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24 Think Tanks in BriefExplore Articles by ExpertsSchematic representation of the drainage water flow through the Nile Valley and Delta (Barnes, 2014, p. 185)Downstream farmers' reliance on drainage water for irrigation started in the 1950s and 1960s. First, it was a 'backup' source of irrigation water. With time, drainage water reuse for irrigation increased as pressure on water resources became more acute. Since the 1970s, the Nile Delta has experienced significant population growth and industrialization, leading to an increase in both domestic and industrial wastewater. While there have been positive developments in domestic water supply networks, the growth of sanitation services and wastewater treatment plants has faced some challenges in keeping up. Consequently, this has had an impact on the quality of drainage water.Egypt's successive governments have taken various regulatory, legal, and infrastructural measures to overcome this challenge, such as the issuance of Law 48/1982, which set standards for the water quality discharged into water bodies. More recently, Egypt invested in mega water treatment plants (such as Al Mahsama) to enable the treatment and reuse of large quantities of water that were not optimally used before due to quality deterioration.Despite these risk mitigation measures, one of the most pressing challenges for smallholders in the 'old lands' of the Nile Delta is the decreasing quantity and quality of water for irrigation. Unlike new agricultural lands in the desert, the Old Lands in the Delta do not have access to advanced water treatment plants to improve the quality of agricultural drainage water. Accordingly, there is a strong need to adopt Nature-based Solutions (NBS) to improve water quality and soil and achieve resilience at low cost. Nature-based Solutions can be adopted at the local level (such as the development of constructed wetlands for natural water treatment, with added value to the overall ecosystem). Those NBSs can also contribute to other environmental needs, such as the removal of persistent contaminants from water (e.g., contaminants from pesticides and pharmaceutical waste). Additionally, NBSs can be operated and maintained by local stakeholders, which will reduce the pressure on governmental agencies in return. Finally, the need for agricultural expansion projects is legitimate because they will create job opportunities and financial benefits at the national level. Meanwhile, there is an urgent need to adopt natural solutions to combat climate change's impacts on water for irrigation in Egypt's old fertile lands.