BARRIERS AGAINST GROUNDWATER DEVELOPMENT
M.E. Masemola
Nabla H Groundwater Specialists (Pty) Ltd, Pretoria, South Africa
Email of corresponding author: eva@nabla-h.co.za
Groundwater development and management has been an ongoing topic, in particular, for the Department of Water and Sanitation as well institutions such as the Water Research Commission. Recent droughts conditions experienced in South Africa have highlighted groundwater as a resource that should be actively exploited, managed and protected.
However, it is often viewed as unreliable and relegated to the emergency water supply section, as it has been noted with the response to the prevailing drought conditions in South Africa. It cannot be ignored that social and economic growth bring added pressure on water resources.
Industries such as mining and agriculture increase the need to bring groundwater knowledge and management to the forefront of water resource management for socio-economic development and food security.
The common narrative around challenges associated with groundwater development and management centre around data availability and inherent uncertainty of the resource characterisation. However, this has not been a distinct finding from research. Studies have found that the challenges lie in
1) developing operational and maintenance systems to support groundwater supply schemes,
2) institutional capacity, including skills development to manage groundwater systems and
3) compliance monitoring and resource protection.
Research suggests that at a national level, groundwater has received much needed attention. In comparison, at a local level, its development is lagging behind and/or poorly managed regardless of availability of the resource. There is an opportunity for groundwater scientists and water institutions in South Africa to shift the conversation on groundwater from a strategic level to sustainable implementation.
The challenges highlighted present opportunities for skills development and transfer, inter-industry partnerships as well as innovation of operational and management systems.