Page: 18 Publication: IMIESA Title: Water science can help municipalities sustain groundwater supply Publish Date: 01 March 2020

Author: Unspecified

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WATER 84 WASTEWATER

Water science can help

municipalities sustaingroundwater supplyIndiscriminate borehole drilling is undermining the

future water supply, food security and economic

survival of South Africa’s small towns.

ith several small towns “There are several competent g’oundwater

running out ofwater, there consultancies based in the Eastern Cape and

have been many borehole countrywide who are more than able to provide

drilling projects in'rtiated sustainable solutions, if allowed to do so.~

by municipalities. However, where these are Nel noted that there remained a widespread

conducted without the professional input of a perception that groundwater use was simply a

qualied geohydrologist, there is the danger matter of appointing drilling contractors to drill

that the water supply is not sustainable, said more boreholes, and then pumping as much

Gert Nel, partner and principal geohydrologist water as users required. He highliglted that

at SRK Consulting. this was not a sustainable approach, and that

Without proper scientic planning and groundwater development and management

management, Nel said boreholes can deplete required specic expertise and experience.

the underground aquifers, leaving local In her opening address to the groundwater Gert Nel is a partner and principal

residents and businesses vulnerable. Speaking conference, Eunice Kekana, executive mayor, hydrogeologist at SRK Consultingin East London. with 28 years‘

after the recent Groundwater Conference in Sarah Baartman District Municipality, madeexperience in the field. His

Port Elizabeth, he said the solution is to a plea to the over 200 attendees, including expertise includes groundwater

better control goundwater use and manage experienced geohydrologists. asking them to resource evaluation at local and

regional scale. groundwater supply,the expectations of the water users in these assist in solving the desperate water shortagesgroundwater management. on-site

towns. Hosted by the Groundwater Division currently being experienced in large parts of sanitation, as well as environmental

(GWD) of the Geological Society of South the Eastern Cape, including her own district. impact assessments. Nel is alsoi olved in groundwater exploration

Africa (GSSA), the conference focused ondrilling and borehole construction.

groundwater's potential as a sustainable water Closer public and private waste disposal investigations

supply source. engagement needed and environmental hydrogeology,

“There is too large a gap between Nel said the time had come for government groundwater contaminationinvestigations. groundwater

groundwater science, on the one hand, and to engage more closely with the variousawareness training and education.

implementation and management on municipal groundwater organisations and private and hydrocarbon contamination risk

level. on the other,” explained Nel, who is also geohydrological businesses in South Africa. assessments and remediation.

chairman of the GWD’s Eastern Cape branch Funding agencies could play a valuable role

and chaired the groundwater conference. in ensuring water sustainability by insisting

f

Recently drilled artesian boreholes, drlled on the 00993anm.(They spray water when their gate valves are opened.) Thae boreholes were drilledfor Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality by Dr Ricky Murray

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Page: 18 Publication: IMIESA Title: Water science can help municipalities sustain groundwater supply Publish Date: 01 March 2020

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L to R: Seen at the GroundwaterDelegates at the Groundwater Conference in Port Elizabeth Conference in Port Elizabeth were

Matthys Dippenaar (2019 chairman of thethat every borehole drilled with their funds “The department is the custodian of the GWD SA). Jaoo Nel (executive committee

of the GWD), Eunice Kekana (executiveshould be accompanied by a geohydrolog‘cal nation's water resources, so it is committed

mayor, Sarah Baartman Municipality).report, signed off by a qualied and to ensuring sustainability in the way that Gert Nel (conference chair, chair of the

registered geohydrologist. these resources are managed," he said. “For Eastern Cape division ofthe GWD, and

“Government has already made partner and principal hydrogeologist atinstance, the department stipulates in itsSRK Consulting). and Julian Conrad

efforts to ensure that water projects are term tender that production boreholes be (SA chair of the International Associationmore sustainable, and these need further accompanied by monitoring boreholes, which of Hydrogeologists)

development." he said. “The term tender continuously assess the borehole's usage soissued three years ago by the Department of that the source is sustained." there were many wellequipped professionals

Water and Sanitation, for example, identied ready to make their contribution in the eld of

those consulting geohydrological rms that Role of funding agencies groundwater management and utilisation.had the necessary expertise and experience to One of the options for rolling out the necessary “The event reinforced our conviction that

ensure sustainable water projects." best practice in groundwater management government could gain substantially byThis was a valuable tool at the service of could be for the agencies providing water- recognising and utilising the scientists in

municipalities, so that projects could rely on a related funding to play an integral role in the groundwater sector and their respective

registered scientist to sign off in their capacity setting out a range of technical requirements professional bodies," Nel continued. “We

as a Competent Person’. Nel said the use or parameters for these projects, he said. This constitute an important intellectual asset in

of a Competent Person in designing and would help to guide the standards applied at the country and are available to work with the

implementing projects was a wellestablished project level, and give the public condence public sector to nd solutions to our various

requirement in the mining sector and made that funds were being well employed while water challenges."

sure that an accredited professional took safeguarding sustainability. He noted that some municipalities have

responsibility for project results. Often, the “There is a tendency for groundwater even purchased adjacent farms purely for their

same requirement for a Competent Person to projects to be viewed simply as borehole boreholes and warned that this could cause

sign off on projects does not apply to water drilling contracts — leading some municipalities a breakdown in the agricultural production on

projects at municipal level. to require only contracting experience and these purchased farms.

The intention ofthe department'sterm tender, expertise from service providers,” he said. “It is time that the agricultural sector

he said, was to make the procurement process “These projects are far more than this, as realised the damage caused by municipalities

simpler for a municipality when it initiated a our water resources are not infinite and when they buy out productive farms for their

groundwater supply project. The department there needs to be substantial planning and groundwater potential, but do not maintain the

leveraged its extensive inhouse technical monitoring involved." existing agricultural activities," he added.

expertise to set standards and requirements. He highlighted that geohydrology was a “The farming and business communities

and to screen the service providers who could niche sector with highly specialised skills, must engage closely with municipalities

meet these demands. Unfortunately, not many qualifications and experience required and politicians to help arrest the negative

municipalities took advantage of this to guide by practitioners. As demonstrated by the economic growth in small towns as a result of

their own groundwater projects. attendance at the Port Elizabeth conference. water insecurity,” Nel concluded. as

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