The current Grahamstown/Makhanda drought has once again highlighted the vulnerability of the local surface water resources. The two local dams supplying the western part of town (and the university) are fed by a typical Eastern Cape river which requires a very large amount of rainfall to generate runoff into the dam. Rainfall records since 1860 indicate that statistically, the current drought is not the worst drought the town has endured and there have been many similar droughts in the past, most recently in the mid-1990s, and early 1980s.

Water has been recognized and acknowledged as a fundamental natural resource that sustains environmental diversity, social and economic development (Liu et al., 2017; Fisher et al., 2017). With increasing populations, climate change and limited monitoring networks for both ground and surface water, freshwater resources are becoming difficult to assess due to rapid changes in water supply and uses. Several efforts have been devoted towards the monitoring and management of water resources and discovery of alternative sources of freshwater.

The Western Cape region in South Africa is currently experiencing its worst drought since 1904. As a result, the City of Cape Town (CoCT) implemented emergency response projects to augment water supply through desalination, re-use of treated effluent and groundwater abstraction from several groundwater systems. Amongst the targeted aquifers, the Cape Flats Aquifer (CFA) presents unique challenges and opportunities for abstraction and managed aquifer recharge (MAR). The CFA is a coastal unconfined primary aquifer within the urban and peri-urban environment.

The City of Cape Town (CoCT) commenced a study into the feasibility of the Table Mountain Group aquifers (TMGA) for augmenting the water supply to the city in 2002. It comprised drilling of exploration boreholes in several target areas and the establishment of a hydrogeological and ecological monitoring network. Due to the prolonged drought and associated water crisis, the CoCT decided to fast-track the TMGA development in 2017.

The rainfall situation in the Western Cape became a focal point in 2015; 2016 and 2017. The rainfall in 2015 was half the long term average; in 2016 it was still below the long-term average and in 2017 it was again about half the long-term average. In 2018 the rainfall was better and was about the same as the long term average. These consecutive years of low rainfall were really problematic and with the declaration of the "Day Zero" campaign the media brought the plight of the City of Cape Town into the global headlines.

The geographic positioning of the Western Cape results in a Mediterranean climate - receiving majority of its rainfall during the winter months. A demand on the water supply throughout the year is typically met by storing water from winter rainfall in large dams. The Western Cape experienced a significant drought between 2015 and 2019. As a result, the supply dams have not been filled to capacity and drastic water restrictions had to be implemented. In the search for alternative water sources, groundwater exploration became a priority.

Fourie, F

Pietersen, KC; Musekiwa, C; Chevallier, L

The western part of South Africa is experiencing a prolonged drought. In many cases, the effects of drought have been noticed since 2011, putting the western part of the Northern Cape under severe stress to provide water to the communities. In the past 10 years, rainfall has also decreased, and in most cases, the catchments did not receive rain to help with the recharge of groundwater. Various lessons were learned from the change in the climate and environment.