Identification of Suitable Sites for Sewage Outfalls in Kuwait: A GIS-Based Coastline Case Study

Al-Attar, I., 2025. Identification of suitable sites for sewage outfalls in Kuwait: A GIS-based coastline case study. Journal of Coastal Research, 41(2), 314–335. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208. This paper applies GIS technology to choose the right places for sewage outfalls in Kuwait Bay, a shallow and comparatively well-sheltered, elliptically formed embayment on the NW segment of the Arabian Gulf. The bay covers 735 km2 and has a 130-km coastline. Kuwait Bay gets specific flows, including treated wastewater and partially treated wastewater effluents, besides the stormwaters and hypersaline brine effluent from desalination plants along the coast. Based on the suitability assessment technique, three objectives were selected: water body effluent mixing, sensitive sites existing along the coast, and water quality. These criteria were compiled to prepare the thematic layers for the suitability evaluation index system. The study used the Weighted Overlay model of ArcGIS 10.8 software to assign suitable weights to the thematic layers. The layers were superimposed to produce the suitability site map with two outcomes. First, the coast region is classified into three classes: suitable class, reasonably suitable class, and unsuitable location region class. The second outcome showed that the sewage outfalls had been located ineffectively along the Sulaibikhat Bay coast and Doha. These bays are highly stressed zones and have an inappropriate water-quality index at all the sewage outfalls along the two bays. Therefore, a rehabilitation plan should consider relocating several sewage outfalls after using a water-quality numerical model to check the discharge flow rate required for each outfall along the coast to satisfy Kuwait Environment Public Authority standards.