GEOSCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES

Development Assistance Services.

MEK consultants have considerable experience in the implementation of water and environmental management programs in developmental and transitioning programming settings. Over the years, our consultants have been engaged in several water and environmental sanitation projects internationally, particularly in sub-Sahara Africa, the Caribbean countries, and South-East Asia. We are very knowledgeable about water and sanitation problem design and implementation, and we fully understand the unique challenges of designing, implementing, and managing both small and large-scale water and environmental sanitation projects to realize project objectives and goals. In designing and managing our projects, we ensure that at a minimum we meet and preferably exceed The Sphere Standard’s minimum standards listed in the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response document.

MEK consultants have carried out baselines studies and utilized applicable assessment tools to determine project requirements and designed projects accordingly. Our team members have the experience and have utilized different participatory methods and procedures for building consensus, developing appropriate promotional materials (health and hygiene education), and construction management, among others, at various stages of project implementation.

MEK staff have been responsible for the planning, scheduling, financial management, design, and construction supervision of the numerous rural and peri-urban water and sanitation projects that we managed. A major ingredient of our project design is sustainability. Toward this end, our consultants have designed and delivered trainings to our counterpart local staff and beneficiaries to enable them to assume ownership and management of the newly constructed water and sanitation facilities.

If you are looking for a firm to either help you design sustainable water and sanitation projects that incorporate novel ideas to guarantee sustainability or to provide management consultancy services, our highly experienced team of water and sanitation specialists and engineers is ready to help.

Well Maintenance and Repair Services

In many areas, the focus in groundwater resources development and utilization has been on locating adequate and sustainable potable water sources and the construction of water abstraction facilities. However, there are usually no comprehensive plans in place for the regular maintenance and repair of these water systems, drastically reducing the lifespan of these facilities.

Breakdowns of domestic, community, and high-capacity water wells used for provincial and industrial purposes are due to several factors, including improper well design and construction, incomplete well development, borehole stability problems, incrustation buildup, biofouling, corrosion, aquifer problems, and over pumping. Some of these problems manifest at the water point (well site) in the form of reduced well yields, presence of sediments in the water, changes in water quality, and the existence of dissolved gases in the water. Our team has performed numerous maintenance and well repair services at home and abroad, as stated below.

Maintenance Services

Our well maintenance services involve the periodic examination of wells and their restoration to preserve their optimal functioning and water quality. For pumps, we carry out periodic inspections to check and tighten loose nuts, grease pump chains, check pump parts, and make necessary rectifications and recommendations to ensure their optimum performance and sustainability. Our team members have worked on several water well and hand-dug well maintenance and rehabilitation projects in exceedingly difficult and challenging physical environments.

Well Repair Services

MEK will perform a systematic and thorough evaluation of the well to identify the factors leading to its breakdown or deterioration. We provide the client with a comprehensive technical report listing the problems identified during the assessment as well as solutions to rehabilitate them to their original performance levels. We are well equipped to undertake individual and large-scale water well rehabilitation programs in-country and abroad. For large-scale projects, MEK will mobilize resources from Canada to carry out these projects.

Our staff are familiar with most types of village-level and operation and maintenance pumps and will provide technical advice to clients to identify the most appropriate pumps for their unique situations. MEK is also well positioned to perform large-scale pump maintenance and repair services at all levels, including domestic and community levels as well as high-capacity wells used for commercial and industrial purposes.

Capacity Building

A core aspect of MEK’s interventions is enhancing the capacity of project stakeholders and recipient populations at the local, regional, and national levels so that they can assume the sustainable management of the completed facilities with limited external input. As such, we are well positioned to train and equip the beneficiaries as well as counterpart staff with the necessary skillsets to work on their own with modern cost-effective methods and tools. MEK will provide training in most of our areas of expertise but more importantly in the areas of groundwater exploration (geophysical exploration), water well design and construction, water quality sampling, aquifer and pump testing, and operation and maintenance of wells and pumps. All training sessions will be tailored in accordance with our clients’ preferences and recommendations.

Our capacity building programs include training in groundwater exploration methodologies, pumping/aquifer tests, and water, soil, and sediment sampling methodologies. These programs are usually implemented through “classroom” sessions and on-the-job training programs. The classroom components cover the theory underlying various techniques, their strengths, and limitations. The field sessions offer practical field training opportunities.

Additionally, we provide training to our clients in pump and well maintenance as well as their rehabilitation and repair. The training focuses on elements of operation and maintenance pertaining to the different types of water sources (springs, hand-dug wells, drilled boreholes, etc.) and pumps.