Modeling of agro-ecological zones for sustainable agriculture development in Halayeb area, Egypt [electronic resource]

Includes bibliographic reference

The Halayeb area is one of the most important Egyptian places, occupying a portion of the country's southeastern desert zone
and serving as a strategic border with Sudan. The major goal of this study is to combine existing data on landforms,
soil qualities, and climate data to define agro-ecological zones (AEZ) that are suitable for agricultural development.
Thirty-two soil profiles were dug throughout the study region to represent physiographic units, and a digital soil map
was generated based on an analysis of the digital elevation model and Landsat 8 satellite data, as well as climatic data
from nine sites within the study area. Using the Model Builder in ArcGIS software, AEZ were created based on overlay maps
of topography, soil chemical and physical properties, temperature, and precipitation maps. Zone (I) represents highly suitable
areas (2.6 percent), zone (II) represents suitable areas (12.4 percent), zone (III) represents moderately suitable areas
(26.5 percent), and zone (IV) represents marginally suitable areas (37.3 percent) . highly suitable(S1), suitable (S2),
and moderately suitable(S3) were the most appropriate classes for all of the crops studied. The findings will aid
decision-makers in developing various development plans based on the research area's conditions. The study's methodology
and findings can be used to evaluate which land is best suited for agricultural productivity growth.
Keywords: Agro-Ecological Zones; Model-Builder; Geoinformatic; Land sutability; Halayeb.

Summary in Arabic