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JVR Water Consultants (Pty) Ltd is a Water Use License Application Specialist company that specializes in the management, compilation, submission and follow-up of Water Use License Applications (WULA’s).
JVR offers a “Turn-Key” service for each Water Use License Application where the entire process is managed from the start by JVR. The client therefore only deals with JVR, who in turn manages the entire WULA process. This includes all engagements with the Department of Water and Sanitation, or any other relevant organs of state, as well as the engagement and management of all the required specialists such as Ecologists, Geohydrologists, Hydrologists, Dam Engineers to name a few.
MORE INFORMATION
My borehole that I use for irrigation is registered, does it mean that the water abstract from it is lawful?
If a borehole is only registered it is not lawful, the borehole needs to be authorized in terms of a Certificate of Verification in terms of Section 35(4) of the National Water Act (Act 36 of 1998), a General Authorization or a Water Use License.
Do the dams on my farm also require authorization?
Yes, depending on the size of the dam it will require either a General Authorization or a Water Use License.
Do the chicken houses on my farm require any authorization from the Department of Water and Sanitation?
Yes, the borehole/surface water abstraction point used to provide drinking water and wash water to the houses require authorization, the disposal of the wash water removed from the houses also require authorization, as well as the coal and coal ash stockpiles if the farm uses coal as energy source.
I have bought water use rights from my neighbor, is the water now lawfully mine?
The water use rights that were “bought” still needs to be approved by the Department of Water and Sanitation. A financial transaction between you and your neighbor does not automatically make the water use rights yours. Your neighbor needs to first surrender the water use rights to you on paper. You then need to apply to the Department of Water and Sanitation for approval of the transfer, the Department then needs to approve your application, and only then does the water use rights become lawfully yours. If the Department does not approve your application, the water use rights will remain your neighbor’s irrespective of whether you have paid him a sum of money or not.
I want to buy a farm but I am unsure of whether the farm has legitimate water use rights, can you help me to confirm if the farm’s water use rights are in order?
Yes, we can assist by doing a Screening of the farm in which we assess the farm to identify all the water uses that require authorisation. We then obtain all the latest water use entitlement information from the Department of Water and Sanitation and compare it to the water uses identified.
The borehole on my farm that I use for irrigation was tested for 4 hours, will that be sufficient for the Department of Water and Sanitation?
No, a borehole used for irrigation must be tested for at least 24 hours. Depending on the volume of water abstracted it my also require a longer test than 24 hours. The borehole tests alone are also no sufficient for the Department of Water and Sanitation. The test results must be accompanied by a Geohydrological Report in which a Geohydrologist has analyzed the test results.
I am not abstracting water from a borehole or river but from a wetland, do I still need authorization to do so?
Yes, a wetland is regarding as a watercourse by the National Water Act (Act 36 of 1998). Any water abstracted from a wetland requires an authorization. In fact, any activity taking place within a 500m radius of a wetland requires authorization from the Department of Water and Sanitation.
Typical farming activities that require an authorization from the Department of Water and Sanitation:
- Abstraction of water from boreholes, rivers/streams or wetlands for irrigation and other related farming activities such as for feedlots
- Construction of a pump house and associated abstraction infrastructure within a 100m radius or within the 1:100 year flood line of a river or stream
- Cultivation of crops (via dry lands or under irrigation), within a 500m radius of a wetland
- Storage of water in dams (both off-stream dams and dams that were built within a drainage line)
- The storage of effluent water such as wash water from chicken houses, pig houses or dairies, blood water from abattoirs, or the runoff from feedlot pens
- Irrigation with effluent water such as wash water from chicken houses, pig houses or dairies, blood water from abattoirs, or the runoff from feedlot pens
- The discharge of effluent water into a river/stream or wetland, such as wash water from chicken houses, pig houses or dairies, blood water from abattoirs, or the runoff from feedlot pens
- The application of manure to cultivated fields as fertilizer
- Manure stockpiles at feedlots
The following services are offered directly by JVR:
• Water Use License Applications • Permanent and Temporary Transfers of Water Use Rights • Screening of Properties to confirm their Water Use Rights • Management of issued Water Use Licenses to ensure continued compliance • Geological Structure Analysis• Borehole Siting (Borehole Geophysical Surveys) • Borehole Testing (Aquifer Testing) • Bathymetric Dam Surveys
The following services form part of JVR’s “Turn Key” approach in which these services are provided by our external partners but managed by JVR:
• Specialized Borehole Drilling
• Geohydrological Assessments
• Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA’s)
• Storm Water Management Plans;
• Dam Engineering Designs;
• Dam Safety Assessments and Applications to the DWS Dam Safety Office;
• Waste Classification Assessments
• Flood Line Assessments;
• Wetland Delineations
• Aquatic Ecology Impact Assessments
• Hydropedology Assessments
• Heritage Impact Assessments
• Air Quality Assessments
• SAPWAT Calculations (Crop Water Requirements)
• Soil Suitability Assessments
Geologic Mapwork
The geologic map (right hand side) indicates contacts, fractures, and “fault lines”. All three (the contacts, fractures and fault lines) are water-bearing indications.
Contacts are where two formations come together. A fracture is a tear that has occurred as a result of a “Fault line” (fractures are indicated by black lines) and “fault line” is when a tectonic plate has shifted (is indicated by black dotted line). Water is required to flow into the crevice/shift (a narrow opening or fissure, especially in a rock or wall).
This water is under very high pressure. The formations determine whether the static water pressure is going to be high or low
FDEM(FREQUENCY DOMAIN ELCTROMAGNETIC METHOD)
This machine measures in Hertz (Hz) indicating the porousness of the soil, which means the higher the weathering, the better the chances that water will flow through the fraction, and vice versa.
As the chart on the left hand side indicates, the photo that can be seen is just a spectrum of how the ground suffers at the bottom and the arrow is an indication of the best possible point to drill. The reason for that is precisely because the specific point is quite broad on a fault line and the weathering is also high. The spot that the arrow points to is very porous which leads to the fact that there is indeed a high possibility for water.
ESU (ELECTRO SEISMIC UNIT)
This machine measures in a thousandths of a nano volt shot by an impulse, so one can see through the signal received back whether the hole is carrying water or not.
This machine indicates motion on the above given graphic. The only way the graphic lines can change direction is through water or a change in formation. The ruffles on the graphic lines are an indicator of water and/or dampness in the soil. The ruffles are a good indication of a hole that has the potential to deliver relatively good water.
CONTACT
Specialist
SJ Jansen van Rensburg:
(+27)72 132 5544
sj@jvrwater.co.za
Specialist
Pierre Janse van Vuuren:
(+27)72 112 3373
pierre@jvrwater.co.za