On Monday 18th September Umvoto staff led a field trip day for the International Association of Hydrogeologists 50th Worldwide Groundwater Congress for an international audience showcasing the City of Cape Town’s New Water Programme groundwater projects. Three excursions took place, the first to Atlantis was led by Senior Hydrogeologist Kobus Prinsloo to present the Atlantis Water Resource Management System.
The second trip was to the Cape Flats Aquifer Wellfield led by Senior Geologist David McGibbon. Delegates got to visit the Philippi Horticultural Area, Strandfontein West Water Treatment Works, Mitchell’s Plain Wastewater Treatment Works, Zeekoevlei, and the Cape Flats Advanced Water Reclamation Plant.
The third excursion was led by Principal Geologist Dylan Blake to the Steenbras Wellfield. The field trip took 65 local, African and international delegates around the City of Cape Town’s Steenbras Wellfield, which targets the surface Nardouw Aquifer and deep Peninsula Aquifer of the Table Mountain Group. Delegates got to see the surface water infrastructure associated with the Upper and Lower Steenbras Dams, the geology and fractured aquifer hydrogeology of the Steenbras area, artesian flow from a recently completed 1101 m deep Peninsula Aquifer production borehole, and current 950 m deep flooded-hole reverse circulation drilling of another Peninsula Aquifer production borehole. The delegates were also given insight into the various engineering and environmental challenges and successes as part of the wellfield development by Zutari engineers and environmental scientists.
