Assessing and Managing Groundwater in Different Environments

This collection of papers is a snapshot of modern hydrogeology in which highly technical methods and approaches sit side-by-side with overlapping legal, social, organisational, institutional and governance considerations. Groundwater is integral to many human and environmental systems. Indeed, there appears to be a growing realisation that some of the most pressing physical problems in the field of hydrogeology - over-abstraction, salinization or pollution - can only really be solved by taking a multi-disciplinary approach to the issues that takes all other related professions into account. Whilst a ‘technical’ solution may be readily deciphered, the larger challenge usually lies in the sustainably-funded and widely-accepted implementation of that measure.

This book ranges from discussion and debate on the hot topic of hydraulic fracturing of wells or ‘fraccing’ for shale gas and its potential to disrupt groundwater systems, to the application of highly technical modelling procedures to help solve complex, real world problems. It is a window on the preoccupations of modern hydrogeologists and an insight into the way in which hydrogeological techniques and methods are being holistically adapted to address problems in the real world. This book is targeted at professional hydrogeologists, sociologists, experts in governance, law and policy as well as ecologists and other professionals that nowadays all sit alongside groundwater understanding. The book will also appeal to politicians, resource managers, regulators and others interested in sustainable water supply.

Mr Jude Cobbing is currently working on a PhD in rural groundwater supply sustainability at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. A hydrogeologist at the British Geological Survey from 2000 to 2005, Jude has worked as a researcher and consultant in South Africa since then. His interests include rural water supply hydrogeology in Africa, groundwater management, groundwater data, and the training of hydrogeologists. He has worked in Botswana, South Africa, Malawi, Madagascar, Nigeria, Ghana, Tanzania, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the United Kingdom. He has a BSc in Geology from the University of Cape Town, a PGCE from the University of South Africa, and an MSc in hydrogeology from London University.

Dr Shafick Adams is currently employed by the Water Research Commission in Pretoria, South Africa where he manages research projects related to groundwater and water resources protection. He holds a PhD and MSc (cum laude) from the University of the Western Cape where he lectured prior to his appointment to the Water Research Commission. He currently chairs the Groundwater Division of the Geological Society of South Africa and is co-chair of the International Water Association’s Groundwater Restoration and Management Specialist Group. Some of his research interests are in groundwater recharge assessments, chemical characterization of groundwater, capacity development, and water resource management.

Prof. Ingrid Dennis started her career as a hydrogeologist at the CSIR in Stellenbosch, South Africa. She later moved to the Institute for Groundwater Studies at the University of the Free State to complete her PhD in hydrogeology and work as a lecturer and researcher. She was appointed as the Director of the Institute for Groundwater Studies in 2007. Prof Dennis joined the North-West University in July 2011 as an Associate Professor and heads up the Centre for Water Sciences and Management. She has over 15 years of experience as both a consultant and a researcher and specialises in analytical and numerical modelling, hydrogeological baseline studies, mining and industrial impact assessments. She presents numerous training courses throughout South Africa (to government officials and consultants) concerning the management of groundwater resources and impacts on groundwater systems.

Born in Hannover, Germany, Kornelius Riemann obtained his MSc in Hydrogeology from the University of Kiel. He joined Umvoto Africa in 2002 following completion of his PhD at the University of the Free State. His PhD research in South Africa dealt with new approaches and methods for estimating aquifer parameters in fractured rock, based on fractal analysis of test pumping and tracer-test data. Dr Riemann has extended experience with work in groundwater assessment studies, water resource evaluations, hydrochemistry, hydrogeological interpretation, and contamination investigation. He has led several studies with respect to surface water – groundwater interaction and the development of monitoring networks, and is responsible for developing and implementing strategies for adaptive groundwater management, improved resource evaluation, sophisticated monitoring of response to abstraction, water quality and ecological impacts, and modelling for sustainable resource management.