Sources of Sand and Dust Storms in Kuwait| Biomed Grid

In Kuwait, the main threat on highways, oil fields, air bases, military camps, new settlements and agricultural farms is the sand encroachment phenomenon. During June – September 2018, Kuwait experienced severe sand and dust storms. The wind speed reached 70 km /hour. The northwest wind was prevailing. The sand and dust storms forced the closure of three ports and disruption of air traffic. The visibility was below 300 m. Several incidents were reported along Wafra Roads. Multiple sources of sands and dust storms (SDS) are observed in wide areas in the terrestrial and coastal environments of Kuwait .These sources vary in nature, land use, history, activity, impact and composition .The objective of the current study is to identify and characterize the sources of SDS in Kuwait .To realize this objectives, field surveys were conducted during 2017- 2018 . Landsat images of 2010 and 2017 were analyzed for land use comparison