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The joint venture of Vincent Uhl Associates, Inc. and Water Resource Consultants (Pty) Ltd. (WRC) was contracted by the Department of Water Affairs, Government of Botswana to conduct a groundwater resource assessment and development feasibility study for a 5,000 square mile area in northwest Botswana with the objective of securing a safe sustainable source for the town of Maun to the year 2030. The study area is on the fringes of the Okavango Delta, one of the largest inland deltas in the world. The study was initiated after a major dam project proposed by Snowy Mountain Engineering Corp (SMEC) of Australia on behalf of the government was terminated after a critical review by the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature). Prior to the study, freshwater resources were thought to be very limited and confined to narrow areas along perennial and seasonal water courses.
UHL and WRC headed the project team which was comprised of 30 technical experts in the fields of remote sensing, vegetation analysis, geomorphology, structural geology, surface water hydrology, hydrogeochemistry, isotope studies, geophysics, hydrogeology, geology, artificial recharge, economics, cost engineering and ecology.
The project resulted in the identification of several new groundwater sources (aquifers) that can be utilized for supply to Maun and the region well into the 21st century.
Principal Technical Activities:
- Groundwater exploration using airborne geophysics (magnetic and electromagnetic); satellite imagery interpretations and surface geophysical studies to identify areas for field drilling exploration.
- Groundwater resource investigation through the installation of 50 test wells, completed in the Kalahari Sands. Aquifer pumping tests were run on 46 wells.
- Two deep bedrock test wells were installed to depths of 1,000 and 247 meters to evaluate groundwater development potential and water quality conditions in deeper bedrock aquifer systems.
- Groundwater development feasibility and sustainability analysis through aquifer modeling; recharge analysis; and groundwater-surface water interaction study.
- Supplementary project activities included: artificial recharge feasibility studies; isotope studies and seismic monitoring.
Download PDF of the Phase 1 Executive Summary
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