was a successful approach, as it used to simplifythe index and solve the problem of confusion between some sensitivity classes. However,the effect of these non-physical criteria and the weights given to them vary from place toplace and the weighing process itself is highly dependant on personal judgment.Although the biological and socio-economic resources are shown on the final sensitivitymap, they are not given sensitivity ranks neither incorporated in the ranking of theshoreline habitats. The reason is because biological and socio-economic resources mayvary widely depending on the season, the continuous change in landuse and some otherfactors. And it is up to the user to evaluate the relative sensitivity of each component.However, extensive research is going now, by people working in ESI mapping, to developtotal sensitivity map compiled from shoreline classification, biological resources andsocio-economic resources.Errors in the GIS procedure are believed to mainly result from digitizing, rasterizing,transformation and georegistration of the data. Another important aspect is that the use ofGIS in the ranking process itself is a new approach, which is a subject for a lot of questionsregarding the evaluation of the cartographic model and validation of the procedure. This isan advantage of using cartographic modeling, in which the use of flowchart offers insightinto the strategy that is followed and makes it easy for others to examine the approach.Also, further refinement/expansion of an existing model is easy (by adding extra inputlayers and/or relations).GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Conclusions 88One needs a huge set of data (of various types and from different disciplines) to produce atypical ESI map. And that was a major problem with the present study, which faced withthe lack of the needed detailed information especially those concerning biological resource,climatic and hydrographic data. Another problem was the time and equipment limitations,which prevent the detailed fieldwork needed. However, this problem has been overcomeup to certain degrees by collecting as mush literature as possible on the study areaemphasizing on the literature concerning the shoreline geology and geomorphology.The proposed ESI map is not a risk map for oil pollution. The map assumes that the realevent is already occurred and oil reached the coastal zone habitats. The risk analyses havetheir own methodologies and procedures, which were beyond the scope of the presentstudy. The map is also not recommended for biological survey, as it does not show all thebiological resources in the area.Finally, comprehensive research is needed in the future, to update the biological resourcesthose found on the ESI map. This can be in the form of a complete database about thebiological resources in the study area and the whole region, especially those vulnerable tooil. And this database should contain detailed information about the seasonality and criticallife stages of these resources. And it is highly recommended for the production of ESImaps of all the Egyptian coasts especially the Red sea coast.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

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Appendices 96Appendix 1STANDARDS FOR ESI MAP SYMBOLIZATION(NOAA 2002)GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Appendices 97‣ Color scheme used for representing the shoreline habitat rankings on maps.ESI RANKCOLORCOLOR CODESCMYKRGB1A/1B Dark Purple 56/94/0/13 119/38/1052A/2B Light Purple 38/44/0/0 174/153/1913A/3B Blue 88/19/0/0 0/151/2123C/4 Light Blue 50/0/0/0 146/209/2415 Light Blue Green 50/0/25/0 152/206/2016A Green 100/0/100/0 0/149/326B Light Green 22/0/100/0 221/214/07 Olive 0/0/100/25 214/186/08A Yellow 0/0/100/0 255/232/08B Peach 0/34/28/0 254/189/1708C/8D/8E/8F Light Orange 0/17/81/0 247/205/759A/9B/9C Orange 1/42/99/0 248/163/010A Red 0/100/100/0 214/0/2410B/10E Light Magenta 0/50/0/0 245/162/18810C Dark Red 0/81/56/13 209/77/8010D Brown 0/56/69/25 197/114/70CMYK: Cyan, Magenta, yellow and Black.RGB: Red, Green and Blue.‣ Symbolization for the biological features (polygons) shown on ESI maps.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Appendices 98‣ Symbolization for the biological features (Icons) shown on ESI maps.‣ Symbolization for the Human-use features (Icons) shown on ESI maps.GIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Appendices 99Appendix 2Species lists of some biological resources found in Sharm El-SheikhGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Appendices 100‣ BirdsCommon name Scientific name Reported in ElementSubelementConcentration SeasonLittle GrebeNamma Bay, Sharm, SharmTachybaptus ruficollisEl-Maya.Bird Diving Medium WinterGreat Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo Namma Bay Bird Diving Medium WinterWestern Reef-Heron Egretta gularis Entire area (daily at Namma) Bird Wading High All yearGray Heron Ardea cinerea Namma Bay, Sharm El-Maya Bird Wading Medium WinterSooty GullLarus hemprichiiSharm, Sharm El-Sheikh,NammaBird Gull Medium N/AWhite-eyed Gull Larus leucophthalmusSharm, Sharm El-Sheikh,White knightBird Gull High All yearLesser Crested-Tern Sterna bengalensis Sharm, Sharm El-Sheikh Bird Tern High All yearCommon Shelduck Tadorna tadornaEntire area and daily atNammaBird Waterfowl Low N/AEurasian Wigeon Anas penelope Namma (golf area) Bird Waterfowl Low N/ACommon Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula Namma (golf area) Bird Shorebird Low WinterCommon Redshank Tringa totanus Namma (golf area) Bird Shorebird Low WinterRuddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres Namma Bay, White knight Bird Shorebird Very low WinterDunlin Calidris alpina Namma (golf area) Bird Shorebird Low N/APale Crag-martin Hirundo obsoleta Common in the area Bird Shorebird High N/ABlack Kite Milvus migrans Common inland Bird Raptor Low All yearLesser Kestrel Falco naumanni Common inland Bird Raptor Very low PassageN/A: information about season is not availableGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Appendices 101‣ Some coral reef species found in the study areaCommon NameWhite-red SeafanRed SeafanHickson's Giant SeafanPrickly AlcyonarianBlack CoralBroccoli Soft CoralPulsing Polyp CoralMushroom Leather CoralSinulariaTable CoralTree CoralRaspberry CoralMosaic CoralPachyserisMushroom CoralOrgan-pipe CoralRed GorgonianWhip CoralSessile XeniaFinger CoralGrass CoralGonioporaStar CoralRose CoralRose CoralStar CoralGroved Mosaic CoralSalad CoralGrape CoralMassive Pore CoralMountain CoralBrain CoralScientific nameAcabaria biserialisAcabaria crythraeaSubergorgia hicksoniDendronephtya sp.Antipathes dichotomaLithopython arboreumXenia umbellataSarcophyton trocheliophorumSinularia sp.Acropora sp.Dendrophyllia sp.Pocillopora verrucosaFavites sp.Pachyseris sp.Fungia sp.Tubipora musicaParamuricea sp.Junceella junceaAnthelia glaucaStylophora pistillataGalaxea fascicularisGoniopora sp.Diploastrea helioporaLobophyllia hemprichiiLobophyllia corymbosaGoniastrea sp.Favia favusTurbinaria mesenteriaPlerogyra sinuosaPorites solidaPorites luteaPlatygyra daedaleaGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Appendices 102Appendix 3Complete list of Landuse features on ESI mapGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Appendices 103‣ Attribute table linked with landuse features on ESI mapID Name TYPE1 African Divers Entertainment & Sports2 Al-Bostan Tourism3 Amusement Park Tourism4 Aqua Sport Inter Continental Entertainment & Sports5 Aquamarine Novotel Tourism6 Asia Diving Center Entertainment & Sports7 Awlad Mohamed El-Sayed El-Hazek Tourism8 Ayda Village Tourism9 Badaweya Village Tourism10 Baracoda Village Tourism11 Beit El-Qersh Village Tourism12 Clif Top Hotel Tourism13 Conrad El-Baron Hotel Tourism14 Coral Bay Village Tourism15 Diving Hospital Services16 Egoth Tourism17 El_Baraka City Sharm Village Tourism18 El_Dolphino Restaurant Tourism19 El_Hadaba for Touristic Investement Tourism20 El_Khima Village Tourism21 El_Mawred Association Tourism22 El_Shalalat Village Tourism23 El-Bawady Tourism24 Electricity Station Infrastructure25 El-Fetoh Tourism26 El-Giza Tourism27 El-Nour Resort Tourism28 EL-Ribia Tourism29 El-Salam Tourism30 El-Sheikh Coast Tourism31 El-Sheikh Zayed Tourism32 Falkon Resort Tourism33 Gafy Land Resort Tourism34 Gas Station Services35 Ghazala Hotel Services36 Golden Palace Resort Tourism37 Golf Area Services38 Heliopolis Tourism39 Helnan Marina Sharm Hotel Tourism40 Hilton Fayrouz Village Tourism41 Kahramana Hotel Tourism42 Kanabesh Hotel Tourism43 Kholkhalah Village TourismGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Appendices 10444 layalina Cataract Resort Tourism45 Ling Senefroh Village Tourism46 Lotas Tours Tourism47 Market Center Services48 Marriott Hotel Tourism49 Matrix International Tourism50 Meridian Hotel Tourism52 Movenpick Elgolf Hotel Tourism53 Movenpick Hotel Tourism54 Naama For Touristic Services Services55 New Layalina Cataract Resort Tourism56 New Tiran Hotel Tourism57 Oonas Divers Entertainment & Sports58 Palermo Motel Tourism59 Paradaise Tourism60 Petra Sharm Village Tourism61 Pigeon House Tourism62 Police Station Services63 Pyramiza Hotel Tourism64 Raga Tourism65 Resedencs Hotel Tourism66 Sabrin Village Tourism67 Safety Land Village Tourism68 Salem Ahmed Salem Tourism69 Sanafir Hotel Tourism70 Sandy Palace Entertainment & Sports71 Satelite Station Services72 Sharm Club resort Tourism73 Sharm El-Alamein Tourism74 Sharm Mall Tourism75 Sheraton Hotel Tourism76 Sinai For Touristic Investment Services77 Sinai Village Tourism78 Sofitel Hotel Tourism79 Soltana Diving Collage Services80 Sonesta Beach Resort Tourism81 Sports Club Entertainment & Sports82 Talat Blamy Association Services83 Tropicana Oasis Hotel Tourism84 Userhat for Nile Cruses Services85 Water Station Tourism86 Youth Residence MunicipalGIS-Based Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping for oil spills - Case study in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.