WATER & WASTEWATER TREATMENT
The Lower Thukela Bulk Water Supply Scheme Established by Umgeni Water, the Lower Thukela Bulk Water Supply Scheme meets the water security needs of iLembe District Municipality. Working alongside a multidisciplinary team, Zutari (formerly Aurecon) was responsible for the scheme’s design and the provision of procurement documentation on this fastpaced project worth over R1.6 billion.
WTW inlet works
T
he serene and majestic Tugela Falls in the Drakensberg belie the immense power and scale of the downstream river when flooding in season. A river that is clear and green in winter changes into a raging, sediment-laden torrent in summer. For this reason, the transformation of this temperamental river into a reliable water source required a highly innovative engineered solution. The Lower Thukela Bulk Water Supply Scheme was conceived after Umgeni Water, in 2008, became a bulk water provider to areas of iLembe District Municipality that had not previously been served by the utility (north of
Stanger). At the time, the demand for potable water in these areas exceeded the available water resource. Feasibility study The groundwork for a project of this scale is enormous and commenced in 2009 when Zutari was appointed to undertake the detailed feasibility study to identify the position for an abstraction works, water treatment works (WTW), the associated bulk pipelines and command reservoirs. After numerous collaborative workshops and design iterations, the design team conceived a scheme capable of achieving the required 98% assurance of supply – a non-negotiable
M A R/ A P R 2021
39
