1st Edition
Sustainable Groundwater Resources in Africa Water supply and sanitation environment
Empowering people, reducing poverty, improving livelihoods and promoting economic growth, while at the ensuring sustainable ecosystems, requires local, appropriate and widely replicable solutions. In the search for these, poor sanitation and poor water supply are major drivers in cycles of disease, poverty and powerlessness which avoid people in developing nations to escape poverty. Sustainable water supply is not only a matter of groundwater and sanitation-technical solutions, but as much implies tackling major issues concerning hydro-social and public health components. The African continent, has lagged behind other regions in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) in water supply and sanitation, and continues to be a much neglected water resource. This volume disseminates investigations and pointers towards achieving sustainable groundwater supplies in challenging local community environments across the African continent. The first part presents the search integrated water, sanitation, hygiene delivery and best implementation practice. The second part, through a variety of case studies, illustrates the current status and pitfalls that hydrogeologists experience and highlights the relevant challenges that especially Sub-Saharan Africa still faces in this battle. The chapters present the current situation, best practices, challenges identified and directions developed by the authors in their advancement towards comprehensive solutions. For anyone involved with the development of water supply and sanitation in developing countries.
I – Best practice guidelines
1 Water supply and sanitation issues in Africa
- 1.1 Contribution of water supply and sanitation to African development
- 1.2 Millennium development goals and water
- 1.3 Water supply and sanitation coverage
- 1.4 Challenges and strategies to achieve the MDGs for WSS
- 1.4.1 Rural water supply
- 1.4.2 Urban water supply
- 1.4.3 Sanitation
- 1.4.4 General
- 1.5 Various programmes to achieve goal
- 1.6 From water for domestic use to a livelihoods focus
- 1.7 Conclusions
2 Groundwater resources in Africa
- 2.1 Characteristics of groundwater resources
- 2.1.1 Major types of aquifers
- 2.1.2 Groundwater resources in Africa
- 2.1.3 Roles and functions
- 2.2 The sustainable groundwater utilization and management in Africa
- 2.2.1 Major groundwater-related issues and problems on the African continent
- 2.2.2 The data and information management relating to groundwater resources management
- 2.2.3 Implication of climate change
- 2.3 Outlook for the sustainable utilization of groundwater in Africa
3 Framework of best practices for groundwater supply and sanitation provision
- 3.1 Introduction
- 3.2 Integrated water resources management
- 3.3 Groundwater and IWRM
- 3.4 Integrated water, sanitation and hygiene delivery
- 3.5 Integrated service delivery in the urban environment
- 3.6 Integrated service delivery in the rural environment
- 3.7 A framework to facilitate groundwater management
4 Best practice for groundwater quality protection
- 4.1 General introduction
- 4.2 South African borehole guidelines
- 4.2.1 Introduction
- 4.2.2 Relevant literature
- 4.2.3 Contracts and agreements
- 4.2.4 Supervision of activities
- 4.2.5 Materials and equipment
- 4.2.6 Aanomalous circumstances
- 4.2.7 Straightness and verticality
- 4.2.8 Protecting the resources
- 4.2.9 Safety
- 4.2.10 Conclusions
- 4.3 Groundwater protection guidelines
- 4.3.1 Basic approaches
- 4.3.2 Concept of safe distance
- 4.3.3 Stepwise procedure from case studies
- 4.3.4 Zoning approach
- 4.3.5 Protection approach in fractured rock aquifers
- 4.3.6 Spring and shallow well protection
- 4.4 Drought proofing
- 4.4.1 Basic concepts
- 4.4.2 Types of drought
- 4.4.3 Livelihood approach
- 4.5 On-site sanitation and groundwater
- 4.6 Ecosan approach for effective groundwater resources management
- 4.6.1 Historical context of Ecosan
- 4.6.2 Main objective of Ecosan projects
- 4.6.3 The philosophy about Ecosan
- 4.6.4 Ecosan and groundwater quality
- 4.6.5 The challenge for Ecosan
- 4.7 Community participation best practice
- 4.8 Towards a comprehensive approach
5 Summary and recommendations
- 5.1 Summary
- 5.2 Recommendations
II – Case studies
6 Groundwater dynamics in the East African Rift System
- 6.1 Introduction
- 6.2 Tectonic framework
- 6.3 Hydrology and climate
- 6.4 Hydrogeological framework
- 6.5 Hydrogeochemical feature
- 6.6 Implication on water supply and sanitation
- 6.7 Summary and recommendations
7 Aquifer vulnerability and its implication for community water supply of Porto-Novo region (South – East of Benin)
- 7.1 Introduction
- 7.2 Site description
- 7.3 Data requirements
- 7.3.1 DRASTIC and GOD methods
- 7.3.2 Evaluation of DRASTIC and GOD parameters
- 7.3.3 Validation of vunerability maps and determination of aquifer protection
- 7.4 Results and discussion
- 7.4.1 Vulnerability maps
- 7.4.2 Discussion
- 7.5 Conclusion
8 Vulnerability of dolomite aquifers in South Africa
- 8.1 Introduction
- 8.2 Geological description
- 8.3 Methodology
- 8.3.1 Overlying layers map (O-Map)
- 8.3.2 Concentration of flow map (C-Map)
- 8.3.3 Precipitation map (P-Map)
- 8.4 VUKA index map
- 8.5 Summary
9 A low tech approach to evaluating vulnerability to pollution of basement aquifers in sub-saharan aquifer
- 9.1 Introduction
- 9.2 The weathered basement aquifer
- 9.3 The groundwater vulnerability drivers
- 9.4 Simple field approach to vulnerability assessment
- 9.5 Scorecard validity
- 9.6 Conclusions
10 Preserving groundwater quality against microbiological contamination through differentiated aquifer management in Africa
- 10.1 Introduction
- 10.2 Microbiological transport within secondary aquifers
- 10.3 Extent of microbiological impacts on some africa aquifers
- 10.4 State of microbiological monitoring networks in Africa
- 10.5 Groundwater protection zoning
- 10.6 Way forward
- 10.7 Conclusion
11 Fluoride in African groundwater: Occurrence and mitigation
- 11.1 Introduction
- 11.2 Sources of fluoride in groundwater
- 11.3 Formation of fluoride-rich groundwater
- 11.4 Determination of fluoride
- 11.5 Fluoride occurrence in African groundwater
- 11.6 Removal of fluoride from drinking water supplies
- 11.7 Alternative mitigation
- 11.8 Implication for rural water supplies
12 Practical methods to reduce iron in groundwater with a case study
- 12.1 Introduction
- 12.2 Project area
- 12.3 Methodology
- 12.4 Iron removal
- 12.5 Results
- 12.6 Iron filter construction
- 12.7 Conclusion
13 Investigation of borehole failures – experience from Botswana
- 13.1 Introduction
- 13.2 Hydrogeology of the study area
- 13.3 Methodology and data uesd
- 13.3.1 Methodology
- 13.3.2 Data used
- 13.4 Results and discussion
- 13.4.1 Evidence of possible recent decline in groundwater yield
- 13.4.2 Correlation analysis
- 13.4.3 Reliability analysis of groundwater monitoring data
- 13.5 Summary, conclusion and recommendation
14 Cost-effective boreholes in sub-saharan Africa
- 14.1 Introduction
- 14.2 Assertions, information and evidence of high drilling prices
- 14.3 Conceptual framework
- 14.3.1 Borehole costs and quality
- 14.3.2 Borehole price
- 14.3.3 The core factors
- 14.3.4 Key elements
- 14.4 Analysis of the thirteen elements of cost-effective boreholes
- 14.4.1 Operation and maintenance procedures
- 14.4.2 Who drills water wells?
- 14.4.3 Borehole standards and designs
- 14.4.4 Drilling equipment – smaller and less costly rigs
- 14.4.5 Procurement process
- 14.4.6 Contract packaging
- 14.4.7 Contract packaging
- 14.4.8 Siting practices
- 14.4.9 Supervision
- 14.4.10 Pumping test
- 14.4.11 Groundwater resources monitoring and evaluation
- 14.4.12 Hydrogeological data
- 14.4.13 Regulation and professionalism of the private sector
- 14.5 Conclusions and recommendations
15 Water supply and sanitation in the democratic republic of the Congo
- 15.1 Introduction
- 15.2 Overview of the study area
- 15.2.1 Location and climate
- 15.2.2 Geology and tectonics
- 15.2.3 Soils and land use
- 15.2.4 Hydrography
- 15.3 Socio-demography
- 15.4 Water resources
- 15.4.1 Surface water resources
- 15.4.2 Groundwater resources
- 15.5 Water supply
- 15.5.1 Water supply sources and access to drinking water
- 15.6 Sanitation
- 15.6.1 Current situation in the DRC
- 15.6.2 Water and health issues
- 15.6.3 Financial requirements
- 15.7 Institutions and legislation
- 15.7.1 Laws and regulations
- 15.7.2 Institutions
- 15.8 Government policies and strategies to improve WatSan sector
- 15.9 Constraints to the WatSan developent In DRC
- 15.10 WatSan donors
- 15.11 Conclusion
16 Rural water supply and sanitation in Malawi: Groundwater context
- 16.1 Introduction
- 16.2 Study area charaterization
- 16.3 Methods
- 16.4 Results and discussions
- 16.4.1 Water sources and water point coverage
- 16.4.2 Functionality status of rural water points
- 16.4.3 Groundwater availability and its associated quality pattern
- 16.4.4 Water quality monitoring
- 16.4.5 Current sanitation service provision
- 16.4.6 Current initiatives within the rural water supply and sanitation sub-sector
- 16.5 Conclusions
17 Community-based groundwater quality monitoring: A field example
- 17.1 Introduction
- 17.2 Background
- 17.3 Methods
- 17.4 Results from the Initial Implementation
- 17.5 Analysis of the Initial Implementation
- 17.6 Brief comparison with another recent study on use of simple measures
- 17.7 Conclusions
18 Charitable endowments as an institute for sustainable groundwater development and management
- 18.1 Introduction
- 18.2 Practice in the Middle East
- 18.3 Socio economic issues
- 18.4 Technical issues
- 18.5 Conclusion
Subject index
Colour plate
Biography
Prof. Yongxin Xu is a Senior Professor of Hydrogeology at the University of the Western Cape and the UNESCO Chairholder in Geohydrology. After brief academic jobs in China and UK, he went to South Africa in 1989 and spent most of his career in groundwater investigations for the then Geological Survey and Water Affairs. He has taken up the position of the UNESCO Professor of Hydrogeology based at UWC since 2001. His research, mostly conducted together with his PhD students, has dealt with sustainable groundwater resources management, published in more than 50 peer reviewed papers and three books in the areas of groundwater recharge, pollution and management. The scope of his research covers many facets of groundwater, including socio-economical, environmental and cultural, political and institutional issues. These diverse topics have provided multi-disciplinary research opportunities for many postgraduates at both PhD and MSc level. Having facilitated various international workshops and projects, he holds the position of Guest Professor at universities in China and Australia among others. He is a Commissioner of Africa Groundwater Commission for AMCOW, and the Secretary General of ChinAfrica Water Forum.
