Note from the Editor

Season’s greetings!  Another year is coming to an end.  Like many people, I have conflicting feelings about the month of December. There’s much to enjoy — especially preparing for the much needed holiday. But there’s also plenty of stress, with it being silly season and all these deadlines up us.  This is the final newsletter of the year, I hope you get the chance to read it.

Lindi Richer

President’s Message

It’s that time of year again, when we need to start wrapping up projects as well as Christmas presents. Yes, silly season is upon us. Before the project deadlines draw to a close, I hope that you’re able to spare a few minutes to read the final SAIEG newsletter for 2014. 

With the year drawing to a close, so does my two year term as president of SAIEG. The past two years have been a privilege and were quite eventful. We’ve welcomed a quite a number of new members and awarded two SAIEG Gold Awards. We’ve hosted a number of events, including courses and lectures, a site visit and a speciality conference. We’ve also worked together with other organisations in organising and hosting the 2014 Dolomite Seminar. Internationally there were a few events, including the 12th IAEG Congress in Italy and the 57th AEG Annual Meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona. One event we’re extremely excited about is the 35th IGC which will be held in Cape Town in 2016. SAIEG will be involved in organising the themes associated with engineering and environmental geology.

Apart from the fun stuff, there have been a few challenges along the way. We’ve provided comment on the new NHBRC manual and we’re currently supporting SACNASP with their objection to the Competition Commission regarding ECSA’s application for exemption with respect to the identification of work. We’re also currently involved in the revising of SANS 1936 Development of Dolomite Land, and will be for most of 2015. It’s a clear that the SAIEG council remains committed to its members by fighting for their right to work in the fields that only trained and experienced engineering and environmental geologists can do!

Richard Puchner

Limpopo

Works are progressing well at Eskom’s new Medupi Power Station with the first unit, Unit 6 scheduled for initial energizing in December 2014. Works are also progressing well on expanding Exxaro’s Grootegeluk Coal Mine… Read more

Western Cape

One of the main areas of geotechnical activity in the Western Cape centres around the few wind farms scattered across the province and too some degree stability issues around steep terrain through which roads traverse. Other than those it is standard investigations for common and garden developments.

 Eastern Cape

The Coega IDZ is a continous source of work, with foundation investigations varying from the small and fast variety, up to significant studies with long-term in-situ field testing. The larger kind are unfortunately, a rarity… Read more

The 35TH IGC, Cape Town 2016.

An invitation from the South African Section and SAIEG

The 35TH International Geological Congress will be held in Cape Town, South Africa, between 28 August and 4 September 2016 at the acclaimed Cape Town International Convention Centre. With one of the New Seven Wonders of the World (Table Mountain) as a backdrop, South Africa’s Mother City, one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, a diverse scientific programme of oral and poster presentations, workshops, short courses and business meetings will be presented… Read more

Avoid or adapt?

Historically very poor conditions revealed during dolomite stability investigations inevitably resulted in ‘avoidance’ of that site or the relevant parts thereof. The incorporation of substantive engineering or ground improvement solutions in the D4 Dolomite Designation of SANS 1936 Part 1 has now put a ‘positive spin’ on some of these poorer sites making clients and developers happy, at least initially… Read more

Rock Identification Course in Cape Town

SAIEG presented the Rock Identification for Engineers in Cape Town for the first time on the 13^th and 14^th November.  The course comprises a single day of theory and hand specimen practical examples followed by another day of field examples. Delegates also have the choice of attending only one of the two days…  Read more

Delegates wading back through the icy waters of the Atlantic in Bloubergstrand after viewing the rare outcrops of one of the volcanic units in the Malmesbury Group.

A B A Brink Award    

Did you know that if you’ve had a paper published (in a peer review journal) recently you could be up to win a prize.  Submit your paper on our website to stand a chance to win… More details

UKZN

The Engineering and Environmental Geology section within the discipline of Geological Sciences in the School of Agricultural Environmental and Earth Sciences University of KwaZulu-Natal continues to maintain high standards in teaching and research.  This year we had 18 honours students enrolled for the honours course and they have all worked very hard during the course of the academic year.  We had a successful Mines Field trip were we visited the Fairview Mine in Barberton, the iThemba Lethu shaft in Secunda, Buffalo Coal in Dundee, the Ingula Pumped Storage Scheme and the 68 km project currently undertaken by Eskom in the Majuba Colliery… Read more 

UP

With the ending of the 2014 academic year and the final exams completed, the ten engineering geology and three hydrogeology honours students ended the year with an excursion.  Being largely industry sponsored (for which we are truly grateful), the trips started from Pretoria towards Sterkfontein Dam via exposed Karoo mudrocks and sandstones, the Ash River Outfall, the Clarens microbrewery and the Golden Gate Nature Reserve… Read more 

Electronic Communication

The website is continually being updated with current news and events, although there may be some pages which go unnoticed for a while.  If you spot anything outdated or out of the ordinary, please contact the webmaster.

Please “Like” our SAIEG Page and add anything you of interest.  Facebook

A LinkedIn SAIEG Group has been created please go and join the group.  SAIEG LinkedIn  

Election of Council

The closing date for nominations of the 2015-2016 SAIEG council members was 20 November 2014. The nominations will be reviewed by the existing council and voted upon before the end of November, following which the new council members will be announced. The three non-elected members who form part of Executive Council are as follows:

1.      Greg Heath                    President

2.      Phil Paige-Green         Vice-President

3.      Richard Puchner          Past President

Membership

A number of new applications were reviewed and provisionally approved by the SAIEG council at the last council meeting. These are:

Denisha Sewnun - Member

Riona Singh - Member

Alex Lodenkemper - Candidate

Kevin Coertzen - Candidate

Student members

Itumeleng Tshwane

Vincent Oderah

Edgar Mxotwa

Johnson Oriokot

Tshegofatso Kekana

Deon Bester

Existing members of SAIEG have two weeks to lodge any objections regarding their regarding their suitability before they are accepted. Should no written objection to the applicants’ election be lodged with the Secretariat (secretariat@saieg.co.za) within fourteen days of publication, the applicant will be accepted.

President

Richard Puchner

Email: president@saieg.co.za

Membership

Robert Leyland

Email: membership@saieg.co.za

Website

Lindi Richer

Email: webmaster@saieg.co.za

Vice President

Greg Heath

Email: vicepresident@saieg.co.za

AEG Representative

Robert Leyland

Email: AEGrep@saieg.co.za

Events

Amy Maharaj

Email: events@saieg.co.za

Treasurer

George Brink

Email: treasurer@saieg.co.za

Newsletter

Lindi Richer

Email: editor@saieg.co.za

Secretariat

RCA

Email: accounts@saieg.co.za

Email: secretariat@saieg.co.za

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