Blue Drop and Green Drop certification programme revitalised

Blue Drop and Green Drop certification programme

revitalised

In a bid to achieve excellence in drinking water and wastewater quality management, the Department of Water and Sanitation is set to conduct a full 2021 Green Drop audit and Blue Drop progress assessment. By Kirsten Kelly

THE FIVE STEPS TO GREEN DROP CERTIFICATION:

1Capacity Management: process control, maintenance, technical/ engineering and scientific

2Environmental Management: wastewater risk abatement, effluent quality monitoring, sludge management, laboratory credibility

3Financial Management: wastewater operations cost determination, energy demand, operations and maintenance budget and expenditure, supply chain management

4Technical Management: WWTW design capacity, process/audit condition assessment, sewer main inspection, asset register, local regulation

5Quality Compliance: monitoring information, authorisation, effluent compliance sludge classification

This is one of the most important days in the Department of Water and Sanitation’s (DWS’s) 2021 calendar year,” said Sputnik Ratau, the DWS’s acting chief director for communications at the Green Drop and Blue Drop certification programme webinar, where its revitalisation was announced.

Mentioned in President Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address and part of the National Water and Sanitation Master Plan to establish water security for the next 50 years, the Blue Drop and Green Drop certification programme will protect the health and well-being of people and the environment, and improve water services and resources through regulation.

TABLE 1 Key programme dates

Key events

Regional symposiums Distribute Blue Drop PAT Green Drop audit Blue Drop PAT

July 2021 July 2021 End of July 2021

WSIs to upload portfolio of evidence (POE) Mid-August 2021 Start audits and site visits August 2021 Moderation

Completion of Blue Drop PATs August 2021

October 2021

Confirmation virtual audit Mid-November 2021

Final moderation December 2021 December 2021 Incentive-based regulation

Leonardo Manus, chief director: Regulation, Compliance and Enforcement at the DWS, said that the certification programmes are part of incentive-based regulation. “This type of regulation is all about the people who take responsibility for wastewater management. It is not a weaker form of regulation. It does not mean that the certification programme is voluntary. The National Water Act (No. 36 of 1998) states that the DWS has a right to information that assists it in its duties – meaning that if the DWS asks for information and it is not forthcoming, that is an offence.”

Manus went on to say that the certification programme aims to create

an enabling environment for improvement, compliance and efficiency. “It will provide an official recognition to excellence; it is to inspire, not to punish.”

Green Drop

Risk management is core to the Green Drop certification programme. Knowing the risks in the wastewater and sewer collection space makes it easier to manage. The DWS and Water Research Commission (WRC) have developed the wastewater risk abatement plan to assist with risk management.

“Municipalities and water service institutions (WSIs) have to manage these risks. It is simply not sustainable for the DWS to constantly intervene in terms of section 63 of the Act,” adds Manus.

Blue Drop

The Blue Drop Progress Assessment Tool (PAT) deals with the core business of providing quality drinking water to the public. It is used to assess or identify a risk within the water supply system. A risk rating will then be allocated and used to inform the DWS of areas that are excelling and areas that need to reduce risk further. There are three key areas that will be evaluated for risk: • water treatment infrastructure • people who are appointed to operate and manage that infrastructure • water risk and quality compliance. These risks should be identified and mitigated before water becomes non-compliant with standards. The Blue Drop PAT should help municipalities and WSIs to plan and understand their water supply system. It is designed to identify an area that needs improvement. The Blue Drop risk rating should not be confused with Blue Drop performance; however, Blue Drop performance cannot be achieved without a Blue Drop risk rating.

A STRONG FOUNDATION FOR INFRASTRUCTURE SUCCESS

Project plan

The DWS will be working with National Treasury, the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, and the South African Local Governance Association to make the programmes as impactful as possible.

Both the Green Drop audit and the Blue Drop PAT will be rolled out as soon as possible in order to attain a baseline of water and wastewater management. However, timelines will be slightly more relaxed to allow WSIs to gear up for the process. The final reports need to be completed in time for the WSIs’ budgeting processes.

“South Africa’s Green Drop and Blue Drop certification programme is internationally recognised and has been replicated in other countries. It facilitates evidence-based decision-making and in making the correct types of investment. This is part of creating a knowledge-driven economy,” says Dhesigen Naidoo, CEO of the WRC.

He adds that the programme is a perfect example of cooperative governance, where different spheres of government involved in water management work together to build up a system collectively. “This is also about civil society. This will help citizens understand the state of the water system and work out the contribution that they can make (negatively or positively) to water security in their local environment, provinces and nationally. It will create an empowered citizenry and encourage active participation. We will mark 2021 as an inflection in the water industry.” ROCLA is South Africa’s leading manufacturer of pre-cast concrete products.

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