GIGSA (IGS South Africa)

The South African Chapter of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) established in 1994.

GIGSA mission is to promote the understanding and appropriate use of geosynthetic technology throughout South Africa.

GIGSA was founded in 1994 by a group of suppliers, installers, consultants, a regulator and an academic at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of the Witwatersrand. The founding of GIGSA coincided with the publication of the first edition of the Minimum Requirements Series by the then Department of Water Affairs and Forestry. The intention of the Minimum Requirements was to regulate waste management as a whole, but also waste disposal by landfill in South Africa, which made the use of geomembranes mandatory. This reinforced the need for an organization like GIGSA, as geosynthetics were largely unknown construction materials at that time.