Effect of Wastewater on Lakes Degradation in Egypt: Challenge and Management

A dominant problem in many aquatic ecosystems, especially lakes, is the pollution caused by discharging wastewater into lakes, followed by the overflow of pollutants and nutrients, particularly nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P), from agriculture, domestic, fish-farming, and industrial wastewater. This has an adverse effect on the quality of water worldwide due to nutrient inputs and increases in macrophytes, cyanobacteria, and green algae in lakes. These changes cause alterations in the biomass and community composition of phytoplankton, particularly in these lakes. In addition, eutrophication is one of the most negative impacts of wastewater discharge in lakes, causing many problems such as water quality deterioration and biodiversity loss. Therefore, managing these challenges is critical to avoiding them. Many physical and chemical methods are used for this approach; however, consuming more energy is an obstacle. Thus, biological methods that remediate pollutants and improve the water quality in lakes are preferred because of their many advantages. This chapter addresses lake degradation in Egypt using wastewater and the approaches to its treatment.