| Abstraction | An Abstraction refers to the volume of water that was obtained from of a Geosite, typically measured in cubic metres. |
| Administrator | A person responsible for the performance or management of administrative business operations. |
| Address Detail | A combination of address types that a Person / Organisation can be located at. These include any combination of the following:
- One or more Physical Addresses
- One or more Postal Addresses.
Each of these Addresses consists of:
- Address line
- Suburb
- City / Town
- State / Province / Region
- Zip/ Postal Code
- Country
- Latitude
- Longitude
|
| Aquabase | The Aquabase water management software is an application with data entry, management and presentation tools for the groundwater scientist, water manager and engineer. |
| Assignor | A person that works or has previously worked for a Reporting Institution that allocated an Other Number to a Geosite. |
| Audited and Reduced Water Level | A water level recorded via HYDSTRA.Auditing was done on HYDSTRA. The reduced set was derived by pre-defined applying filter criteria. |
| Boulder Percentage | Size > 256mm. |
| Bulk Meter | A Bulk Meter is installed in a main pipeline that has water inflows from different Geosites, where water abstractions take place and the total water abstraction is measured. |
| Calibration Test | A test performed to initialize/prepare the pump as well as to get an indication of the different discharge rates to be used for a Step Test. |
| Casing | A piece of material inserted in a Geosite to stabilise the walls of the Geosite, i.e. a pipe. |
| Casing Collar Height | A measure of how far a Casing sticks out above the surface level (ground or concrete surrounding it). It is measured relative to the surface level. |
| Central Supplier Database Number |
Official name of the number used within the National Treasury Database.
This number has no abbreviation.
|
| Chemical Suitability | A recommendation about suitable uses regarding the groundwater chemistry. |
| Classification | An item that has the same characteristics as other items and are grouped together in a list. From a Corporate perspective the list of items is also called a classification. From NGA's perspective the items in the list is called classifications. |
| Clay Percentage | Size less than 3.9mcm. |
| Cobble Percentage | Size >64mm < 256mm. |
| Collective Measurement | A Collective Measurement is taken from a Bulk Meter. |
| Colour Pattern | Additional soil-specific description in terms of the colour. |
| Colour Qualifier | Additional indicator for the primary colour. |
| Column | A Column is derived from a physical description (i.e Log). |
| Composition Qualifier | Additional indicator for the composition of the rocks. |
| Confidential Indicator | The Confidential Indicator is used to restrict access to a Geosite and its data. |
| Consolidated Material | Consolidated material is the hard surface of the land composed of solid rock. |
| Constant Yield Test | A test that gives a long-term drawdown response in a Geosite for a given discharge rate. This procedure consists of pumping the Geosite at a constant Discharge Rate without any steps. The drawdown is then recorded at specific time periods. |
| Construction Company | An Organisation responsible for drilling and/or construction of a Geosite with specialized equipment. |
| Construction Completion | All the relevant administrative information regarding the creation of a Geosite. |
| Construction Contractor | A person that works or has worked for a Construction Company. |
| Contact Detail | A combination of contact types that a Person / Organisation can be reached at. These include any combination of the following:
- One or more Business Phone Numbers
- One or more Home Phone Numbers
- One or more Mobile Phone Numbers
- One or more Switchboard Phone Numbers
- One or more Fax Numbers
- One or more E-mail Addresses
|
| Contact Person | A person acting as a channel for communication on behalf of an Organisation. |
| Coordinate | Two values that represent the longitudinal and latitudinal offset of a Geosite. See Latitude and Longitude. |
| Coordinate GPS Accuracy / Estimated Position Error (EPE) | An indication of the reliability of Coordinate readings. |
| Coordinate Method | A way Coordinates are determined. |
| Council for Geoscience (CGS) | The Council for Geoscience (CGS) is one of the National Science Councils of South Africa and is the legal successor of the Geological Survey of South Africa. www.geoscience.org.za |
| Data Owner | An Organisation that owns Geosite data. |
| Decriptor Name | Name of the person who made the description. |
| Degree Of Fracturing | Refer to Standard Descriptors for Geosites (SDG) on how to measure and describe the degree of 'Fracturing'. |
| Degree Of Weathering | Refer to Standard Descriptors for Geosites (SDG) on how to measure and describe the degree of 'Weathering'. |
| Depth Qualifier | A qualifier (comment) to indicate the event during which the depth measurement was taken. |
| Descriptor Designation | Designate whether the person doing the logging is a scientist or lay person. |
| Development | Actions performed on the Geosite after the physical Construction of the Geosite was completed. |
| Discharge Rate | An amount of water that can be obtained from a Geosite in a specific time, typically measured in litres/second. |
| Downhole Geophysics | A measurement logged (or recorded) by the lowering of different kinds of probes into a Geosite. |
| Downhole Logging Company | An Organisation that specializes in the logging of Downhole measurements of Geosites which may include Geophysics of Boreholes using scientific equipment. |
| Downhole Logging Contractor | A person that works or has worked for a Downhole Logging Company. |
| Drain | A subsurface channel used primarily for intercepting, collecting and removing water from a shallow aquifer. |
| Drawdown Period | A Drawdown Period indicates the amount of hours that a pump was pumping water out of a nearby Geosite, potentially reducing the Water Level of the Geosite in question. |
| Drilling Fluid | A fluid used to make the drilling process faster and more efficient. |
| Duty Cycle | A recommended maximum numbers of hours per day that water may be abstracted from a Geosite. |
| Education EMIS Number | The EMIS (Education Management Information System) Number is a unique, 8-digit number assigned to all schools by the Department of Education (DoE) |
| Electronic Data Logger | An Electronic Data Logger is an instrument that electronically takes measurements at pre-determined intervals and then stores the data. |
| Elevation | The surface level of a Geosite above mean sea level. |
| Elevation GPS Accuracy | An indication of the reliability of an Elevation reading. |
| Elevation Method | A way Elevations are determined. |
| Elevation Reference | A point from where an Elevation is measured. |
| Equipment Administrator | A person who has access to the Equipment Admin Tool and can browse, add, modify or delete records. |
| Equipment Category | A logical group, into which different Equipment is divided, based on their Purpose, Type and Attributes. |
| Equipment Collection Status | Indicates the current status or use of the Equipment, e.g. In Use, Uninstalled: In Storage, Decommissioned, etc. |
| Equipment Condition | Indicates the current condition of the Equipment, e.g. Needs Maintenance: Operational, Needs Maintenance: Non-Operational. This enables the Equipment Owner to plan for future maintenance or replacement costs. |
| Equipment Condition Evaluation Date | Date on which the condition of the Equipment was determined - usually, the visit date. |
| Equipment Manufacturer | An Organisation which manufactures equipment used for the abstraction or measurement of water. |
| Equipment Owner | An Organisation or person that owns Equipment. |
| Equipment Purpose | A logical group which denotes the Purpose of the Equipment, e.g. Abstraction of Water, Measurement of Abstraction, etc. |
| Equipment Supply Company | An Organisation which supplies equipment used for the abstraction or for the measurement of water, but they are not necessarily the manufacturers thereof. |
| Equipment Supplying Contractor | A person that works or has worked for an Equipment Supply Company. |
| Fabric Attribute | Attribute additional to the Fabric Qualifier. |
| Fabric Qualifier | Additional indicator for the fabric of the rocks. |
| Farm Name | A name registered at the Deeds Office and printed on the topo-cadastral maps. |
| Farm Number | A number registered at the Deeds Office and printed on a topo-cadastral map. This number uniquely identifies a specific area. |
| Feature | Anything that can have a geographic coordinate (moving or non-moving). |
| Field Measurement | A term used to describe pre-selected parameters that are observed in the field, as part of the Water Sampling process. |
| Fill Material | A material used to fill the space between the wall of the Geosite and the Casing in order to stabilise the formation. |
| Fractured Column | The construction of the 'Fractured Column' will be done automatically once the 'Lithological log' has been captured. |
| Geohydrology Office | An office representing a region within South Africa, allocated by a Government Department. |
| Geology Indicator | A marker indicating the link to a specific Geosite Reference. |
| Geomorphological Classification | A term used to describe the surrounding land surface of a Geosite. |
| Geosite | A Feature that as is a naturally occurring, or artificially excavated, or constructed, or improved underground cavity which can be used for the purposes of water storing in an aquifer, extracting water from an aquifer, collecting data of water in an aquifer and recharging water in an aquifer. |
| Geosite Status | An indication of the condition of a Geosite. |
| Government Sector | A classification used to group Site Owner Organisations under Government Sectors to enable enquiries from Government Departments to be made on the number of Geosites that they are responsible for or that are mostly governed by their laws. Examples:
- If the Site Owner is a school (private or not), the Government Sector will be "Basic Education"
- If the Site Owner is a farm (private or not), the Government Sector will be "Agriculture, Land Reform & Rural Development"
- If the Site Owner is a mine (private or not), the Government Sector will be "Mineral Resources and Energy"
|
| Granule Percentage | Size >2mm < 4mm. |
| Groundwater Occurrence | A term used to describe the conditions of where water can be found. |
| Hardness Qualifier | An attribute to qualify the degree of rock hardness. |
| Health System Number | An unique number allocated to all health care facilities like hospitals and clinics |
| Hint | A small piece of practical information or advice. |
| Hour Meter | A device to indicate the number of hours the engine has run. It is an electrical clock, which starts ticking as soon as oil pressure builds up and stops once oil pressure drops to zero after the engine has been switched off. |
| Hydrogeological Region | A region that is defined on the basis of lithostratigraphy, physiography and climate. The regions were defined by J.R. Vegter. |
| HYDSTRA | Time-Series Data Management System. |
| Identifier | A number allocated to a Geosite by a Data Owner. This number is used along with the Data Owner to uniquely identify a Geosite. |
| Institution | An company, government department, etc. It is also a type of Stakeholder. |
| Intended Geosite Purpose | Reason(s) why the Geosite has been identified for drilling, developing, monitoring etc. |
| Land Cover | A term used to describe the surrounding vegetation of a Geosite. |
| Lateral/Radial Arm | A pipe that is connected at an angle in a horizontal position to the Lateral/Radial Collector. |
| Lateral/Radial Collector | A pipe with a very large Diameter placed vertically in an area with an Unconsolidated Formation/Strata. |
| Latitude | A value to indicate the north to south position of a Geosite. |
| Lithological Log | Description of the rock's visible physical characteristics with low magnification microscopy, such as colour, texture, grain size and composition. |
| Lithology Descriptor | None. |
| Lithology Event Date | Date the logging was done. |
| Lithology Formation Type | Differentiation between Lithology categories i.e. "Igneous", "Metamorphic" and "Sedimentary". |
| Lithology Material Type | Differentiation between Lithology categories i.e. "Consolidated" and "Unconsolidated" Lithology. |
| Lithology Name | The composition of the sample, e.g. Quartz, Dolomite, etc. |
| Lithology: Depth To Bottom | Bottom of the layer being described. |
| Lithology: Depth To Top | Top of the layer being described. |
| Log | A log is a physical description or geophysical measurement. |
| Longitude | A value to indicate the east to west position of a Geosite. |
| Loss Percentage | The amount of the sample's material that was lost. |
| Loss Reason | The reason for the sample material loss. |
| Map Number | The number of a 1:50 000 scale topo-cadastral map. |
| Material Loss | Sieve Analysis where previously done by mechanical shaking a set of sieves of progressively smaller seizes. (Sieve Analysis relates to Particle Size). |
| Mean Water Level | The average value of a collection of Water Levels. |
| Mine | An excavation in the earth from which substances such as ores and minerals are extracted. |
| Mobile Phone Number | The number of a mobile phone. Standardised term for inter alia cellular, cell number. |
| Monitoring Region | A group of monitoring Geosites that is more or less in the same area. This name refers to a general area, without any official boundaries. The naming of the Monitoring Region is done by the Geohydrologist or the Technician responsible for the monitoring in that area. It is a logical naming convention used for identifying and referring to a group of Geosites. |
| Multi-rate Test | A test that gives the drawdown response in a Geosite for different pumping rates. This procedure consists of pumping the Geosite at steps of different discharge. At each step the discharge rate is held constant for a specific time period and the drawdown is recorded. However, before another drawdown (step) is recorded , the water level has to recover back to the static or resting water level. This test can be used to determine the sustainability of the water in a Geosite. This can then be used as a recommendation for the discharge rate during the Constant Yield test in the aquifer. |
| Municipal District | A feature that represents third tier Government with specific geographical boundaries. |
| Observed Casing | A casing for which no information about the depths of the casing is available. Information that is available for these casings is based upon visual observation. |
| Observer | A Person that goes to the field with regular intervals to collect measurement data for one/or more of the Monitoring Regions. |
| Opening | A hole or slot that can be made in the Casing to allow water to access the Geosite. |
| Operational period | A recommended period of time that an- Abstraction Yield can be maintained. |
| Organisation Role | A logical group into which different Organisations is divided. |
| Other Loss Reason | Another reason for the sample material loss (not part of the pre-defined loss reasons). |
| Other Number | A number that identifies a Geosite according to another numbering system. The other numbering system can belong to another database, a group of individuals or an organization that has its own numbering system. |
| Particle Shape | Vary from "Angular" to "Rounded". |
| Pebble Percentage | Size >4mm <64mm. |
| Penetration Information | The rate it took to penetrate the different geological formations. Can be measured in meters or hours. |
| Piezometer | A small type of Casing inserted in a Geosite to measure various parameters at different depths. |
| Portion | A part of a farm printed on a Topographical map. |
| Power Meter | A device for measuring the amount of electric power used. |
| Power Rating | Power rating is a quantity that indicates the rate at which the device converts electrical energy into another form of energy, such as light, heat, or motion. It usually describes the total electrical power required for normal operation of an electric appliance and should not be exceeded. |
| Primary Colour | Main colour of the rocks. |
| Principal Driller | A person who is responsible for all technical activities related to the construction of a Geosite. |
| Product |
Any output produced directly from the system.
E.g. Report, Data Set, Graph, Log, etc.
|
| Protection Method | A measure put in place to prevent objects from falling into a Spring, Dug Well or Well Point. |
| Province | A Feature that represents an area of jurisdiction Government in South Africa. |
| Pulley Diameter | A pulley is a device consisting of a wheel over which a rope or chain is pulled in order to lift heavy objects. Both the Pump and the Engine have Pulleys and the Diameter of each is calculated. |
| Pump Power Rating | The power capacity of the motor driving the Pump. |
| Pumping Test Company | An Organisation that specializes in performing pumping tests. |
| Pumping Test Contractor | A person that works or has worked for a Pumping Test Company. |
| Quaternary Drainage Region | A Feature that represents an area of land, from which rainwater or snowmelt drain towards a water body, defined for designated rivers by the Department of Water Affairs. This forms part of a tertiary drainage region, which in turn is part of a secondary drainage region. The secondary drainage region is part of a primary drainage region. |
| Recommended Abstraction Yield | A recommended quantity of water that can be abstracted from a Geosite in accordance with the Duty Cycle. |
| Recovery Period for Observation Geosite | The Recovery Period for an Observation Geosite is the elapsed time from the time that the pump was stopped on the Pumped Geosite to the time of the last Observation Geosite measurement captured. |
| Recovery Period for Operational Recommendations | A recommended period of time between Duty Cycles. |
| Recovery Period for Water Levels | A Recovery Period indicates the amount of hours that it took the Water Level of a Geosite to return its original level, after a pump of a nearby Geosite is turned off. |
| Reference | A source of Geosite data and/or information. |
| Reference Datum | A point used as a Reference in the surveying or mapping of Coordinates. |
| Reference Details | Combination of Library Report Number, Report Name, etc. |
| Reference Point | A (Water Level) Reference Point is a set surface from where a measurement is taken. |
| Reference Type | Refer to the main Glossary. Not in main Glossary. |
| Registration District | A Feature that represents an administrative area, defined and used by the Registrar of Deeds for registering a title to a property. |
| Report | A pre-defined output with a pre-defined layout, produced directly from the system with a purpose of reading, publication, dissemination (as opposed to the export of data that is used to import into another tool for further processing). |
| Reporting Institution | An Organisation that supplies data to the provincial office and/or Head Office of the Department of Water Affairs. |
| Reporting Institution Category | A logical group into which different sectors of the economy is divided. |
| Riser | A Riser is a type of pipe used for transporting the water from the pump inlet to the ground surface. |
| SADC | The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is an inter-governmental Organisation consisting of several Member Countries committed to Regional Integration and poverty eradication within Southern Africa through economic development and ensuring peace and security. |
| Sand Percentage | Size more than 125mcm and less than 2mm (can be subdivided from very fine to very coarse sand). |
| Screen | A pre-manufactured wire or plastic mesh, used to prevent fine particles of sand or gravel from entering the Geosite and damaging the pump equipment. |
| Secondary Colour | Secondary colour of the rocks. |
| Security Role | A logical group which has certain access roles. |
| Security: Encryption | Encryption is the most effective way to achieve data security. To read an encrypted password, you must have access to a (secret) key, password or algorithm that enables you to decrypt it. |
| Seepage | A small amount of water that infiltrates a Geosite. |
| Separate Motor | A Pump which is installed under the ground surface. |
| Sieve Analysis Results | Sieve Analysis where previously done by mechanical shaking a set of sieves of progressively smaller seizes. (Sieve Analysis relates to Particle Size). |
| Silt Percentage | Size more than 31.25mcm and less than 62.5mcm. |
| Sinkhole | A subsidence or collapsed feature formed at points of local instability within the dolomitic area. |
| Sinkhole Classification | A group a Sinkhole is classified into based upon its size |
| Site Owner | The Person or an Organisation that owns a Geosite or owns the property on which the Geosite is found or is the head man of the rural area. (In some cases, the Site Owner is the Contact Person, to arrange access to the Geosite). |
| Site Owner Organisation Type | A sub-classification used to group Site Owner Organisations under Government Sectors to enable detailed enquiries from Government Departments to be made on the Geosites that they are responsible for or that are mostly governed by their laws. Examples:
- If the Site Owner is a primary school (private or not), the Government Sector will be "Basic Education" and the Site Owner Organisation Type will be "School: Primary"
- If the Site Owner is a poultry farm (private or not), the Government Sector will be "Agriculture, Land Reform & Rural Development" and the Site Owner Organisation Type may be "Farm: Poultry"
- If the Site Owner is a police station, the Government Sector will be "Police" and the Site Owner Organisation Type will be "Police Station"
|
| Site Selector | The role of a person who identified an artificial Geosite for potential water use. |
| Soil Lithology | The usually thin upper surface layer of the earth's crust comprising living organisms, organic matter, decomposed rock or unconsolidated sediments. |
| Soil Origin | Description of how the soil was formed. |
| Sorting | Formal classification of the sand/ grain distribution. |
| Spatial Data | Spatial data is usually stored as themes, layers, or coverages. The georeferenced spatial data is displayed in a GIS in its proper place in relation to other spatial data because of the georeferenced information attached to the data. |
| Specific Yield | A rate at which water is released from storage in an unconfined aquifer, per meter drawdown typically measured in either l/s or m**3/h. |
| Spring | A Geosite that marks the position where groundwater emerges on the surface. It represents the natural leakage or overflow from an aquifer. |
| Spring Classification through Discharge Rate | A group that a Spring is classified into, based upon its Discharge Rate. |
| Spring Geomorphological/Geological Type | An indication of the Geomorphological and Geological controls that caused the Spring. |
| Spring Seasonality Regime | An indication of whether the flow is controlled by the seasons. |
| Stakeholder | A person or an organization. |
| Static Water Level | A measurement indicating a resting water level. |
| Step | A series of measurements taken during a Step, Multi-rate or Calibration Test. |
| Step Test | A test that gives the drawdown response in a Geosite for increasing pumping rates. This procedure consists of pumping the Geosite at steps of increased discharge. At each step the discharge is held constant for a specific time period and the drawdown is recorded. Immediately after this, the following drawdown can be recorded (step). This test can be used to determine the sustainability of the water in a Geosite. This can then be used as a recommendation for the discharge rate during the Constant Yield test in the aquifer. |
| Storativity | Storativity is a measure of the volume of water stored and released in an aquifer. |
| Submersible Pump | Where the Motor of a Submersible Pump is not an unit with the Submersible Pump and both the Submersible Pump and the Motor have separate Serial Numbers, it is referred to as a Separate Motor. |
| Surface Engine | An engine is a motor that converts thermal energy to mechanical work. It usually works with combustion of fossil fuels and it is installed above the ground surface. |
| Surface Geology | Description of the rock's visible physical characteristics at the surface of a Geosite. |
| Surface Pump | A Pump which is installed above the ground surface. |
| Texture Qualifier | An attribute to describer the 'Texture' of the rocks. |
| Tooltip | May appear as a small "hover box" with information about the item being hovered over. |
| Topographical Map | The configuration of a surface including its relief and the position of its natural features. |
| Total Blow Yield | A quantity of water that was found while constructing the Geosite. |
| Transmissivity | Transmissivity is a measure of the ease with which groundwater flows in the subsurface. |
| Tunnel | A long, narrow, essentially linear excavated underground opening with a length of which greatly exceeds its width or height. |
| Unconsolidated Material | Material derived from the disintegration and erosion of consolidated rocks on the land's surface, as well as sediments deposited by coastal and glacial processes. |
| Village | A small group of dwellings in a rural area. |
| Water Consumer | A stakeholder that is using the water. |
| Water Level | A depth of the water beneath the ground surface. |
| Water Level | A water level captured via the NGA. |
| Water Management Area | An area established as a management unit in the national water resource strategy within which a catchment management agency will conduct the protection, use development, conservation and manage land control of water resources. |
| Water Meter | A device for measuring and registering the quantity of water that passes through a pipe or other outlet. |
| Water Strike | A term used to describe the particulars where water was (first) encountered when a borehole was drilled. |
| Water Use | A primary purpose for which water from a Geosite is used. |
| Water User Association | A water management institution, but their primary purpose are to operate at a restricted localized level, and are in effect co-operative associations of individual water users who wish to undertake water-related activities for their mutual benefit. |
| Weathered Column | The construction of the 'Weathered Column' will be done automatically once the 'Geological Log' has been captured. |
| Yield | A quantity of water that can be obtained from a Geosite. |
