:: New UPGro paper :: Characteristics of high-intensity groundwater abstractions from weathered crystalline bedrock aquifers in East Africa

Maurice, L., Taylor, R.G., Tindimugaya, C. et al. Characteristics of high-intensity groundwater abstractions from weathered crystalline bedrock aquifers in East Africa Hydrogeol J (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-018-1836-9

From the GroFutures Consortium project and Groundwater Recharge Catalyst project

Background

Crystalline Bedrock aquifers underlie about 40% of Sub-Saharan Africa and can generally sustain low-intensity abstraction. However, pumping rates and dependency is increasing in many areas, particularly for cities like Addis Ababa, Dakar, Nairobi and Dodoma. Projected growth in population and water demand for agriculture, plus the effects of climate change, mean that it is essential to develop a better understanding of the sustainable yields from these types of aquifers.   

Key Points:

• The study focuses on five groundwater abstraction boreholes, 3 in Uganda, 2 in Tanzania.
• Long term groundwater records are only available for one of the boreholes and it shows that recharge happens more when the rainfall is more intense, which is often associated with periodic El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events.
• Chemical analysis of the water was used to determine the residence times of the groundwater (how long the water has been in the aquifer since it fell as rain). Overall, that most pumped water comes from modern recharge (within the last 10-60 years), so while abstractions are not mining pre-modern groundwater, there may be a component of older water that is coming out.
• Groundwater abstraction appears to be supported by recharge from across multiple years, rather than just the most recent wet season.
• The investigation of the five sites shows that long term, high intensity groundwater abstraction is possible from East African weathered crystalline basement aquifers, but the sustainability is constrained, in part, by the high inter-annual variability in recharge. Therefore operation of such pumping stations needs to include sustained monitoring of groundwater levels, pumping rates and rainfall as a minimum.