Arabian Journal of Geosciences (2021) 14:1061

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-07437-0

ORIGINAL PAPER

Sedimentomorphic geodiversity in response to depositional

environments: remote sensing application along the coastal plain
between Ummlujj and Al-Wajh, Red Sea, Saudi Arabia
Mansour H. Al-Hashim 1 & Hesham M. El-Asmar 2 & Mohamed E. Hereher 3,4 & Fahad Alshehri 1

Received: 7 September 2020 / Accepted: 24 May 2021

# Saudi Society for Geosciences 2021

Abstract
In the framework of the Saudi Vision 2030, which intends to develop the coastal areas along the Red Sea to establish some of the
world’s most attractive tourism destinations, we conducted this study to offer decision makers with one case study illustrating the
role of geoscience while planning for such mega projects. The coastal strip between the cities of Ummlujj and Al-Wajh was
selected for the present study due to its suitability for construction of such resort project due to the wide coast reaches (10 km),
low slope ranges from 0.1 to 5 with slope of the plateau less than 15°, and a general slope trend of the area toward the W, NW, and
SW with a subordinated trend to E-NE. Environmental assessment of the study area reflects sedimentomorphic geodiversity
relevant to three different depositional environments. These are the colluvium, coastal marine, and aeolian geodiversity. The
sedimentomorphic geodiversity of the colluvium environment is associated with the major wadis in the area. It comprises
mangroves, mudflats, nebkhas, and alluvial terraces. The sedimentomorphic geodiversity of the coastal marine environment
comprises coral reef terraces of two levels at 1 m and 3–5 m ASL, coastal lagoons, marine sands, and coastal sabkhas. The
sedimentomorphic geodiversity of the aeolian environment comprises sand dunes and sand sheets 9–20 km away from the coast.
Assessment of environmental hazards that may threaten the area includes the vulnerability of the northern part of the area to flash
floods at Wadi Al-Hamd basin with an approximate area of 41,897 km2. This allows alluvial fan, tidal flat, and mangrove
growing areas. Another hazard factor is the fast growing dune movement in a high-energy aeolian environment eastward of the
area shows a mean annual rate of 15.7 m. A sedimentomorphic map is developed based on the obtained results with further
recommendations to consider the sedimentomorphic elements while planning coastal zones.

Keywords Al-Wajh . Coastal plain . Red Sea . Saudi Arabia . Sedimentomorphic geodiversity . Ummlujj

Introduction in at least two complex phases of plate motion. Spreading may

have been initiated in the Eocene, with continental rifting in the
The Red Sea represents one of the world’s most tectonically Oligocene (about 30 Ma) associated with massive and rapid (1.5
active tropical seas. The trough of the Red Sea apparently formed My) eruption of flood basalts in Ethiopia and Yemen at around
30 Ma (Cochran 2005), followed by rifting and seafloor spread-
Responsible Editor: Biswajeet Pradhan ing between the African and Arabian tectonic plates (Wright
et al. 2006). The Gulf of Suez opened up about 30 Ma, and the
* Mansour H. Al-Hashim northern part of the Red Sea opened up about 20 Ma (Miocene).
[email protected] The splitting of the plates may have been caused by the injection
of magma into the rift rather than movement along tectonic
1
Geology and Geophysics Department, College of Science, King faults.
Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Since the nineteenth century, the Red Sea coastal plain of
2
Department of Geology, Damietta University, New Damietta Egypt, including the Gulfs of Suez and Aqaba, has received
City 34517, Egypt considerable research attention, which yielded numerous
3
Geography Department, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman publications. Although the early numerous researches related
4
Environmental Science Department, Damietta University, New to the geology and geomorphology of the Red Sea coast of
Damietta City 34517, Egypt Egypt, the coasts of Saudi Arabia, and other countries along
1061 Page 2 of 17 Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061

the Red Sea received less attention and sporadic extensive, with fringing reefs along much of the Saudi coast,
investigations. The most pioneering work related to the typically with backing shallow lagoons (Bird 2010).
geology of this area was that of Ehrenberg (1834) and In the framework of Vision 2030 of the Kingdom of Saudi
Walther (1888) who studied the fringing and older coral Arabia, the decision makers started planning a strategy for
reefs of the Red Sea and Sinai. In contrast, Hume (1916) developing the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia to turn this area
and Beadnell (1924) focused on the study of the geology of into one of the world’s most attractive tourist destinations and
the younger Cenozoic sediments. claim a huge part of the world touristic share market. The Red
Among the studies are those that investigated the stratigra- Sea Project, once completed, is projected to welcome one
phy, sedimentary geometry, and diagenesis in relation to the million visitors per annum by 2035 and contributes approxi-
structural framework and rift dynamics of the syn-rift succes- mately SAR 15 billion per annum to the Kingdom’s GDP, in
sions along the north-western Red Sea rift of Egypt (e.g., El- addition to creating up to 35,000 jobs. It is envisioned as an
Akkad and Dardir 1966; Philobbos et al. 1989; Said 1990; El- exquisite luxury resort destination established across 50 un-
Asmar and Abdel-Fattah 2000; Kora and Abdel-Fattah 2000; touched natural lagoonal islands, stretching along 200 km of
Khalil and McClay 2009). Earlier research was focused on stunning coastline. The project will form an archipelago that is
discussing the carbonate platforms and siliciclastic sedimen- home to environmentally protected coral reefs, mangroves,
tation in an active tectonic setting of the syn-rift successions and several endangered marine species, including the hawks-
(Purser and Hotzl 1988; Plaziat et al. 1998a; Purser et al. bill sea turtle. It also boasts of dormant volcanoes, the most
1998). Syn-rift carbonate diagenesis of Middle Miocene car- recently active of which has a recorded history of activity
bonate platforms was discussed by Purser (1998), whereas the dating back to the seventeenth century AD. In addition, the
post-Miocene sedimentation in relation to the rift dynamics Red Sea Project’s nature reserve is inhabited by rare wildlife
was investigated by Orszag-Sperber et al. (1998). Post-rift including Arabian leopards, Arabian wolves, Arabian wild-
coastal sediments and reef development were worked out by cats, and falcons. Tourists will also be able to visit the ancient
Plaziat et al. (1998b). The rift tectonics, sedimentology, and ruins at Mada’in Saleh, which date back thousands of years
climatic changes of the Quaternary marine sediments were and are renowned for their beauty and historical significance.
extensively investigated along the northern Red Sea and It is also the first heritage location in Saudi Arabia to be clas-
Gulf of Suez of Egypt (e.g., Gvirtzman et al. 1992; Strasser sified as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
et al. 1992; Kora et al. 2013; Manaa et al. 2016; Hamed et al. Supporting the scientific planning of the coastal areas along
2016; El-Mikhlafi et al. 2018). The sea-level fluctuations, the Red Sea of Saudi Arabia, the authors decided to select one
geochronology, and stable-isotope chemostratigraphy of segment of the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia in order to
emerged Pleistocene coral reef terraces were investigated investigate the use of the available scientific tools in
and linked to the interglacial periods (El-Moursi et al. 1994; implementing the geology and geomorphology among the
El-Asmar 1997; Manna 2011; Khalil 2012; Dawood et al. infrastructures that might be taken into consideration while
2013, El-Asmar et al. 2015; Sharaan et al. 2020). planning such areas and the vulnerability of such areas to the
The Late Quaternary marine transgression brought the sea expected hazards that may threaten such project as a result of
to its present level about 6000 years ago, drowning the mouths neglecting the geologic and geomorphologic factors. In this
of wadis to form the long narrow and deep marine inlets called study, the authors offer in a small scale the role of geo-
sharms on the Red Sea coast (Behairy 1983). These are environment while planning for coastal development projects
straight or meandering, bordered by coral gardens or reefs, and the precautions that must be taken into consideration re-
often interrupted at the inner end by sediment washed in from lated to geo-environmental hazards along this coast. Such data
the wadi. Coral reefs that had formed in Pleistocene times and from our point of views seem very interesting and form a
been dissected and reduced during the Last Glacial low sea- scientific base during planning.
level phase were recolonized by corals as the marine trans- The chosen area for this study is the area between the cities
gression (Bird 2010) proceeded, and the growth of Holocene of Ummlujj (Lat. 25°3′0.02″ N, Long. 37°15′54.39″ E) to Al-
reefs ensued (Gvirtzman 1977). Patterns of sedimentation Wajh (Lat. 26°4′58.13″ N, Long. 36°34′52.77″ E) (Fig. 1). It
have been related also to coastal processes (Gheith 2000). is characterized by its year-round temperature with an average
The Red Sea has surface temperatures varying between 31 of 28 °C, and an average annual rainfall of 76 mm/yr. The
°C in the south and 27 °C in the north in July, and between 24 study area was chosen in order to meet the conditions that may
and 26 °C in January, falling to 20 °C in the Gulf of Aqaba. support it as a tourist destination. Among such conditions are
Salinity is high (37–40 ppt), and evaporation from the sea the width of the coastal plain, the varieties in natural ecosys-
surface of about 2 m/year is compensated by inflow from tem, the slope and topography, the weather (temperature and
the Indian Ocean through the Bab el Mandeb. The warm sa- rains), the availability of transportation roads, and its borders
line water, clear in the absence of river inflow, permits coral from north and south with two small cities that provide differ-
growth everywhere in the Red Sea, and coral reefs are ent facilities while constructing such a project.
Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061 Page 3 of 17 1061

Fig. 1 Location map showing the study area and geologic map showing Most wadis flow to southwest except of Al-Hamd that flows to northeast
the main rock units and structural elements. The legend is in Fig. 2. Most associated with major fault escarpment trending the Gulf of Suez
rock units belong to Quaternary and Miocene along the coastal plain that (Pellaton 1980)
is bounded by the basement Precambrian rocks “red and brown” colors.

It was noticed that the western coast of the Red Sea Geological setting
in Egypt was developed in a rapid way that did not take
into account the geological and geomorphological di- The wide coastal area from Ummlujj to Al-Wajh (Fig. 1)
mensions of the coastal areas, which led to environmen- comprises two geologically and morphologically different
tal changes and the destruction of natural resources and provinces: the elevated eastern area composed of the
ecosystems. The authors then decided to do this re- Precambrian basement of the Middle to Upper Proterozoic
search as an integrated geoscience information with en- age, and the western area occupied by the Red Sea coastal
vironmental data in one model in order to provide the plain, known as Tihama, and composed of Tertiary and
decision makers with a model plan for sustainable de- Quaternary sediments (Figs. 1 and 2).
velopment. The current paper aims: (1) to illustrate the The basement outcrops are bounded by faults associat-
emergence of the role of depositional environments in ed with the opening of the Red Sea rift (Fig. 1), scarped to
controlling sediment characteristics and geomorphic fea- a height of 150 m. The coastal plain developed westward
tures (expressed here is sedimentomorphic) in one area, of the escarpment and is underlain by evaporitic marine
(2) to illustrate the importance of sedimentomorphic re- sedimentary rocks and detrital and organo-detrital carbon-
lated environments in assessing the potential hazards ates of the Oligocene to Pliocene age (Figs. 2 and 3)
that may threaten the area, (3) to highlight the role of (Powers et al. 1966; Pellaton 1980). The Tertiary sedi-
sedimentomorphic mapping in the context of the mentary rocks are largely covered by continental deposits
existing research during the coastal zone management, and reefal limestone ranging from the Pleistocene to the
(4) to promote the development process of site planning Recent. Quaternary basalt of Harrat Lunayyir spreads out
that should be carried out when a virgin site is going to on the coastal plain and reaches the sea in places such as
be developed for tourism taking into consideration the Harrat Qalib and Harrat Al-Fuqayyir (Schmidt et al.
factors of geology and geomorphology, and finally (5) 1983). The basalt overlies Quaternary colluvium sedi-
to use geo-informatics for the optimal land use of the ments (Fig. 3) and coral limestone near Umluj and occurs
area. as pebbles in the detrital coral limestone north of Harrat
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Fig. 2 Compiled section showing

rock formations of the study area
from Ummlujj to Al-Wajh coastal
plain of Red Sea, Saudi Arabia
(collected from Powers et al.
1966; Pellaton 1980)

Fig. 3 Reefal limestone Mb (Trl

of Fig. 2) bioclastic limestone,
Raghama Fm (a) with close-up
showing the older reef texture (b,
c). The Quaternary basalt flow at
Harrat Qalib showing the
Quaternary colluvium caped with
basalt flow (d)
Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061 Page 5 of 17 1061

Qalib (Fig. 3). The Red Sea coastal and offshore (i.e., Materials and methods
island) sites in the Saudi Arabian Red Sea are approximately
1400 km with abundant geodiversity including shore and Data collection and field investigations
beach deposits, back shore deposits, and hinterlands (Price
et al. 1998). The coast between Ummlujj and Ras Karkuma To conduct the present study, several data were collect-
trends N. 45° W, with straight stretches separated by a curving ed including local municipality reports and studies, to-
bay. Further north, it trends N. 20° E. The coast is generally pographic maps with scale 1:50,000 and geologic map
flat with low cliffs formed by coral reefs. The sea is shallow with scale of 1:100,000. Some sporadic studies that
offshore, and from Ummlujj northward, islands and reefs en- dealt with biomasses, reef terraces, and natural resources
close a lagoon almost 20 km wide. Mangrove trees are heavily were also collected.
distributed in some locations. Along the Red Sea coast of The authors visited several areas such as Yanbu, El-
Ummlujj, coral reef terraces stretch 1–3 m above present Rays, Rabegh, Mastourah, and Thuwal to find out the
sea-level (APSL) landward. These reef limestone terraces pass location that fit the requirements until the present loca-
gradually into a conglomerate of detrital corals and mollusks tion was chosen. The present study area was visited for
(Pellaton 1980). field works two times; one was started at 28 April 2018

Fig. 4 Regional topography of the region as extracted from SRTM DEM (90 M) (a), slope map (b), aspect map (c), bathymetry map showing the depths
of the coastal zone across Ummlujj and AL-Wajh (d)
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ƒFig. 5 Lineament hillshade map with 0, 45, 135, and 180 sun azimuth and to apply measurements (length, area, perimeter,
angles and 45 sun elevation angle (a) and lineament map in PCI etc.).
geomatica software showing major lineaments cited on the fourth
quadrant with major 325–350N (b)
The Landsat TM image was selected to undergo an
unsupervised classification to obtain a spectral separa-
tion of at least five land cover units. Therefore, six
bands (excluding the thermal band) were stacked togeth-
for 1 week for regional recognition, to get to know the er, and the unsupervised classification technique was
area, and to monitor the most important features. The applied. The iterative self-organizing data analysis algo-
geologic units were sampled, identified, and described rithm in ERDAS Imagine was used to request 50 clus-
related to depositional environments. The second visit ters. Subsequently, a careful recoding for the five land
undertaken from 6 to 12 January 2019 was made for cover classes was performed to obtain the following
land truth and image verification regarding the principal units: water, corals, plains, plateaus, and terraces.
component analysis (PCA) and land cover (LC). For topographic analysis, the DEM was imported to
According to the classes emerged from the unsuper- the ArcGIS software, and the elevation range was
vised classification, the components detected on the sat- displayed. The slope and aspect of the terrain were
ellite image were identified and marked for field visits. determined using the Spatial Analyst tool. The
During these field trips, more than 120 representative Hydrology tool was utilized to determine the basin
samples were collected to cover the sedimentomorphic morphometric characteristics. The DEM was first filled
classes including the coral reef terraces, the coastal sed- for any gaps, and the flow direction, flow accumulation,
iments including beach sands and tidal flat, the beach stream order, and basin boundaries were identified and
and backshore nebkhas, the alluvial fan deposit, and the obtained from the DEM based on the studies by Dawod
lagoonal deposits and sabkhas. et al. (2012) and by Farahat et al. (2017). It should be
noted that all the basins smaller than 100 km2 were
Remote sensing data eliminated.
DEM is applied for delineating lineaments by utiliz-
For the present study of remote sensing, an image was ac- ing analytical hill shading to generate shaded topograph-
quired from the Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) satellite dat- ic images of the Earth’s surface elevations where the
ed 3 September 2011 at a spatial resolution of 30 m and with reflection of artificial light arriving from a point source
seven spectral bands (1 in the blue; 1 in the green; 1 in the red; of illumination from a given altitude (inclination) and
1 in the near-infrared; 2 in the middle-infrared; and 1 in the azimuth (declination) is simulated (Masoud and Koike
thermal infrared). Such satellite images are free and quite ad- 2006). A DEM could be artificially illuminated from
equate to give us information about the major geological and any desired direction, which is not possible in optical
geographical units and offer a reasonable sightsee for the area satellite imagery. This capability is important when the
before doing the field investigation. The image was geomet- lighting is in a perpendicular direction to enhance any
rically corrected to the Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM; suspected lineament. Another advantage of the shaded-
UTM-WGS84, Zone 37), and it was downloaded from the relief image is that, as it only shows bare-ground sur-
USGS Earth Explorer web portal (https://earthexplorer.usgs. faces, unobscured by any vegetation or land use, linea-
gov). Atmospheric correction was applied to the image ments that are difficult to view using the usual methods
according to the dark object subtraction method (Chavez of aerial photo or satellite imagery interpretation may be
1996). The thermal band was eliminated from the analysis as identified (Oguchi et al. 2003). Lineament mapping
it has a larger pixel size than that of the other bands. using hillshade with DEM has been successfully utilized
Another digital elevation model (DEM) image was ac- in many studies) Oguchi et al. 2003; Norini et al. 2004;
quired from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) Concha-Dimasa et al. 2005; Andreas and Allan 2007;
platform with a spatial resolution of 3 arc/s (90 m). The DEM and Elsaid 2014).
is a single layer produced by the Space Shuttle Endeavor
during its 11-day mission in February 2000. The DEM was
acquired from the SRTM 90-m Digital Elevation Database Results
(http://srtm.csi.cgiar.org/). A seamless finished DEM
obtained for the western part of Saudi Arabia and the General physiography and topographic setting
boundary of Al-Madinah and Tabouk regions was delineated
using the ArcMap Software package. The projection of the The topography of the region was determined, and the slope
DEM was converted from the geographical coordinate sys- and aspect of the topography were delineated to understand
tem to the UTM to have the same projection as the TM the physiographic setting of the region. The results of DEM
1061 Page 8 of 17 Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061

(Fig. 4a) show that the region has a coastal plain (< 10 km in and 180° and elevation angle of the sun of 45° (Fig. 5a) and
width) of approximately 60 m ASL, flanked by a plateau of the PCI lineament map (Fig. 5b) show major lineaments po-
approximately 300 m ASL, and it runs parallel to the Red Sea sitioned in the fourth quadrant with major NW 325–350° par-
(Fig. 4a). The coastal plain is bordered eastward with El- allel to the structure controlling the Red Sea–Gulf of Suez
Hegaz mountainous series which is part of the Arabian shield trend. It is also noticed that wadi Al-Hamd follows the same
that reached elevation of up to 600 m ASL. The slope of the NW trend in contrast with the other small wadis crossing the
region shows no rugged topography. The slope map (Fig. 4b) coastal plain from E to W. Such trend indicates that wadi Al-
shows coastal slope ranges from 0.1 to 5 with the general Hamd is structurally controlled and captured most tributaries
slope of the plateau less than 15°. The aspect map shows a toward the coastal plain that carried fresh water and colluvi-
general slope trend of the area toward the W, NW, and SW um, forming alluvial fan (Figs. 6 and 7) .
with a subordinated trend to E-NE (Fig. 4c).
Bathymetry (water depth) is an important habitat variable di-
rectly correlated to light availability, water temperature, water mo- PCA and LC maps
tion, and other critical physical variables that define the range of
conditions suitable for organisms to thrive. Bathymetric algorithms The PCA false color composite image illustrates the major
have been used since the emergence of satellite remote sensing and components of land cover units in the region (Fig. 6). The
have been continually refined ever since (Lyzenga et al. 2006). main components are Al-Hejaz Mountains of the
The Red Sea is generally deep, particularly in its middle trench. Precambrian basement rocks, which are part of the Arabian
The water depth of the coastal region shows that the near- shield. Westward is the coastal plain composed of sediments
shore region has a depth of approximately 100 m (Fig. and basalts of age from Miocene to Quaternary. The coastal
4d) with a condition that favors reef-building environ- plain is located to the west and divided with several wadis, the
ments (Woodroffea and Websterb 2014). most important is wadi Al-Hamd, which plays an important
The physiography of the Red Sea is generally controlled by role in sculpting the geomorphology of the coastal plain (Fig.
the structural elements of the region. The structural lineament 6). The coastal plain appears with light color and is composed
hillshade map with azimuth angles of the sun of 0°, 45°, 135°, of an old reef terrace (appears in pink color in Fig. 7).

Fig. 6 The PCA image for the

studied regions showing the main
land cover units. The basement
appears in dark blue color with
basalt flows in brown. Wadi Al-
Hamd is a structurally controlled
stream that drains water from the
top of mountains to the northwest;
then, the coastal plain of Miocene
and Quaternary sediments ap-
pears with light colors
Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061 Page 9 of 17 1061

On the other hand, the land cover of the study area was (Fig. 1), and to a lesser extent at Wadi Mawada, Wadi Hayran,
identified using a Landsat-8 OLI image (Path 172, Row 42). Wadi Zarufi, and Wadi Tuwalah. One can be confused be-
Image classification using the unsupervised algorithm was tween the brown color which refers to the basement rocks of
applied, then verified during the field work. Accordingly, five Al-Hejaz Mountains (Fig. 7) and the scattered brown patches
classes were identified (water, marine sediments, coral reefs, along the coastal plain (Fig. 7 arrow). The field observations
Precambrian rocks, and Quaternary sediments) (Fig. 7). show that these are colluviums of detrital pebbles and gravels
Several aspects of sedimentomorphic geodiversity were derived by different wadis and clearly observed at the terraces
distinguished in close relation to depositional environments. of wadi Al-Hamd (Figs. 7 arrow and 8f). The image also
These are the colluvium, the coastal marine, and the aeolian shows patches of pink color related to old coral reefs and
(Figs. 8 and 9). The most prominent colluvium geodiversity is occasionally covered with colluvium (Fig. 8g, h).
those alluvial gravel terraces and fan deposits derived by wadi The sedimentomorphic geodiversity of the coastal marine en-
Al-Hamd (Fig. 8). The environment includes (from west to vironment is related to coral reef terraces at the elevation of 1 to 5
east) the mangroves (Fig. 8a, b), the tidal mud flat with char- m APSL (Fig. 9a). Those collected from reefs from five locations
acteristic ripples (Fig. 8a, c), the nebkhas composed of fine are composed of reef tracts at two levels (Andréfouët 2014), a
sand and mud with fresh water flora (Fig. 8d), the alluvial lower level representing the present-day cliff terrace at an eleva-
terraces and fan deposits (Fig. 8e) made of coarse gravels tion not more than 1 m APSL (Fig. 9a), and an upper level
and pebbles (Fig. 8f), and the old coral reefs (Fig. 8g, h). located 0.9 to 1.5 km away from the coast with an elevation of
The gravels and boulder deposits were brought to the area 3–5 m APSL (Fig. 8g, h ). Most samples were collected from the
through the active surface or hidden wadis through the front reefs (Fig. 9a) and some from back reefs (Fig. 8g, h). These
Quaternary age (Fig. 8h). The most outstanding of these de- two terraces were dated back to the Last Interglacial and MIS 5e
posits are well developed at the fan terraces of wadi Al-Hamd with date of 122 Ka (Manaa et al. 2016). In the study area (Figs. 8
to the north and wadi Muraykhat to the south of the study area and 9), most samples from lagoonal and tidal sands with shell

Fig. 7 A classified landsat-8 OLI

image for the study regions
showing 5 classes. The brown
color with an arrow shows rock
boulders and gravels from broken
basement rocks (see Fig. 8f) de-
rived by wadi Al-Hamd. This ex-
plains the same color as the base-
ment of Al-Hejaz Mountains
1061 Page 10 of 17 Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061

accumulations of gastropods (Fig. 9b, c), beach rocks (Fig. 9d), the coastal plain, where the high mountains hamper
and supratidal sand with sabkha deposits (Fig. 9e) were also the advanced wind-blown sand.
observed and collected.
Our field inspection emphasized the intermittent and irreg-
ular occurrence of the old reefs, and they are covered in most Discussion
sites with alluvial sediments (Fig. 8e–h). The areas were wadis
open to the sea that appear free of coral reefs that died due to The results illustrate that the chosen coastal plain between
the unconditioned environment of fresh water and sediment Ummlujj and Al-Wajh is low slopped, with smooth to mild
discharges derived by wadis (El-Asmar et al. 2015). On the topography bordered from the east by Al-Hejaz Mountains.
other hand, most coral emerged seaward, where there was no The plain characterized by several wadis flowing from the
effect of fresh water and sediment supply. Coral reefs show a east to west except wadi Al-Hamd, which appears structur-
wide array of ecosystem services including coastal pro- ally controlled and flows toward W and NW draining fresh
tection and a lagoonal preservation (Andréfouët 2014; water from Al-Hejaz Mountains. Such wadis especially wa-
Elliff and Silva 2017). di Al-Hamd sculpts the topography of the coastal plain re-
The aeolian sands and sand dunes are located eastward 9– sulted in varieties of sedimentomorphic geodiversity in-
20 km away from the coast in accordance with the protruding cluding alluvial fan and terraces with the characteristic
basement escarpment (Fig. 9f). Most of these dunes are of boulders and gravel surface, nebkhas, tidal flat with charac-
barchans and complex barchanoid types, trending NW-SE. teristic muddy sediments, and ripple marks, and opens in the
They form due to the wind activity along the coast or due to sea carrying fresh water, an ecosystem that favors growth of
mechanical weather and disintegration of the basement rocks. mangroves (Fig. 8). Southward, where the role of small
Most dunes are concentrated at the piedmont of the wadis is dimensioning, they could not carry out sediments
mountains at the extreme northeast and southeast of to the sea. The marine elements are enhanced, and the

Fig. 8 Sedimentomorphic units

related to alluvial environment
showing the tidal mud flat (a)
with mangroves (b) and ripples
(a, c). Land ward shows nebkhas
(d) at the coast with fresh water
flora. More land ward shows
alluvial fan and terrace (e) with
colluvium of gravels and pebbles.
(f) Most colluvium comes
covering the old terraces of coral
reefs with abundant calcrete at the
top “red arrows” (g, h)
Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061 Page 11 of 17 1061

ecosystem allows the growth in marine habitats such as very small and weak enough to transport sediments and water
growth of corals and emergence of reef terraces, lagoons discharge into the sea, the colluvium deposits appear to cover
with shell accumulations, and sabkhas with evaporates the inland ward of the coastal plain together with the old
(Fig. 9a–e). Quaternary reefs (Fig. 10-4). This is not the case at wadi Al-
Finally, the wind erosion, transportation, and deposition of Hamd, where a major wadi appears responsible on draining
aeolian sand dunes seem active with formation of active field most of the rains accumulated at the top of mountains down-
of barchans and barchanoids (Fig. 9f) at the piedmont of the ward to the sea. In the process, it sculpts wide stream with
mountain eastward of the coastal plain from N to S. terraces and alluvial fan (Fig. 10-5), with the development of
Accordingly, a sedimentomorphic satellite image is proposed mud tidal flat and mangroves owing to fresh water derived
to illustrate the distribution of the sedimentomorphic from the wadi (Fig. 8a, b, c, Fig. 10-2), and finally, at the
geodiversity along the study area (Fig. 10). The area bordered borders between the mountains and the coastal plain accumu-
east ward with Al-Hejaz Mountains (Fig. 10-8). Considerable lation (Fig. 10-3).
part of the coastal plain appears covered with Miocene evap- To examine the vulnerability of the study area to
orites and Quaternary old reefs (Fig. 10-7) and basal flows flash flood, different basins were detected, and the ma-
(Fig. 10-6). Most of the gravel terraces are associated with jor basins (> 100 km2) are illustrated in Fig. 11. The
the wadis, and due to the fact that most of these wadis are results show that basin #28 (Fig. 11) is the largest one

Fig. 9 The marine

sedimentomorphic showing coral
reef terrace as fringing and
barrier, the lagoonal environment
(b) with sand and gastropod
accumulation at supratidal
environment (c), beach rock and
reefal platform (d). Landward
coastal sabkha with salt crust (e)
and finally, aeolian features of
sand dunes of barchan and
barchanoids
1061 Page 12 of 17 Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061

and is called Al-Hamd basin, with a total area of 41,897 died due to unconditioned ecosystem (fresh and turbidities). In
km2. This basin feeds smaller ones near the coast. On addition, the streams in the region approach the 7th order for
the other hand, the smallest one is basin #3 having an one stream in the largest basin (#28). In this basin, although
area of approximately 104 km2. Al-Hamd basin # 28 the majority of streams are flowing in a southward direction,
appears not only feeding the biggest wadi El-Hamd the main stream in the basin (wadi Al-Hamd) is considered an
but also responsible on feeding other smaller wadis effluent stream, and it flows in a northwesterly direction to-
and smaller basins (compare between Figs. 11 and 1) ward the Red Sea (Fig. 12b).
such as w. Aldah Dhadi, w. Zaruf, w. Tuwalah, and w. There are two other streams of the 6th order in basins #28
Amg (Fig. 1). The northern basins from 3 to 19 and the and # 12, and 8 streams of the 5th order (Fig. 12b). Such
southern basins from 20 to 27 (Fig. 10) are of little or condition favors fresh water ecosystem that goes either on
no wadis contribution (either as sediment or fresh water) the surface or the subsurface and supports the vulnerability
to the marine ecosystem in this area. This condition of the northern part of coastal plain to a kind of flash floods,
explains the development of coral reefs and lagoons which is highlighted in the present work; however, further
(Fig. 12a) with no evidence of any geo-environmental research related to hazard assessment is needed.
hazards along this portion of the coastal plain. Another important factor that may form an expected hazard
On the other hand, the downstream of the basin # 28 opens is the movement of sand dunes along the eastern borders of the
into the sea through a narrow neck (Fig. 11); nevertheless, it coastal plain at the piedmont of Al-Hejaz Mountain. Their
receives a huge amount of water and sediment discharge ow- positions change in accordance with the protrusion of the
ing to the wide area of the basin which supported the devel- Precambrian rocks of Al-Hejaz Mountains, as they are 9–20
opment of stream terraces, fans with colluvium and tidal flat km away from the coast. Most dunes are barchans and com-
with mangroves and nebkhas, and lack of coral reefs which plex barchanoids trending the NW-SE direction.

Fig. 10 Sedimentomorphic map

showing the distribution of
sediments in relation to
depositional environments. Most
gravel terraces are associated with
the old wadis with development
of tidal flat and mangroves due to
fresh water derived from wadis.
On the other hand, most coral
reefs emerged seaward where
there was no effect for fresh water
and wadi deposits
Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061 Page 13 of 17 1061

Fig. 11 Areas of the main basins

in the region as extracted from
SRTM DEM (90 M)

To determine the movement of the coastal sand dunes in images, where the displacement in the dune’s slip face be-
the study area, old (Aug. 2003) and recent (Aug. 2010) fine- tween 2003 and 2010 was measured in meters from a promi-
resolution Google Earth images were displayed at a scale of nent feature in the image based on the study by Hereher
1:50,000. A well-recognized sand dune was identified in the (2014). Two fine-resolution Google Earth images acquired

Fig. 12 Locations of coral reefs “yellow circles” and mangroves “red do not exist. Stream order of the main basins in the region as extracted
circles” in relation to the main streams showing the occurrence of the from SRTM DEM (90 M) (b)
mangroves in front of the downstreams of major wadis (a) where reefs
1061 Page 14 of 17 Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061

year and the low slopped, mild topography, enriched with

both fresh surface and subsurface water. Also, the area is
enriched with geo and biodiversity and environments from
the desert to the east and passes westward to the alluvial and
ends with marine at the Red Sea coast. Such diversity includes
dunes, wadis, stream terraces, fan, nebkhas, tidal flat, man-
groves, lagoons, sabkhas, and coral reef terraces. Such ele-
ments attract the attention of nature and landscape-lover
tourists.
Some factors should be taken into consideration; the dune
area should be stabilized by cultivation with palms and may be
also used to build a waste water treatment plant ((Hakami and
Abu Seif 2014; Khawfany et al. 2020). The area at the down-
stream of wadi Al-Hamd seems suitable for agricultural pur-
poses. The area of mangroves, tidal flat, and coral reefs ap-
pears suitable for tourists who enjoy nature and landscape.
This area is also characterized by different kinds of birds, fish,
and flora that make it a wonderful area that may be thought as
a protectorate (Bantan et al. 2020).
The southern part of the study area shows a lagoonal area
with abundant reefs, which should be suitable for constructing
diving and sea skiing centers, aqua parks, aquariums, and
other entertainment facilities. The sabkhas and barren areas
Fig. 13 Locations of sand dune in Google Earth maps in 2003 (a) and
should be used for constructions of hospitality and accommo-
2010 (b)
dation facilities.
in Aug. 2003 (Fig. 13a) and Aug. 2010 (Fig. 13b) were
displayed to show the activity of mobile sand dunes
(barchan dunes) along the coastal plain. The dune dis-
Conclusions
placement was measured in relation to a prominent
The present study is a geo-environmental one aiming to offer a
ground stable feature (Fig. 13a, b yellow arrows).
role model for selection of the virgin segment of a coast to be
A perfect crescentic dune was selected in the two
developed for a tourism destination. The present study illus-
images to monitor its movement between the two dates
trates some standards related to topography, sedimentology,
(Fig. 13a, b). The measured distance d1 and d2 are
geomorphology, and environments that might be taken into
during the two dates August 2003 and 2010 respective-
consideration while planning for a coastal resort project. It
ly. The dune extends for 70 m from horn to horn with a
also examines its vulnerability to possible hazards that might
length of 72 m from tail to crest, and it points to the
be related to such environments. According to the available
southeast direction. The displacement was measured
results, the coastal plain between Ummlujj and Al-Wajh is a
from a well-recognized ground mark, and the dune ad-
flat low slopped with mild topography trending in most area to
vance was measured in meters. The results showed that,
the west and northwest, with mild weather all over the year. In
during this period (2003–2010), the dune advanced 110
the present study, three sedimentomorphic geodiversities are
m with a mean annual rate of 15.7 m (Fig. 13a, b),
distinguished related to depositional environments, and these
which indicates a fast-growing dune and reflects the
are the colluvium, the coastal marine, and the aeolian, which
high-energy wind environment (Hereher 2014, 2016).
are related to alluvial, marine, and desert environments, re-
Taking into consideration the proposed sedimentomorphic
spectively. The colluvium sedimentomorphic geodiversity is
map (Fig. 9), together with the deduced satellite maps related
represented by the alluvial terraces of pebbles and gravels;
to flash flood vulnerability factors (Figs. 10 and 11) and dune
intertidal mud flat with ripples; and nebkhas and mangroves
movement (Fig. 13), an integrated coastal zone management
associated with fresh water derived from different wadis. Most
for the Ummlujj–Al-Wajh coastal plain is proposed here. It is
wadis are active and have dense foliage; the most outstanding
important to state that the study coastal area is an ideal one for
of these wadis is the structurally controlled wadi Al-Hamd
a decision maker while looking for a suitable area for estab-
(NW325–350°), which drains the largest basin in the area
lishing a resort community. This is in fact due to several fac-
(basin #28) having a total area of approximately 41,897
tors. Among these factors are the mild weather all over the
km2. The sedimentomorphic geodiversity of the coastal
Arab J Geosci (2021) 14:1061 Page 15 of 17 1061

marine environment comprises coral reef terraces, marine Data availability Yes.
sands, coastal lagoons, and coastal sabkhas. Field observa-
tions emphasized that Quaternary reefs are located intermit- Declarations
tently and irregularly in most sites covered with alluvial sed-
Conflicts of interest The author(s) declare that they have no competing
iments, and the coastal areas of wadis downstream appear to
interests.
be free of coral reefs. The coral reefs occur in two levels, a
lower level representing the present-day cliff terrace at an
elevation not more than 1 m APSL, and an upper level located
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