MR Belay Molla Sisay

Biography

I am a PhD candidate at the School of Geosciences through the QUADRAT Doctoral Training Programme. I am working on a research topic deeply meaningful to me: Sustainable Management of Groundwater Resources. 

Before joining the School, I was an MSc student at one of the largest water institutes in the world - IHE Delft, The Netherlands, where I completed my MSc in Water and Sustainable Development with a focus on hydrological sciences. During my MSc thesis, I conducted research on the current and future availability of groundwater resources in the Maldives. 

I hold an MSc in Hydrogeology and a BSc in Geology from Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia. These academic qualifications enabled me to work as a lecturer and assistant lecturer in two higher education institutions in my home country.

My PhD project aims to assess the availability of fresh groundwater to support the future development of coastal communities on the East African coast. The project will provide a long-term perspective on the response of the coastal groundwater resources to environmental (including population growth and land use) and climate changes, to better understand their vulnerability and resilience to ongoing and future change.

External Memberships

International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) - Member

Ethiopian Geoscience and Mineral Engineering Association (EGMEA) - Member

Prizes and Awards

MENA and Horn of Africa Scholarship for MSc study - IHE Delft Institute for Water Education

Research Overview

Hydrogeology

Groundwater Modelling

Sea Water Intrusion

Water Resources Management

Climate and Environmental Change

Current Research

Sustainable Management of Fresh Groundwater Resources in Coastal East Africa – Using Lessons from the Past to Build Future Resilience to Climate and Environmental Change

The current project will provide a long-term perspective on the response of the coastal groundwater resources to environmental (including population growth and land use) and climate changes, to better understand their vulnerability and resilience to ongoing and future change. To do so, we will construct groundwater models based on and calibrated with, existing and new hydrological, environmental, and archaeological data on ancient water well use and conditions.

We will use these models to further examine future scenarios of increased water demand and climate changes to inform the sustainable development of freshwater aquifers necessary to support the provision of freshwater to East African coastal and island communities for domestic, agricultural and industrial development.

Past Research

Application of SWAT and MODFLOW models for characterization of surface–groundwater interaction in the Modjo River catchment, central Ethiopia

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-023-10988-y

Aquifer characterization and groundwater budget estimation of the Upper Mille River catchment, Lower Awash Basin, Ethiopia; an integrated approach for groundwater potential evaluation

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-024-11886-8

Funding and Grants

NERC  - QUADRAT DTP Studentship 2024 - 2028