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ERWAT
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Utilities
As one of the continent’s largest wastewater management firms, the East Rand Water Care Company (ERWAT) has a spoke challenging task. to managing director Tumelo Gopane about the innovation driving it forward.
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RWAT, an example of a truly “homegrown” South African business, was established in 1992 as a Section 21 company, with shareholders including the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (its majority shareholder), Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality and Lesedi Local Municpality.
as a “hidden jewel”. Given that the firm services more than 3.5 million people, yet is far from a household name, there is a lot to be said for this statement, especially given the importance of ensuring safe and clean supplies of water to its customers. ERWAT is in fact the largest water management company in South Africa and has a claim towards being the largest in the developing world.
Managing director Tumelo Gopane describes his company
Gopane goes on to describe aspects of the company he
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“Managing director Tumelo Gopane describes his company as a “hidden jewel”.
THE FUTURE OF ENGINEERING, NOW An engineering contractor with a national footprint, Thenga Holdings (Pty) Ltd offers turnkey engineering solutions to an extensive clientele. Our Level 1 B-BBEE accreditation combined with our passion for empowerment makes us a South African company for the future.
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WEC Projects ERWAT - Leading the way. ERWAT is the first utility in Gauteng to implement the proven and innovative Nereda® technology. They have done so by increasing the capacity of the Hartebeestfontein WWTP by 5MLD in an ingenious retrofit application. This is an example of the innovative thinking that holds the key to unlocking the solutions to our country’s sewage treatment infrastructure backlog. The South African reality is that we no longer have the luxury of building plants without considering the optimal use of available land; Capital budgets are constrained; Energy costs are increasing rapidly annually and many of our rivers, streams and dams are polluted as a result of aging and overloaded treatment infrastructure. Nereda® is undoubtedly a compelling proposition when addressing these challenges
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particularly admires, having only joined ERWAT in September 2016 after many successful years in energy and utilities, in both the public and private sectors. “We have highly skilled scientists and engineers working for us, and we treat around 800 megalitres of water a day with various technologies. “Reusing and recycling water like this has not been very big in Africa or the developing world in general. The first world have been doing it for a while, but now we’re seeing the African continent and Latin America waking up to climate change and water shortages, which have never been seen at the levels they’re seen at now. It really feels
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“ERWAT Laboratory Services offers a wide variety of chemical and microbiological analysis services and provides expert advice on waterrelated problems, as well as client training on efficient water usage
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like we have a role in saving the country, the continent and elsewhere.’’ Along with its nineteen processing plants, ERWAT also runs a dedicated research and development wing that develops new wastewater solutions for business clients. ERWAT Laboratory Services offers a wide variety of chemical and microbiological analysis services and provides expert advice on water-related problems, as well as client training on efficient water usage. “We are picking up our R&D – we are getting involved in a whole lot of academic and application research. We have also formed a technical forum, partnering with a company called IO that are based in the UK and help with in assessing technology.”
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A positive impact
Southern Africa has seen some severe droughts in the last couple of years, with endemic water shortages threatening the region’s food security. Gopane sees this as something of a wake-up call to many industries in the region. Indeed, it’s almost a positive as companies become more “water wise” and reduce the amount they use and waste they produce. There are also obvious downsides, however. “From a supplier’s point of view it is a negative impact, and we’re ultimately hoping to mitigate it,” he continues. “At the end of the day, if a business recycles 70% of its water it will need much less water and put that much less of a strain on low water reserves. South Africa is now one of the
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best countries at treating waste water – maybe not to drinking qualities but to a very, very high standard. I believe South African standards on what must be reused are among the best in the world. “That means you don’t need much more processing to get the majority of our recycled water to drinking level – we’ll just need to add a few more steps to turn the fresh recycled water we produce into drinking water. That is a gap we will be filling going forwards.”
A sense of responsibility
“South Africa is now one of the best countries at treating waste water – maybe not to drinking qualities but to a very, very high standard. I believe South African standards on what must be reused are among the best in the world.
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Along with its environmental efforts, ERWAT also runs various corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes focused on providing opportunities to young people and helping communities live and raise awareness when it comes to the dangers of living close to waste water, as well as gaining some understanding of what a waste water management plant does and the impact it can have. Gopane explains that education is vital to ERWAT’s CSR ethos. “At the moment we operate awareness campaigns for communities living near our waste-water plans, as well as bringing school kids in to understand what is a waste water management plan and so forth. As these are often poor communities we are working with it’s vital that they are able
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to recycle and save water, and have access to clean water. “This year and next year we will be taking in 400 learners and graduates and so forth for training and development, as well as education and awareness of our operations and the effects they have on their communities.”
New opportunites
While agriculture and private usage consume large quantities of water and produce large quantities of waste, there are more ambitious opportunities out there for the service ERWAT provides. For example, the company has just signed a contract with the
South African Department of Public Works, the organisation which overseas most of the country’s public infrastructural development. ERWAT will be managing waste water from military and correctional institutions, both housing a large number of individuals and producing significant amounts of waste. The company is also Limpopo province’s water board with its waste water treatment plans and maintenance, so its influence is increasingly felt throughout South Africa. Other industries have also become aware of what ERWAT can offer. With clients such as Heineken and Kellogg’s, it’s clear
that the food and beverage industry is starting to pay attention to waste water management. On an even larger scale however is the potential for moving into commodities processing, during which vast quantities of water are used and, in many cases, wasted. ERWAT is currently approaching mining and industrial clients who stand to benefit from water recycling, with a view towards expanding into this area: “We also will be moving into the mining industry, which is a massive industry across Africa. Then of course there’s also the manufacturers who use a lot of chemical and paints and so forth like ADP. We’ll be applying to do their waste water management, making sure that recycled waste water is ready to send to their plants across the country.”
Investing in excellence As Gopane explains, ERWAT’s future plans are focused on expanding the industry as a whole and providing vital jobs in water management to talented young people through a variety of means, from basic training to more high-tech solutions.
“In the long term we’ll be developing a training centre and a centre of excellence in waste water treatment. At the moment water treatment is not taught in universities in depth, so we will be putting together a training
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course developing process controllers, operators and other professionals. “We’re also developing an E-learning centre by the end of this year. This will be available to companies and individuals across Africa as there is a big need in continental Africa to train operators and process controllers. Everywhere is seeing water shortages, so we want to prepare the next generation of Africans to meet these challenges. We’ll be purchasing simulators and other software where you can model treatment plants, which means that people will be able to train from their own homes, wherever they are. That’s something we’re really excited about.” When it comes to training, new technology is adding new capabilities that will impact the company and the services it can offer. With plans towards purchasing simulators and complex software that models treatment plants, consulting and designing services will be enhanced. Potentially implemented by the end of the calendar, this is another development Gopane is particularly excited about.
Green drop certification
South Africa’s Green Drop certification is an initiative of the Department of Water and Sanitation, rewarding
excellence in the field of water treatment works. Understandably, this is something that ERWAT are keenly pursuing. The incentive-based regulation is a critical driver in improving wastewater management services, recognising not just competency but responsibility, to clients, communities and to the environment as a whole. ERWAT’s current performance monitoring is aligned with the certification system, motivated by the desire to have all of its wastewater treatment works (WWTW) achieve Green Drop status. In 2013 the company’s performance report stood at 83.61%, with three WWTWs receiving certification, including Hartebeestfontein WWTW, Waterval WWTW as well as Dekema WWTW, which has retained its Green Drop status since 2011.
Caring for the environment
The nature of ERWAT’s services put it centre stage when it comes to Africa’s environmental concerns. The company is commercially orientated, but as it puts it on its website, its business is “the management of the Earth’s most sensitive natural resource”. It stands to reason then that the company is committed, within its own operations, to protecting the environment by avoiding pollution of water sources such as groundwater and natural streams. Effluent, sludge and odours are managed to ensure water that is purified and environmentally safe. ERWAT’s management and board of directors are committed to the principles of continuous improvement, with measures including adequate workforce
TITANIUM PROJECTS
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Established and Initiated in 1998 by Mr Veenesh Singh in the Construction, Earthworks and Waterworks Industry, Titanium Projects remain committed to progress, development and upliftment in all areas of the industry.
training, formal identification of risk factors, and co-operation with regulatory institutions all written into the daily activities at each plant and working in conjunction with its Green Drop certification aspirations.
“Then of course there’s also the manufacturers who use a lot of chemical and paints and so forth like ADP. We’ll be applying to do their waste water management, making sure that recycled waste water is ready to send to their plants across the country. C
Key Specializations: Roads, Transport, Earthworks. Waste Water Treatment Works. Civil Engineering. Power Sector Services. Project Management. Water Sanitation Services. Pipelines and Specialised Water Services.
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As we can see from ERWAT and its successes, even as Africa increasingly industrialises, innovators will be there to provide a service for, as well as capitalise on, the waste produced by others. With environmental and business concerns increasingly working hand-in-hand, ERWAT will surely soon be shedding its reputation of being a “hidden jewel”.
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Why TITANIUM? Backed by a skilful, competent team we are well positioned to deliver successfully on projects. Our Passion and Experience ensures our commitment and enthusiasm for diverse challenges.
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Tel: +27 (0)11 929 7000 Fax: +27 (0)11 929 7031 Email: mail@erwat.co.za
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