GIRAF Geoscience InfoRmation in AFrica

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1 GIRAF Geoscience InfoRmation in AFrica Newsletter Issue 23 - March July Report on the GIRAF 2013 Workshop Geoscience Information in Africa, Mapping and Mining, September 2013, Accra, Ghana By Dr. Kristine Asch, BGR, Germany, (GIRAF coordinator) From September the GIRAF 2013 Workshop took place in Accra, Ghana, in concordance with the Centennial celebrations of the Geological Survey of Ghana. In this issue CGI Council Meeting 2013 Report on GIRAF 1 Actual Projects of GIRAF Members 3 Upcoming Events 8 People 8 Your contribution to the GIRAF Network Newsletter! 8 Associated Organisations and Projects 8 Coordinating Organisation participants from 26 African and 7 non-african countries took part. The workshop was the 3rd workshop of the Geoscience InfoRmation in Africa network (GIRAF), which was founded in The GIRAF is governed by the IUGS-Commission the Management and Application of Geoscience Information (CGI) and supported by the UNESCO. The GIRAF-network is bringing together African scientists, authorities, national experts and other stakeholders in geoscience. The aims are to exchange and share geoscience information and good practice, stimulate and support cross-border geoscience information projects and to make Africa a more active part of the international geoscience information community. GIRAF provides a platform to address, discuss and raise awareness of what geoscience information can do to in the long-term improve the way geoscience information contributes to the health and prosperity of the people in Africa. GIRAF 2013 participants Photo by Markus Toloczyki At the moment GIRAF has 337 members, mainly from 37 African, but also from 15 non-african countries. The GIRAF 2013 Workshop was hosted by the Geological Survey Department of Ghana and organized by the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) in cooperation with the International Mining for Development Centre and supported by the Commission for the Management and Application of Geoscience Information (CGI) of the International 1

2 The GIRAF 2013 Workshop in Ghana: participants Photo provided by Kristine Asch Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) and the UNESCO. The event was generously supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and Australian Aid. It was bringing together numerous African geoscience information experts, managers and stakeholders. The main theme of the workshop was Geoscience Information, Sustainable Mining and Mapping and offered an excellent opportunity to present and discuss national African geoscience information projects, to report progress since the 1st and 2nd GIRAF workshop in 2009 and 2011 and explore ways to cooperate in friendship across political boundaries. The event was opened by the advisor to the vice-president of the Republic of Ghana and the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, with contributions of the Australian High Commissioner to Ghana, the Acting German Ambassador, the director of the Geological Survey of Ghana and the GIRAF coordinator. GIRAF 2013 encompassed more than 40 presentations about geoscience information projects and developments (including a presentation of GeoSciML and OneGeology), the main focus was on sustainable mining, regional planning and smallscale mining. In a final plenary session the following main results were achieved and presented: 14 GIRAF ambassadors volunteered to create national core groups with 14 African countries The newsletter of the GIRAF will be published not only in English, but also in French (two editors volunteered) After a completion from three countries, Morocco, Niger, and Mozambique the next location for the GIRAF 2015 workshop was elected: Mozambique Recommendation about issues of small-scale mining are being prepared by a small group Opening of the GIRAF 2013 Workshop: German Acting Ambassador Thomas Wimmer with GIRAF coordinator Kristine Asch and host John A. Duodu Photo provided by Kristine Asch 2

3 Actual Projects of GIRAF Members Some scientific activities in Democratic Republic of Congo in 2013 By Patrick Muanza Kant, GIRAF/DRC ambassador, CRGM, Congo Opening Scientific days (2013 in CRGM/DRC) by General Manager Professor Kanda Nkula Photo provided by Patrick Muanza Kant The Democratic Republic of Congo DRC has been marked in year 2013, by some geological activities as the conferences, the workshops, etc. In the Geological and Mining Research Center, the scientific days have been organized. Of which one, had taken place June, 2013 under the theme: Contribution of the geological cartography to the knowledge of the mineral resources and to the management of the environment: case of the DRC. During these days, the scientific aspects (under-themes) hereafter have been targeted: Problematic of the actualization of the geological map to the 1 : of DRC (by searcher Mbuyi Moshamesu); Geological map of Bas-Congo (by searcher Patty Nseka); Contribution of the urban geology and the geological and geotechnical mapping to the purification of Kinshasa city (by searcher Matungila Juve); Assessment of the environmental impact of the careers and abandoned mines in some regions of DRC (by searcher Banze wa Mutombo); New Contributions to the hydrogeological map of DRC (by searcher Nlandu Lakula); Contribution of the geochemical analyses to the knowledge of the metallic and non metallic ores (by Professor Monama Ondongo). The theme and under-themes exploited at the time of these scientific days were very important in so far as the actualization of the map allowed us to have some new information (geology and the indications of mineral resources) that wasn t represent in previous maps; the acquired information allowed the men of the profession (mining, mining operators, prospectors ) to really protect the environment during and after their works. Hydraulic Conductivity Graphic by CRGM/DRC Vulnerability Map Graphic by CRGM/DRC Geological map of Bas-Congo Graphic by CRGM/DRC 3

4 Cameroon wants to get a grip on its mining potential By Florence Ngobasaheg Malong, University of Yaounde, Cameroon On 22nd January 2014, the Ministry of Mines, Industries and Technological Development (MINMIDT) presented its mining sector capacity building project, an airborne geophysical campaign due for 18 months (January 2014 June 2015). The airborne geophysical campaign on the mining potential will cover six regions of the country`s national territory namely; the North, Adamaoua, East, West, Centre and the Littoral. The campaign that is being financed by the Cameroonian government and the World Bank is worth 2.5 billions francs CFA. The operation is being carried out by the Canadian company Geotech Airborne Limited. Cameroon is joining Tanzania, Mozambique, Niger and Namibia where the same company did a similar work with success. Localities involved are Poli, Tibati, Ngaoundere, Deng-Deng, Bertoua, Nanga-Eboko, Linte, Ndikinimeki, Bafia, Tchamba, Bafoussam amongst others. During this campaign 13 geological maps will be established. At the moment Cameroon has only one which was established since the 80`s and which did not include any technological evolution of the last decade. Results that will be obtained from this campaign will enable the Ministry to launch its exploitation industry of the available resources. Observations predicted hundreds of geochemical anomalies and indices of gold, diamonds, iron, cobalt, nickel, rutile, bauxite and uranium. In this perspective, the government progressively put in power a jurisdiction and institutional framework. Some licences have already been delivered. In addition the government has put in place an assistance measure for artisanal exploitation. The Ethiopian-Czech Cooperative Development Activities By Dana Čápová, Vladislav Rapprich, Czech Geological Survey, Czech Republic; Jiří Šíma, Aquatest corp., Czech Republic The Ethiopian-Czech Cooperative Development Project Capacity Building in the Field of Engineering Geology and Hydrogeology in Ethiopia took place since The project was carried out by Aquatest corp. and the Czech Geological Survey. The aim of the project was to transfer Czech experience and knowledge in the fields of engineering geology and hydrogeology to geologists at the Geological Survey of Ethiopia (GSE). The transfer of practical know-how also involved the management of natural hazards in the area of Debre Sina in the region of Tarmaber, the compilation of the engineering geology map sheet for Addis Ababa, and the compilation of 25 hydrogeological and hydrochemical map sheets at a scale of 1 : covering 450,000 km². Drilling sites for more than 100 new wells were identified in the mapped area. Each year, the Example of the new geohazard map (Figure 1) Graphic by GSE 4

5 work was divided into two stages: April June (spring stage) and July November (autumn stage). The field campaign was organized during the spring stage when the geological observations and information for the compilation of maps were collected. During the autumn stage, emphasis was placed on the compilation and printing of the explanatory notes for the maps. These, together with the necessary technical equipment, were handed over to the GSE, the beneficiary of the project. A Manual for the Management of Natural Hazards was delivered, for which the Addis Ababa sheet and the region of Tarmaber were used as examples. At the end of each year, the results of the project were discussed at workshops. Training in specific topics was also Wendo Koshe volcano (Figure 2) Photo by Vladislav Rapprich given at workshops and in the field to a number of staff from the GSE and students from Addis Ababa and Arba Minch Universities. of the rift floor is associated with seismic and volcanic activity (Figure 2). Many cracks are opening at a rate of several centimeters per year, affecting a number of villages and roads and creating a serious hazard. Deforested areas are subject to widespread erosion leading to rapid deposition of large amounts of eroded material downstream in the drainages. River gorges and the scarps of the rift valley and calderas are prone to slope failures and landslides. Huge volumes of pumice deposited during devastating ash-flow eruptions of rhyolitic magma have the potential to contaminate water with fluorine that causes fluorosis in the local population. In order to facilitate the collection of data by the Geological Survey of Ethiopia, they have been given also technical equipment. The strategy throughout the project has been to ensure that all map sheets are created seamlessly, using a unified legend, so that they can be stored in a common ArcGIS geodatabase. The preparation of metadata and data and the compilation of the maps in the GIS format have been carried out using a workflow that supports standardized publication on the Internet using web services (Figure 3). Example of the web presentation of the maps (Figure 3) This system is based on the strategy and the technical specification proposed for the AEGOS SDI developed for AEGOS (African-European Georesources Observation System) during the first phase of the European Commission FP7 Project, carried out from The results of the first Ethiopian-Czech Cooperative Development Project were used as a pilotrun to test the AEGOS recommendations in a real situation (Figure 4). This test was based on open source and cost-free software using the features of the future AEGOS portal. The on-going Ethiopian-Czech Cooperative Development Project will enable training to be given to the Ethiopian staff so that they can use the system and to be ready to collaborate in providing web services compliant with the proposed AEGOS infrastructure. A second project that follows on from the previous one is now being carried out in the Main Ethiopian Rift Valley and its surroundings. It has been scheduled for the period The project is supported by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Czech Development Agency and the aim is to continue the transfer of experiences in research on geological hazards and water resources to Ethiopian geologists. The area under investigation is affected by many distinct geological hazards (Figure 1). Active spreading Geonetwork ISO19139-based metadata record editing (Figure 4) 5

6 Potential Sites for Geoparks in Ethiopia By Asfawossen, Metassebia Demissie and Aberra Mogessie a-d Site 3: Columnar joints Photo by Asfawossen Site 3 = Columnar joints located at Bizet oriented at various angle is worth of protecting this outcrop Geological Map of Ethiopia Ethiopia contains an immense succession of rocks representing long geological history, from the Precambrian era up to the Present. The active structural forces coupled with the geo-morphological set up results in a wide range of landforms. That is, from high mountain ranges to a wide plains and from a wide rift valley with lakes to salt plains below sea level. From the map, the red and reddish brown represent Precambrian metamorphic and Precambrian intrusives; the light blue is Palaeozoic and Mesozoic rocks; the green is Early Tertiary volcanics; the light mustard is Late Tertiary volcanics; and the yellow is Tertiary and Younger sediments. The sites numbered from 1 4 are located at the north-western highland of Ethiopia. They represent outstanding heritage, aesthetic, historical and educational values. Site 1: Adwa phonolite Photo by Asfawossen Site 1 = Adwa phonolite plugs located near Adwa about 1,000 km from Addis Ababa are generally phonolitic to trachytic in composition. Site 2: Palaezoic hill Photo by Asfawossen Site 2 = One of the few remnant of Palaeozoic hill where on top of it the Emanuel Church is built. Site 4: Lake Haiq Photo by Asfawossen Site 4 = The Lake Haiq located at about 30 km from Dessie is a beautiful natural scenery. At its western shore a historic monastery of St. Stephen is located and is believed to be founded around AD Sites 5 and 6 are still in north-western part of the high land. While site 5 is very important for educational purpose, site 6 can serve as a geotourist site. Site 5: Blue Nile (Abay) River Photo by Asfawossen Site 5 = The Blue Nile (Abay) River that starts from central highland crosses to the west and joins the White Nile in Sudan. At the northern end of Semen Shewa, the river gorge, in the picture, reveals rocks from 6

7 Precambrian to Recent volcanics and sediments. Geology students go there to study the succession of rock outcrops and fossils in the Mesozoic Sediments. thing. Another picturesque site is the Awash Water Falls at the south-east of Fantale. At the foot of Fantale and on the plain of welded tuff, the park houses wild animals like, Oryx, wild pigs, kudus, monkeys etc. Site 6: Afar Window Photo by Asfawossen Site 6 = The Afar Window (locally known as Gemassa Gedel) located at the lower level of the plateau-rift Escarpment, is one of the major geotourist site that has an amazing view from the plateau of the Rift to the Afar Depression, which is below sea level and the beginning of an oceanic crust. The Afar Triangle or Depression is the wider part of northern Ethiopian Rift Valley. It is a place where the Red Sea Rift, the Gulf of Aden Rift and Ethiopian Rift Valley meet, making it volcanically and tectonically active region leading to continental breakup (which is only observed in Ethiopia and Iceland). Frequented by tourists, the whole Afar that consists of active volcano, remnant salt lake and picturesque salts of all kinds at Dallol make it an important site for geoparks. Aluto Mountain (8) is located within the Main Ethiopian Rift Valley next to a rift lake called Langano which is a resort area. The geothermal potential has been recognized in Ethiopia since 1969 and one of the site was Alto Mountain. A 7.2 MW pilot plant installed at Aluto is the only geothermal plant in the country (Solomon Kebede 2011). Site 7a) 7c): An active Ert Ale Volcano at different time of the day Photo by Asfawossen Site 7d): Salts at Dallol Photo by Asfawossen Located between Afar and the Main Ethiopian Rift, Fantale Mountain (9) is within Awash National Park. Its summit is occupied by a large crater, about 2.5 by 3.5 km across and is referred to as caldera. Fantale is formed of rich in silica and the main rock types are trachyte, rhyolite, agglomerate, pitchstone, pumice and welded tuff (F. Williams, 2012). To the north of Fantale and surrounded by palm trees a pool of hot springs provides a beautiful oasis for ba- Site 8 = Aluto Mountain, at the back of the lake, is a geothermal field. To expand the Aluto geothermal power to 7.2 MW preparations for the drilling of four appraisal wells has been completed. Site 9 = At the summit of the dormant Mt. Fantale in the Main Rift Valley which rises about 600 m above the Metehara plain. From the top steam can be seen at the depth of the caldera. Site 8: Aluto Mountain Photo by Asfawossen Site 9: Fantale Mountain Photo by Asfawossen 7

8 Upcoming Events 25th Colloquium of African Geology (CAG25) & 3rd Young Earth Scientists (YES) Congress Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania August CAG25: Geoscience InfoRmation in AFrica Workshop (TW 7) Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania Friday, 15 August 2014, 16:00-19:00, Amboni Room 6th Orogenic Lherzolite Conference Marrakech, Morocco 4 14 October Lherzolite/ Your contribution to the GIRAF Network Newsletter! News Items, Opportunities, Updates, Upcoming Events, etc. the information (news, opportunities, updates to events, national chapter information, etc.) along with your name and address. 2nd Conference on Geoparks in Africa and Middle East (ICGAM2) Dakar, Senegal 9 12 October th Biennial West African Quaternary Research Association (WAQUA) International Workshop Bamako, Mali October calendar/127-pages/1161-4thwaqua-wshop GIRAF Network Member Showcase If you would like your profile displayed here, you may submit said profile to the GIRAF Network Member Showcase, for inclusion in the newsletter, please send your information and photos to the editor at geoscienceinformationinafrica@ gmail.com 35th International Geological Congress Geoscience InfoRmation in AFrica Session Cape Town, South Africa 27 August 4 September People Kombada Mhopjeni, Geological Survey of Namibia, was elected as member of the CGI Council. John A. Duodu, Geological Survey Department of Ghana, was elected as the new Chair of the GIRAF Steering Committee. Mesfin Gebremichael, SEAMIC, Tanzania, is a new GIRAF Steering Committee member. Ezzoura Errami, Chouaïb Doukkali University, Marocco, is a new GIRAF Steering Committee member. Felix Toteu, UNESCO, Kenya, resigned from the chairmanship of the GIRAF Steering Committee. Associated Organisations and Projects African Association of Women in Geosciences Southern and Eastern African Mineral Centre The GIRAF network newsletter is published by the GIRAF network Commission for the Geological Map of the World Geological Society of Africa OneGeology Coordinating Organisation Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources YES Network African-European Georesources Observation System Publication Team Ivy Ddamba iddamba@yahoo.co.uk Dr. Kristine Asch Kristine.Asch@bgr.de Susanne Glück Susanne.Glueck@bgr.de Armel Nganzi Anganzi.dpdda@gmail.com Serge Ihano serihano@yahoo.fr 8