GWD Webinar Series: 01 Introducing MARSA Project (GWD, Danida)

The MARSA project is a Danida funded project looking at Managed Aquifer Recharge and how it can be used to increase water supply security to a coastal town in South African while promoting sustainability. The project is in its last year and the intension is to bring this project and the lessons learned to you in a series of webinars. This presentation will be divided into four main parts.

MARSA 01: The first part will provide a brief introduction to the MARSA project, its aims, and objectives. 
MARSA 02: Secondly, it will provide the reasons why this project is important and what it hopes to achieve.
MARSA 03: The third section will look at the study area and its water supply history, in order to provide some additional background information. 
MARSA 04: The final section will look at the research that has been carried out in the area and the contribution of each study towards understanding the groundwater system and affected management decisions through the years. The hope is that the project will help in finding an optimal management strategy for this area.

This webinar series will provide a glimpse into the experiences of the researchers and the results of the fieldwork and the work in the labs, providing a learning experience like no other.

On 2 May, the GWD hosted the 1st presentation in the Series. Dr Nicolette Vermaak introduced the topic and shared insights into the focus, processes and status of the Danida project,

Talk Resources

- South Africa's Artificial Recharge Information Centre. HOMPAGE https://artificialrecharge.co.za/

- Talk On-Demand via GWD YouTube Channel 
TALK LINK: https://youtu.be/EOapn51ovvI?si=WXgafrT2szOYYkz4

- Presentation Download 

About this session

Brief Summary

The feasibility of managed aquifer recharge (MAR) for sustainable water supply in South Africa was discussed. Nicolette presented an overview of the project, and discussed pilot-scale testing results in Denmark and South Africa. She highlighted challenges and opportunities, including the importance of understanding local geology, careful monitoring, and licensing process. 

The meeting shared on:

• licensing, monitoring, and management strategies, and the lack of formalization in the process. 
• difficulties and opportunities associated with managing aquifer recharge for municipal water supply, including the challenges in determining the success of recharge and obtaining licenses for recharging water
• types of recharge used in different geological settings,  the potential for using different types of recharge in areas with different geological properties.
• the challenges in evaluating the effectiveness of recharge and provided examples of monitoring methods to evaluate the success of recharge
• potential impact of managed recharge on groundwater quality.

Presentation Outline

• The people and their institutions
• The Study Area

• Aims and objectives

• WP1: Column setup[DK] 
• WP2: Column setup [SA]
• WP3: Field work
• WP4: Guidelines, etc.
• Last activities
• Way forward

Sneak Preview ISMAR 2025

Attendees

* signed attendees at the MAR SERIES meetings will be awarded CPD accordingly on conclusion of the series.