Groundwater News Roundup (Jan/Mar 2024)

Here's a roundup of some of the main stories making news in the groundwater industry

Humans are depleting groundwater worldwide, but there are ways to replenish it

If you stand at practically any point on Earth, there is water moving through the ground beneath your feet. Groundwater provides about half of the world’s population with drinking water and nearly half of all water used to irrigate crops. It sustains rivers, lakes and wetlands during droughts.

Understanding the Value of Groundwater in a Changing Climate

Groundwater anchors water and food security in many regions, providing nearly half the volume of all water withdrawn for domestic use and about 43 percent of water use for irrigation. But as a common-pool resource with open access, groundwater has historically been undervalued, overexploited, and mismanaged.

THE HIDDEN WEALTH OF NATIONS : THE ECONOMICS OF GROUNDWATER IN TIMES OF CLIMATE CHANGE - EXECUTIVE SUMMARY (ENGLISH)

At the global level, groundwater can buffer a third of the losses in economic growth caused by droughts and can protect cities against day-zero-type events. It is especially important for agriculture, where groundwater can reduce up to half of the losses in agricultural productivity caused by rainfall variability. By insulating farms and incomes from climate shocks, the insurance of groundwater translates into protection against malnutrition. 

Groundwater: How Scientists Study its Pollution and Sustainability

Groundwater accounts for around 30 per cent of the world’s freshwater, making it an important resource for addressing current global issues, such as world population growth, agricultural intensification and increased water use in different sectors like oil and gas extraction and mining, apparel and textile manufacturing and livestock farming. To protect groundwater from the threats of overextraction and pollution, and to manage it sustainably for the future, it is essential to understand where groundwater in specific locations is originating from, what its quality is and how quickly it replenishes. Scientists can perform this kind of research by analyzing the water ‘fingerprints’ called “isotopes”, which are variations of atoms in the water molecule.

Water and Environmental Technology unit bolsters SRK capacity for water innovation

The African water sector’s growing need for integrated solutions from multi-disciplinary teams has led to the creation of a Water and Environmental Technology (WET) unit at SRK Consulting, streamlining the company’s capabilities in vital sectors.

Water supply has become a critical issue in Southern Africa.

Underpinning this move is the growing complexity of water management in South Africa and beyond, a field in which SRK has developed considerable expertise over many decades, according to Manda Hinsch, partner and principal scientist at SRK Consulting. The new unit now leverages the experience of the company’s water scientists with the related skills base of its Pretoria strategic business unit (SBU).

Many clients are becoming more proactive about their water management strategies.

“While SRK’s wide range of professional disciplines continue to be relevant in their own right, the market today requires a more integrated approach,” said Hinsch. “For instance, our water management expertise is applied in areas from tailings storage facilities (TSFs) to disaster management – and our WET unit reflects that shift.”

James Lake, WET SBU partner and principal scientist at SRK Consulting, highlighted that water supply has become a critical issue in Southern Africa – with many clients becoming more proactive about their water management strategies.

“The configuration of our new WET unit allows closer collaboration among our professionals with their respective skill sets,” said Lake. He highlighted the value of such teamwork in addressing mine closure, especially in the light of the recent Global Industry Standards on Tailings Management (GISTM).

Hydrology and environmental engineering

“In our mine closure planning for TSFs, we are guided by the strong GISTM focus on water management of the facility at closure,” he explained. “This requires a range of inputs from the hydrologists in the WET unit.”

This work includes the development of simulated rainfall data to inform the probable maximum flood (PMF) event and to undertake routing of the flood events. They would also develop management plans to limit upgradient runoff flowing onto the facility, as well as develop plans to safely discharge rainfall from the facility.

“Future erosion activity over a design life of 300 years also requires geotechnical consideration, with landform evolution modelling by one of our environmental engineers,” he said. “We also provide geochemical inputs to couple with unsaturated flow modelling, to understand the risk of salts leaching from the TSF into groundwater.”

He added that information from the WET unit was used in conjunction with stability data developed by other SRK experts – allowing the company’s engineering geology (ENGEO) unit to develop conceptual closure plans.

Disaster management

The GISTM has also placed added responsibility on stakeholders to develop emergency preparedness and response plans, according to SRK Consulting senior technologist Andries Fourie. The WET unit works with SRK’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) and ENGEO teams to help clients achieve compliance with these disaster management aspects of the GISTM, said Fourie.

“This included site visits and dam break analysis to understand the affected area and determine the vulnerabilities of communities close to TSFs,” he said. “The work aims to ensure a shared state of readiness among stakeholders, and to even identify alternative rescue services where public sector capacity in an area is low.”

Water supply

The consolidation of the WET team has also built the capacity necessary to tackle a recent fast-tracked assessment of stormwater management measures at key infrastructure points for a client, according to partner and principal hydrologist Peter Shepherd.

“This project required numerous site visits, flood assessments, additional technical drawing and GIS skills,” said Shepherd. “The size and composition of the integrated team allowed us to bring the relevant expertise to bear and meet the demanding timeframe.”

In another water supply project, SRK Consulting’s WET unit worked with the company’s Eastern Cape Business Unit on a water resources study for a dam in that province.

“We conducted detailed hydrological and hydraulic investigations of the dam to determine its supply potential, and to help inform decisions on abstracting water to supply nearby towns,” said Joyce Mathole, senior water scientist at SRK Consulting. “Our team determined the streamflow into the dam, which as input into the yield model so that the available water for sustainable abstraction could be ascertained.”

Climate change and green technologies

SRK’s WET unit has also been involved in the green energy sector in southern Africa, recently assisting clients to apply for environmental clearance to proceed with a green hydrogen project. The work included both an environmental impact assessment (EIA) and a public participation process, according to Laetitia Coetser, principal scientist at SRK Consulting.

“Globally, green hydrogen is seen as imperative for the transition to cleaner economies and reducing reliance on fossil fuels, especially within the transport industry,” said Coetser. “The transition to green hydrogen production is in its infancy, and economies of scale will drive growth in this market.”

From left to right - top row: Laetitia Coetser, principal scientist; Manda Hinsch, partner and principal scientist; Joyce Mathole, senior water scientist; Bottom row: James Lake, WET SBU partner and principal scientist; Andries Fourie, Senior technologist; Peter Shepherd, Partner and principal hydrologist.

About SRK
SRK is an independent, global network of over 45 consulting practices on six continents. Its experienced engineers and scientists work with clients in multi-disciplinary teams to deliver integrated, sustainable technical solutions across a range of sectors – mining, water, environment, infrastructure and energy. For more information, visit www.srk.co.za

Dedication to water science

Professor Tamiru Abiye in the Hydrogeology Programme in the School of Geosciences won the TW Kambule-NSTF Award: Researcher, for his dedication to water science and focus on building research capacity and solving community problems to attain sustainable development in South Africa. 

Because Africa has massive groundwater reserves which are resilient to climate change, Abiye’s research advances the sustainable use of groundwater to alleviate poverty and enhance economic development.

Abiye is an NRF-rated researcher and registered Professional Natural Scientist in South Africa with some 30 years of experience in the field. He envisages Wits becoming a hub to train groundwater professionals to solve critical water supply problems on the continent. Such capacity-building will contribute to achieving sustainable development at a time of increasing population, climate change impacts, water pollution, and lack of proper water management.

New MD for SRK Consulting (SA)

Andrew van Zyl has been appointed as managing director of SRK Consulting (SA), the South African arm of the global SRK network of consulting engineering practices. He is also a member of the SRK Global Board and Exco.

Van Zyl stepped into the role from January 2023, taking over from Vis Reddy who completed a term of almost eight years as MD at the end of 2022. Having joined SRK in 2011, Van Zyl became a partner in the firm in 2015 and was appointed as a director in 2020.

“My new role is primarily focused on people, context and strategy, to give SRK’s partners and practices a sounding board and help build the complementary strengths within the company,” he said. SRK Consulting (SA) comprises about 300 permanent staff and a number of associate consultants. An important secondary role is ensuring integration within the global group and increased collaboration with the balance of the 1700 staff across the globe – the company is increasingly benefiting from the establishment of niche, specialist technical centres of excellence across the globe.

Van Zyl has extensive experience in the mining sector, working initially in production and project roles and later shifting his focus into strategy, business development and valuation. He also spent several years as a technical advisor to a government committee negotiating a mining convention, as well as rail and mineral terminal concessions.

His experience includes valuing metals and minerals assets, including iron ore, manganese, chrome, copper, coal, gold and the platinum group metals. He is active in industry bodies, including being on the council of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (SAIMM), a member of the inaugural SAIMM ESGS committee and as past chair of the South African Mineral Asset Valuation (SAMVAL) Committee.

In SRK’s involvement in the field of responsible sourcing of minerals, Van Zyl takes a lead role in the firm’s SRK’s partnership with EU’s Re-Sourcing initiative. This body is funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 programme, and draws on SRK’s extensive knowledge of current issues in the mining. He has presented at a range of conferences, including the Investing in Africa Mining Indaba and presenting regularly at the World Association of Mining Lawyers’ annual conference.

“SRK Consulting prides itself on the technical and strategic experience in our ranks, and the way we leverage this to innovate solutions for clients in a wide range of sectors,” said Van Zyl. “The future holds exciting prospects as we continue to develop and apply sustainable responses that promote responsible business.”

His qualifications include a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical) from Stellenbosch University and a Master of Commerce (Financial Economics) from the University of Johannesburg (UJ).

About SRK

SRK Consulting is an independent, international consulting practice that provides focused advice and solutions to clients, mainly in the earth and water resource industries. For mining projects, SRK offers services from exploration to mine closure, including feasibility studies, due diligence reviews, and production optimization. Established in 1974, SRK now employs more than 1,600 professionals internationally in over 44 offices on 6 continents. Please see www.srk.com for more information.