Geoscientists Without Borders®awards new project to Boise State University:
"Seismic imaging to help understand and manage water quality in
coastal Benin, West Africa."
TULSA, OKLAHOMA (7 February 2012): Geoscientists Without Borders® (GWB) recently selected Boise State University (Idaho, USA) to receive a grant for a two-year project: "Seismic imaging to help understand and manage water quality in coastal Benin, West Africa." The project, which is located in Cotonou, Benin, West Africa, will be conducted by faculty and students from Boise State, the University of Notre Dame (Indiana, USA), and the Université d'Abomey-Calavi (Benin, West Africa).
The coastal city of Cotonou in Benin, West Africa, is a large population center facing a serious threat to the sustainability of its fresh water supply. Cotonou is Benin's largest city with approximately 1.5 – 2.0 million people, and its citizens rely on the Godomey aquifer for domestic water supply. Currently, the aquifer is undergoing saltwater intrusion and the problem is likely to worsen without significant steps to improve management of the pumping system. Lake Nokoué, a nearby water body, has high salinity levels throughout much of the year and is thought to be the primary source of salinity in the aquifer. Within Lake Nokoué is Ganvié, a city of more than 30,000 inhabitants that is built entirely on stilts in the lake. The presence of this lake city – and the fact that the lake is heavily relied upon for fishing – has resulted in severe manipulation of the lake for waste disposal, navigation, and fish farming. The continuity of the aquifer and saltwater flow paths are poorly understood, but this information is critical to ensure sustainable access to fresh water in this growing urban center.
"I have come to the realization that the true impact of our work is directly related to the degree that it positively influences people's lives. Geoscientists Without Borders has a positive impact not only through the projects that it fosters, but also because of the awareness it helps create of the ways in which geoscience can help improve the quality of life of the underprivileged," said Roel Snieder, GWB Committee Chairman.
Using the geophysical technologies, seismic reflection and electrical resistivity, project members hope to map the primary aquifer system and identify flow pathways for saline water. The team will acquire seismic reflection and resistivity surveys over two field campaigns. The aquifer map produced through seismic reflection analysis will provide critical information to the local water management agency and measured geometry of geologic units will be used to improve hydrologic models of the aquifer.
"We are proud to participate in a program that will encourage Boise State graduate students to use what they've learned in the geosciences to make the world a better place," said Mark Rudin, vice president of research and economic development at Boise State. "One of the strengths of Boise State is the prominent role that students play in research, and when our students play such a vital role in humanitarian programs like these, it demonstrates the scope and richness of the student experience at Boise State."
Along with the humanitarian benefit, the project serves as hands-on training for geophysics students, both US and international. These students also will gain vital field experience and benefit from the unprecedented amount of technology exchange among the three partner schools.
"Working with Geoscientists Without Borders®and in Africa will give students an incredible opportunity to learn the science in a unique environment that will broaden their scientific, social and cultural education," said project leader John Bradford, associate professor of geosciences at Boise State. "In addition to being personally rewarding, this project will give Boise State a high level of international exposure."
Geoscientists Without Borders® is transforming lives around the world by providing humanitarian application of geophysical solutions to global problems – all while impacting the reputation of geophysics around the world. Geoscientists Without Borders®was established by the SEG Foundation in 2008 with a US $1 million leadership investment from Schlumberger. Additional commitments have since been received from Santos, CGGVeritas, Global Geophysical, and Geophysical Pursuit.
CGGVeritas will support this particular project not only with their pledge to the program, but also with support in the field.
For more information on Geoscientists Without Borders®, please visit www.seg.org/gwb.
Contact:
Whitney Emerick
Manager, Marketing & Communications
Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG)
918.497.5523
wemerick@seg.org
www.seg.org
