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Role-players must be educated to manage groundwater use
Gert Nel, principal hydrogeologist in SRK Consulting's East London office, says the current drought in many parts of the country has re-focused
attention on the frequent lack of monitoring of groundwater use.
"Underground aquifers are fed by rainwater, so
drought will impact on their abstraction capacity,"
said Nel. "We are also seeing more demand on
groundwater as towns expand, higher levels of
services are required and municipalities must
ensure water delivery is meeting the demand."
After South Africa developed a large number of
well-fields in recent decades, the country now
faces the danger of depleting them through
careless use - unless water service providers
such as local and district municipalities are
provided with better information about the
policies and practices that need to be applied
and implemented.
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"Each of the agencies in this field has their role
to play, and consulting engineers and scientists like SRK are already making valuable technical contributions," he said. "But we can do more at a
number of levels, such as raising awareness at district municipalities, and giving local municipalities practical training and ongoing mentoring."
Local challenges
Nel emphasised the need to roll out a scientific learning programme that relates directly to each town or region where it is presented, so that it can
be applied immediately in addressing local groundwater challenges.
"There are plenty of generic 'groundwater training' resources and documents available but we need to move beyond the general to the specific,
ensuring that role-players engage practically with their issues during these sessions and take back solutions they can implement with the help of
mentors," said Nel.
Catchment management agencies (CMAs) are being established to pursue integrated water management within water management areas (WMA)
and coordinate functions of other institutions involved in water related matters. However, it will take time for the CMAs to fully engage all groundwater
users.
More urgent, however, is the position of the water services authorities (WSAs) typically the district municipalities, who oversee the work of water
services providers (WSPs), typically local municipalities, in ensuring actual delivery of water services and maintenance of facilities.
Different needs
Training should be tailored for each of these levels, as their needs are different, he said. The district municipalities' water planning personnel, for
example, need to understand that groundwater must be monitored and managed; numerical models can be developed and predictions made about
future borehole performance at current abstraction levels.
At local municipality level, the required focus is on how to physically monitor usage - using equipment such as flow meters and water-level meters and how to manage groundwater contamination. The training can therefore include an assessment of municipal and private groundwater
abstraction, identifying the various users so that the local authority can engage them in controlling usage. The location of possible contamination
sources like refuse dumps, waste water discharge, cemeteries and abattoirs can also be mapped.
"Water services authorities and providers receive funding from various sources, such as the Municipal Infrastructure Grant, to install the necessary
water systems, but they are seldom equipped or funded to scientifically manage their groundwater sources," he said.
"The training content needs to be applied to their specific conditions, so that delegates can be assisted to develop a groundwater monitoring
programme - and supported with mentoring to ensure ongoing implementation."
Posted on 5 Nov 2015 07:24