Water - It's right under our feetKarl Browne, of Oakura, has started a company called Geosearch which specialises in finding underground water supplies. And Oakura-based geologist Karl Browne has made it his business to find it. On the surface, so to speak, it would appear the province is well enough off for water. After all, there are over 300 creeks, streams or rivers within the Taranaki ring plain. But the increasing pressure on those surface supplies was enough to encourage Mr Browne to form a company (Geosearch Ltd) that will search underground for what is virtually an untapped bounty of liquid riches.
While mineral exploration and development still play a part in his business activities, most of his time is spent with water. "Basically there are two sets of underground water reserves in Taranaki. There is the water that is in the volcanic formations that has percolated down after falling on the slopes of Mt Taranaki - more than seven metres of rain falls on those slopes every year, and the volcanic rock is very porous. "Underlaying all of that are the rocks of the Taranaki sedimentary basin, which also hold a considerable amount of water. "But it shouldn't be imagined that there are great underground rivers flowing under Taranaki, because it isn't true. There's a much tighter aquifer system down there, and good knowledge and experience is needed to locate it." That's where Geosearch Ltd comes into the picture. Mr Browne uses his knowledge as a geologist who has worked for the mining industry, including the oil and gas industry in Taranaki, and experience picked up over the past five years as a Taranaki Regional Council scientific officer to identify underground water supplies for his clients. At this stage the clients have been restricted to local authorities, oil exploration companies and consulting firms, but he's expecting that soon he will begin to be in demand with local farmers seeking new and more consistent water supplies. "A great deal of surface water is already taken in Taranaki - so all the major future takes will be from underground," says Mr Browne. "The challenge now is that all of this has to be done in a sustainable manner. That's my focus. While it's true that there is plenty of water underground that is untapped, too many takes might put that under pressure as well." His professional involvement with water began early in his career as a geologist when, after spending some time working in Southland coal fields, he moved to Australia to spend 10 years in the metals mining industry in New South Wales and Queensland. He and his fellow workers often helped out local farmers by locating underground water supplies and assisting in the drilling for them. It dawned on him that there might be good business to be had in water, and he put that to the back of his mind as he returned to New Zealand to work in the oil and gas exploration industry, and then for the Taranaki Regional Council, with a good portion of that work involving Taranaki's fresh water. Then late last year Mr Browne left the TRC to move into business with his new company, Geosearch. He helps his clients locate suitable water supplies, assists in obtaining the necessary resource consents and permits to use it, and participates in the drilling campaigns to access it. He forecasts that the future will see real care taken in insuring the use of even underground water is organised in a sustainable manner. "Already there is some anecdotal evidence from some parts of New Zealand that issues are developing over use of underground supplies, particularly in Canterbury and Marlborough," he says. "Some people still think that if they have water above or below their properties, then they have the right to do what they like with it. But these days they can't do that. It all has to be used sustainably."
By ROB MAETZIG rob.maetzig@tnl.co.nz - Taranaki Monday, Next Page - Finding water, it's science » |