Professional Summary
Abel Mekonnen Gebretsadik is a senior Ethiopian environmental consultant and hydraulic and water resources engineer with more than a decade of specialized experience in hydrology, water and energy use assessment, environmental pollution analysis, air-quality and noise studies, GIS, remote sensing, ESIA, RAP, ESMS and environmental compliance auditing. His professional strength is his rare combination of water resources engineering, environmental regulation, field-based impact assessment, advanced geospatial mapping and pollution-modelling capability. He has contributed to major national and international-standard projects in Ethiopia, including wind farms, geothermal drilling projects, power transmission lines, hydropower downstream livelihood studies, industrial developments, mining and exploration projects, oil exploration baseline studies, biodiversity and natural-resource-use assessments, and environmental compliance audits. His work includes preparing professional administrative, geological, soil, hydrogeological, drainage, land-use/land-cover, river-basin, local-catchment, protected-area, relief, elevation-profile and constraint maps; conducting hydrological assessment and water-yield estimation; supporting flood forecasting and water-resource monitoring; preparing air-quality and noise-modelling outputs; and organizing technical evidence for ESIA, RAP and environmental management reports. He brings exceptional value to AquaLinked / Water for Africa Experts because he stands at the intersection of hydrology, environmental science, renewable energy infrastructure, geospatial intelligence and regulatory compliance, making him highly relevant for Africa’s growing need for responsible water, energy, infrastructure and environmental development.
Key Expertise
Major Projects and Contributions
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Aysha I 300MW Wind Farm Project – ESIA, GIS and Noise Assessment
Served as GIS and Remote Sensing Expert and Noise Specialist for the Aysha I 300MW Wind Farm ESIA in Somali Region, Ethiopia, supporting a 39-turbine renewable-energy project across an approximately 84.46 km² project area. Prepared professional administrative, geological, elevation, soil, hydrogeological, drainage, land-use/land-cover, river-basin, catchment, protected-area, relief and surface-elevation-profile maps, and prepared noise propagation modelling maps for the Noise Impact Assessment Report. -
Addis Ababa Power Transmission Lines Rehabilitation and Upgrading Project – ESIA and RAP
Contributed GIS and remote-sensing expertise to ESIA and RAP studies for Addis Ababa power transmission rehabilitation and substation expansion works, including underground and overhead transmission sections and key urban substations, supporting Ethiopian Electric Power and World Bank environmental and social reporting requirements. -
Bale Robe II, Bensa Daye and Jimma II–Limu Genet 132kV Transmission Projects
Prepared geospatial and environmental mapping outputs for ESIA and RAP studies of 132kV transmission line and substation projects in Oromia and Sidama regions under the Transmission Network Strengthening and Expansion programme, supporting environmental assessment, route analysis and reporting. -
Corbetti Geothermal Well Pads Drilling Project – Hydrology and Biodiversity Study
Served as Hydrologist for the Corbetti Geothermal Well Pads Drilling Project, collecting and evaluating historical climatological and streamflow data, delineating local catchments, estimating water yields, supporting hydrological modelling with WETSPASS and contributing to flood forecasting and environmental water-resource assessment. -
Aluto Langano Geothermal Well Pads Drilling Project – ESMS and Hydrology
Worked as Environmentalist/Hydrologist for the Aluto Langano Geothermal Well Pads Drilling Project ESMS, implementing national regulations, IFC and WHO standards, evaluating climate and streamflow data, delineating catchments, estimating water yields and supporting water-resource management and monitoring planning. -
Social Development Plan for Agro-Pastoralist Communities Downstream of Gibe III and Koysha
Provided GIS and remote-sensing support for the Social Development Plan for agro-pastoralist communities downstream of Gibe III and Koysha hydropower projects, preparing maps and spatial evidence for communities affected by changes to the Omo River annual flood cycle. -
Ethio-Kenya 500kV Transmission Line Environmental, Social, Health and Safety Compliance Audit
Prepared environmental and spatial mapping outputs for the compliance audit of the Ethiopian section of the Ethio-Kenya 500kV transmission line, a major regional power infrastructure project involving Ethiopian Electric Power, the World Bank and the African Development Bank. -
Power Transmission ESIA and RAP Studies Across Ethiopia
Supported multiple ESIA and RAP studies for transmission line and substation projects including Woliso, Haromaya-Chelenko, Arsi-Robe-Hetosa, Degehabur-Birkod-Kebridehar, Hurso-Harar-Jigjiga and national grid expansion packages, preparing constraint maps, hydrogeological maps, drainage maps, land-use/land-cover maps, river-basin maps and protected-area maps. -
Industrial ESIA, Air-Quality and Noise Assessment Studies
Served as Air-Quality and Noise Specialist and GIS Expert for industrial and urban projects including the Tobacco Manufacturing Industry ESIA and Cardiac Care Centre baseline study, supporting air-quality, noise, vibration, dispersion-modelling and environmental baseline outputs. -
IFC Wind Farm Scoping, Constraint Mapping and Seasonal Dwellers Survey
Supported IFC-related wind energy assignments including Debre Berhan Wind Farm and Aysha III Wind Farm studies, preparing constraint maps, scoping-report maps, field GPS data, photo documentation, settlement-location data and seasonal dwellers survey information for environmental and social assessment. -
Mining, Gold, Potash and Exploration Environmental Studies
Provided GIS, remote-sensing, air-quality and noise-assessment support for mining and exploration-related studies including Akobo Primary Gold Exploration ESIA, Kurmuk Gold Biodiversity and Natural Resource Use reconnaissance study, Dallol Potash Environmental Management Performance Report and 2D seismic ESIA assignments. -
Advanced Environmental Modelling and Geospatial Mapping Practice
Applies GIS, remote sensing, hydrological modelling, air-dispersion modelling and noise-propagation modelling tools including WETSPASS, MODFLOW, AERSCREEN, AERMOD, DMRB, RCNM, TNM, SoundPLAN and GRASS GIS to convert field data and environmental evidence into professional maps, models and assessment reports. -
Environmental Regulation, Standards and Technical Reporting
Implements Ethiopian environmental regulations, IFC, WHO and international best-practice standards in hydrological studies, water-quality assessment, air-quality studies, noise-impact assessment, ESIA, RAP, ESMS, mitigation planning and environmental technical reporting.