Water & Sanitation Africa
Complete water resource and wastewater management
n ational Water Week
Water for all
Mine Water
Managing water demand
Sanitation
The madness of the flush
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As an arid country with a low average rainfall, south Africa faces the danger of its groundand surface water resources becoming diminished if they are not managed more carefully. the reuse of wastewater will be an absolute necessity when our natural sources run dry or become contaminated. P6
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Editor Danielle Petterson
Managing editor Alastair Currie
Head of design Beren Bauermeister
Chief sub-editor Tristan Snijders
Contributors Jay Bhagwan, Tendai Bonga, Lester Goldman, Derek G Hazelton, Kirsty Kilner, Vuledzani Maiyana, Valerie Naidoo, Darren Oxlee, Sudhir Pillay, Lindelani Sibiya
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Copyright 2019. All rights reserved. All articles herein are copyright protected and may not be reproduced either in whole or in part without the prior written permission of the publishers. The views of contributors do not necessarily reflect those of the Water Institute of Southern Africa or the publishers.
WISA Contacts:
Head office
Tel: 086 111 9472(WISA)
fax: +27 (0)11 315 1258
Physical address: 1st Floor, Building 5, Constantia Park, 546 16th Road, Randjiespark Ext 7, Midrand Website: www.wisa.org.za
BRANCHES
central Branch (Free State, Northern Cape, North West)
chairperson: Dr Leana Esterhuizen company: Central University of Technology
Tel: +27 (0)51 507 3850 email: lesterhu@cut.ac.za
eastern cape: chairperson: Christopher Maduma company: Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality
Tel: +27 (0)41 506 7527 cell: +27 (0)82 300 7044 email: citm@live.com
Gauteng chairperson: Ashwin Seetal company: CSIR Tel: +27 (0)12 841 3477
cell: +27 (0)82 804 2852 email: aseetal@csir.co.za
KwaZulu-Natal chairperson: Lindelani Sibiya company: Umgeni Water cell: +27 (0)82 928 1081 email: lindelani.sibiya@umgeni.co.za
Limpopo chairperson: Mpho Chokolo company: Lepelle Northern Water cell: +27 (0)72 310 7576 email: mphoc@lepelle.co.za
Mpumalanga
Chairperson: Lihle Mbatha (Acting) Company: Inkomati-Usuthu Catchment Management Agency
Tel: +27 (0)13 753 9000
Email: mbathat@iucma.co.za
Western cape chairperson: Natasia van Binsbergen company: AL Abbott & Associates
Tel: +27 (0)21 448 6340
cell: +27 (0)83 326 3887
email: natasia@alabbott.co.za
Finding the silver lining
South Africa celebrates National Water Week in March, placing wa ter issues squarely in the spotlight under this year’s theme of ‘Leaving no one behind; water for all’.
Although South Africa has made great strides in the provision o f water, Trevor Balzer, DDG: Strategic and Emergency Projects, Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), reports that 5.3 million households still do not have access to reliable drinking water.
How do we ensure water for all?
The DWS was recently called to answer for the delays in the imp lementation of a number of bulk water supply projects, including the Giyani Bu lk Water Supply project. The Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation report ed that it was not happy with some of the reasons provided by the DWS for the delays in the implementation of projects, chalking it up to poor planning and failure to properly implement procurement policies.
However, if we are to achieve the ambitious target of safe water for all, South Africa will need to make major investments in its water a nd sanitation infrastructure, seeking out new and innovative technologies, an d actually see projects through to completion, on time and within budget.
Unfortunately, government slashed its infrastructure spend last year, putting strain on an already struggling industry. In fact, listed contractors have lost more than 70% of their value over the last 10 years, and David Metel erkamp, senior economist at Industry Insight, believes that the construction i ndustry has been in a recession since 2014 – particularly in the civils sector.
Although there is some reprieve this year, Dr Azar Jamine, chief economist at Econometrix, argues that Minister Tito Mboweni’s2019 budget doe s not reflect the infrastructure boom as promised by President Cyril Ramaphos a in his latest State of the Nation Address. And although there is a 7.7% incre ase in the budget allocation for water and sanitation infrastructure, Metelerkamp explains that this is off a low base and should actually be higher.
With fiscal constraints, confidence at an all-time low and many people in what Metelerkamp describes as a “wait-and-see mode”, how do we address these challenges and actually ensure that water is delivered to those who need it most?
Jamine offers several steps that need to be followed in order t o turn around the economy and create positive growth. First and foremost, we need to eliminate (or at least reduce) irregular, wasteful and unauthorised expenditure within our municipalities. If this is achieved, we could see a saving of R26 billion. Furthermore, restoring efficiencies within SARS could add an additional R40 billion.
However, this is not beneficial unless municipalities and government departments actually spend their budget allocations. Unfortunately, only 10% of municipalities spent their full capital budgets last year. This – especially when coupled with deteriorating state-owned enterprises and the returning threat of load-shedding – poses a serious concern.
The silver lining? If we can fight corruption and reduce inefficiencies, we can unleash a significant sum of money that can bolster the economy and contribute to an infrastructure boom.
WISA’s Vision Inspiring passion for water
Embracing the future of reuse
As an arid country with a low average rainfall, South Africa faces the danger of its ground- and surface water resources becoming diminished if they are not managed more carefully. The reuse of wastewater as an alternative resource will be an absolute necessity when our natural sources run dry or become contaminated.
With the projected population growth over the next 10 years – coupled with the shifting weather patterns brought on by global warming –the use and reuse of wastewater in South Africa to augment natural resources is a great opportunity for increased sustainability.
South Africa has many large wastewater treatment works that are well established and near city metropoles. These offer a perfect opportunity to provide raw water sources to communities for further treatment; however, for this to be achieved,
robust, versatile plants that incorporate proven technology in the treatment of wastewater to drinking water.
Activated sludge processes followed by a dissolved air flotation (DAF) system, as pre-treatment to membrane processes, as well the membrane processes themselves, have become cost-effective, energy-efficient methods in treating raw sewage to potable standards. This results in the efficient removal of not only suspended solids, but also chemical oxygen demand and phosphorus in wastewater.
In fact, DAF systems have now become a prerequisite as an intrinsic part of the process of treating wastewater. This trend is going to pick up over the next few years as the pressure to reuse wastewater grows exponentially.
The design and implementation of mobile, modular, cost-effective water treatment unit operations – and the combination of these units to form a complete process to transform typical wastewaters with high organic and suspended solids content into drinking water – is of paramount importance.
A well-placed, well-designed train of modular unit operations offers unprecedented advantages for both up- and downstream processes, through both the removal of pollutants
in wastewater and the protection of human life.
AquaPlan’s robust, skid-mounted systems are well suited for incorporation into current processes as pre-treatment to both ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) systems, as well as post-treatment to biological processes such as membrane bioreactor (MBR), moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) and sequential batch reactor (SBR) systems.
Coupled with well-designed biological systems, the removal and carry-over of suspended and organic matter to post-treatment processes poses a direct threat to the longevity and sustainability of membrane processes. The up- and downstream processes are very effective in removing unwanted suspended and dissolved solids.
a first for aquaPlan
AquaPlan was recently responsible for the design, manufacturing, supply, site construction and commissioning of one such plant for an office and recreational facility in the Western Cape.
The 0.8 MLD plant treats raw sewage to potable standards, recycling it back into the drinking water system, which feeds the office complex of approximately 10 000 people.
The plant comprises the complete process, including raw sewage collection and pumping, underground piping,
activated sludge sewage treatment, DAF, sand filtration, activated carbon filtration, UF, RO and remineralisation, complete with chemical dosing for coagulation and flocculation needs.
The design, manufacturing, construction and site installation of the sub-R27 million, including all civils and electrical work, was done by AquaPlan, over a 10-month period.
The process has been specifically built around the customer’s needs and comprises a complete plant, with all process units included for a full and functional plant producing clean drinking water, ready for use by the customer.
AquaPlan has worked on numerous similar projects over the past 25 years and has plants running across South Africa, with similar, if not exact, unit operations running in isolation; however, none of those plants have all unit operations stacked side by side, to form a complete process, as in this application.
Drinking our own treated waste may not sound plausible at this point, but it is indeed our future
For the first time, AquaPlan has almost 15 unit operations running in a combination of series and parallel applications, to serve the client with a complete process that treats the full human and industrial waste stream to potable quality.
Shifting mindsets
The biggest challenge when it comes to rolling out this type of technology is changing people’s attitudes towards the use of wastewater that has been treated to potable standards. As pristine natural resources become increasingly diminished and the
Location: Western Cape
Client: Office and recreational facility for approximately 10 000 people
Scope of work: Design, manufacturing, supply, site construction and commissioning of the complete project
Budget: <R27 million
Timeline: <12 months
Plant capacity: 0.8 MLD
Feedwater quality and origin: Raw sewage from office facility
Purpose of the plant: Treatment of wastewater to potable standards and recycling it back into the office complex drinking water system
environmental degradation of natural habitats becomes more evident as a direct result of industrial activity, the shift to utilising wastewater for drinking water will grow exponentially. The technology required to produce drinking water from a wide range of non-potable sources such as acid mine drainage, seawater and raw sewage at city outfall points has, in fact, existed for a long time.
Each person, as a responsible citizen, has a vested interest in not only minimising waste, but utilising our waste streams in environmentally responsible ways – reducing our carbon footprint and conserving energy. Drinking our own treated waste may not sound plausible at this point, but it is indeed our future.
Landmark project
The power of 4IR
Water crises have ranked among the top global risks in terms of potential impact for seven years in a row.
This tells us that a new approach is no longer an option, but a necessity.
By Dr Lester Goldman
What is clear is that we have to begin to harness the technology and information represented by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) in the way we manage global challenges, including water.
WISA wants to ensure that, over the next few years, we can facilitate meetings and events where water sector experts, policy influencers, decision-makers, entrepreneurs and technology innovators can harness 4IR and decide upon actions that mitigate this global risk. And we must ensure that these ideas turn into actions.
Here are some 4IR technologies that will likely play a vital role in the way forward.
Dr
ai and decentralised systems
As some countries, towns and cities are already experiencing, urbanisation in emerging markets will place huge burdens on centralised water systems. Existing methodologies may not be feasible anymore,
considering financial constraints, climate change and governance challenges. Artificial intelligence (AI) and the internet of things (IoT) can prove helpful in decentralising and bringing potential solutions to scale.
Monitoring tools
Satellite imagery, remote sensing, IoT, AI and other 4IR technology can all help to monitor water basins and measure risks. This allows prompt analysis and increases solution efficacy. This ability to track and mitigate water-related risks is something we should all already be using, and is undoubtedly part of the required new approach.
Smart cities
IoT, AI and other advanced technologies combined will influence the way we provide and maintain water and sanitation in our cities. Whether we retrofit to become more resilient or design service delivery systems to meet the increasing urbanisation needs, these technologies are generating both insights and economic opportunities. Green measuring tools and AI sensoring in public areas, for example, already provide useful information that impacts our sanitation and healthcare, and allows us to improve the quality and distribution of sanitation systems.
advanced materials
Advancements in material development, like new membrane technology, can
improve our desalination and other water treatment efforts. They also allow scope for large improvements in the quality of water reuse filtration. Affordable ‘space age’ materials are now available to improve our maintenance efforts, and innovators are even harvesting water from air on a more feasible basis.
Blockchain
Blockchain technology allows a secure, transparent and distributed ledger to record transactions between parties. This technology could fundamentally transform the way water resources are managed and traded. All users will be able to access information on water quality and quantity. This increased transparency will influence water user consumption patterns, and the real-time approach to water management could greatly mitigate tensions within and across localities by improving access to information and reducing incorrect data.
The opportunity before us is to connect and scale these pockets of innovation; however, this will not happen on its own. We must refine and adapt the technologies but, more importantly, we must improve our governance frameworks and policies, social interactions, and financial models accordingly.
New forms of public-private participation and water business models are at the heart of our challenge.
Lester Goldman, CEO, WISA
Cape Town and its 10-point drought-proof plan
The City of Cape Town recently announced its Draft Water Strategy to ‘drought-proof’ the city after it narrowly escaped Day Zero last year. This is a step in the right direction, and other cities need to follow suit, if we are to shift towards a climate-independent, water-secure society.
By Dr Valerie Naidoo
Drought is and always will be a part of life in many parts of South Africa. A recent Water Research Commission (WRC) study done by scientists using hydrological and run-off data has reinforced what water sector professionals have always known – that South Africa’s water source areas are limited to a 10% of the land area in the country, Lesotho and Swaziland. This land mass of strategic water resources (inclusive of surface water and groundwater) supports 50% of the population, more than 64% of the national economy and more than 70% of the irrigation water. If the latter two percentages, which are heavily linked to the economy, have not gotten the attention of other national departments – like Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries; Finance; Economic Development; Trade and Industry; as well as National Treasury – and small business, then we are moving towards a dangerous blame game where the house of cards comes tumbling down. These strategic water source areas also contribute about 65% of the water to Gauteng, and 98% to Cape Town and eThekwini. This study clearly provides
evidence for a call to action, not only to protect these strategic water sources areas, but also to invest in it, as we would for any other national asset on the books.
improved drought modelling
Recent drought modelling studies done with WRC and climate scientists have also shown the need for South Africa to continuously invest in science in order to strengthen our knowledge on future projections of drought.
Traditionally, South Africa has based its projections on the standardised precipitation index (SPI). More recently, however, it has used the standardised precipitation evaporation index (SPEI), which has improved the sensitivity of the projections, which now paint an interesting picture of our drought cycles.
Plotting seasonal patterns from 1950 to 2014 using SPEI shows that climate and weather has changed and is continuing to do so. The results show that the drought patterns persist and linger for more than two seasons in some cases. Even though the National Water Resource Strategy II (NWRS II) has been around for over five years, no significant shifts have occurred in moving cities and towns towards ‘new
taps’, as recommended by watersensitive design research frameworks and the NWRS II.
These reports have called for integrated water supply mixes consisting of municipal-level interventions like greywater reuse and rainwater harvesting, and water conservation and demand management measures, as well as bulk water interventions like stormwater harvesting, bulk recycling and reclamation of wastewater, aquifer recharge and desalination. The water-sensitive design framework goes further by integrating water management within cities. It treats
Dr Valerie Naidoo, chair, WISA
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cities as subcatchments that use built and ecological infrastructure interchangeably to capture, treat, store and use water and treated water, while smartly managing the effects of pollution through circular economy investment. It also drives more small business development to support the communities and public sector through innovative revenue and business models.
cape Town’s plan
Very little of the above has been implemented at a national scale. The result is that South Africa has not drastically shifted towards being climate independent or water secure, largely due to disputed mandates, a lack of unifying leadership and budget shortfalls.
Can the latter be solved through innovative publicprivate partnerships and the opening up of the sector to deliver services through SMMEs? Yes, but it would require innovative thinking around governance, procurement and incentives, and less thinking around the protection of jobs, territory and mandates. In order words, it will require many departments working well together.
Hence, Cape Town’s 10-point drought-proof plan is a step in the right direction. The city is actually taking the lessons from the previous drought and gearing towards driving multiple sustainability and resilience objectives – which appear to be inclusive of economic growth through SMME development, rather than focusing solely on cost recovery from services.
The 10 ways the city intends to achieve this include:
1. Bringing in new water supplies through the use of desalination and groundwater, as well as reclaiming wastewater and integrating treatment and quality through recharge systems
2. Increasing supply by 300 M ℓ /day
3. Treating wastewater to drinking water standards
4. Increasing tariffs to cover investment costs
5. Changing by-laws and building codes to strengthen the use of water-efficient technologies for sanitation, showers, etc. and the reuse of grey water
6. Harvesting stormwater as a water source
7. Using tariffs to discourage the wastage of water and encourage revenue collection
8. Encouraging innovations around water-saving devices and services
9. Improving water conservation and demand management measures as well as alien eradication to better protect water sources
10. Introducing a ’rainless day’ fund to alleviate some of the costs associated with future droughts.
Thi s is a bold plan that will need investment in existing infrastructure, new infrastructure as well as in well-trained and professional public technical staff.
YWP-ZA to host sixth biennial conference in Durban
The Young Water Professionals Empowerment
Platform of WISA (YWP-ZA) is planning its sixth biennial conference to be held for the first time in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal – from 27 to 30 October 2019 – at the Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani.
By Lindelani Sibiya and Vuledzani Maiyana*
YWP-ZA has successfully organised five conferences, including the recent 8th International Young Water Professionals Conference, which was jointly hosted by YWP-ZA and the International Water Association (IWA) in Cape Town, in December 2017.
The 6th YWP-ZA Conference is aimed at empowering youth and shaping the future of the water sector. This year’s event is embracing each and every individual in the water sector – from academics to consultants and water professionals – and emphasises the importance of entrepreneurship among youth in the sector.
Furthermore, the conference stresses the significant role young water practitioners need to play in the water value chain, to protect this precious resource for future generations. As a result, the theme is ‘My Water, My Business’.
What is the theme about?
My Water, My Business is a direct reminder that everyone uses water and, as such, everyone has a role to play in
water management. The conference theme will encourage workshops and presentations on how individual skills have contributed or can collectively contribute to addressing challenges in the water sector. It will also inspire young water professionals in particular to take ownership and full accountability of water sector challenges.
The theme restores pride in being a water professional, and is aimed at improving accountability, inclusivity and active participation in addressing water-related issues for the sustainability of our water resources.
The recent drought in South Africa demonstrated that water, although
The 6th YWP-ZA Conference is aimed at empowering youth and shaping the future of the water sector
ABOVE Conference delegates at the 8th International Young Water Professionals Conference in Cape Town
in abundance, needs to be used and managed properly to ensure its survival and that this can only be done if everyone takes accountability and ownership of their water.
The
business side
My Water, My Business also appeals to the business side of the water value chain that does not often get the attention it deserves. It recognises that water management can only be successful when there are thriving private and public entities in the water sector that make immense contributions to the country’s economy and government’s mandate of water and sanitation for all.
Thus, the conference will further offer an avenue for young entrepreneurs to discuss business opportunities that exist and could be explored within the water sector. Various business models, funding
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Young water professionals are encouraged to send their abstracts when the call for abstracts is opened on 20 March 2019
opportunities and incubation spaces will be discussed.
The conference also provides a platform for disruptive and forwardthinking discussions that will hopefully bring answers to: what it means to lay claim to water as ‘My Water’; how young people perceive business opportunities in the South African water sector; and whether the recent drought opened up opportunities for exploring more innovative water conservation and demand management technologies, models or
approaches for young professionals. To enable discussions, the 6th YWP-ZA Conference will offer thought-leadership plenaries, technical presentations, interactive workshop spaces and poster presentations. The following topics will be covered, among others:
• Innovative water businesses
• Sanitation for a water-scarce country
• Ecological water infrastructure
• Day Zero: A reality
• Water in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
c all for abstracts and participation Young water professionals at academic institutions, utilities, municipalities and in private enterprises are encouraged to send their abstracts when the call for abstracts is opened on 20 March 2019. YWP-ZA is also appealing to young entrepreneurs to participate in this conference, as it aims to include business aspects of the sector where youth can impact or benefit.
topics to be covered at the conference
My Water, My Business
• Water in the Fourth Industrial Revolution
• Innovative water businesses and opportunities
• Day Zero: A reality
• Sanitation solutions for a water-scarce country
• Ecosystems management and restoration of the natural environment
YWP-ZA would like to aknowledge the contribution of Umgeni Water as the main sponsor for this conference. The conference organising commitee is still seeking more partnerships/sponsorships from other allied organisations.
*Lindelani Sibiya is the conference chair and Vuledzani Maiyana the programme chair for the 6th YWP-ZA Conference.
South Africa
HI764113 Rugged Optical Dissolved Oxygen Probe for Fresh and Saltwater Applications
The HI98198 Optical Dissolved Oxygen Meter makes measuring the concentration of dissolved oxygen hassle-free. Optical DO technology doesn’t require a minimum flow rate, so there is less drift in your readings. Perfect for the field or for the laboratory, the Quick Connect probe requires no membranes, no filling solution, and no warm-up time so you can measure without hesitation. Your meter comes complete in a rugged, custom carrying case for easy transportation.
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World Water Day 2019
Leaving no one behind
80% of countries have insufficient finances to meet national water, sanitation and hygiene targets
More than 700 children under the age of five die every day from diarrhoea linked to unsafe water and poor sanitation
Women and girls are responsible for water collection in 8 out of 10 households with water off-premises
WHY ARE PEOPLE BEING LEFT BEHIND WITHOUT SAFE WATER?
1. Sex and gender
4 billion
4 billion people experience severe water scarcity during at least one month of the year
700 million
700 million people worldwide could be displaced by intense water scarcity by 2030
• 5.3 million South African households do not have access to reliable drinking water
• 14.1 million South Africans do not have access to safe sanitation
• South Africa is the 39th driest country in the world
• South Africa is facing a projected 17% water deficit by 2030
2. Race, ethnicity, religion, birth, caste, language, and nationality
3. Disability, age and health status
4. Property, tenure, residence, economic and social status
2.1 billion
2.1 billion people live without safe water at home
Globally, 80% of the people who have to use unsafe and unprotected water sources live in rural areas
While Stats
SA’s 2016 General Household Survey estimated that 88.8% of South African households have access to piped water, less than half the population is believed to have water piped directly to their homes.
Although most households in South Africa have the necessary infrastructure to supply water, Stats SA approximated that only 46.4% of South African households have water piped to their homes, with 26.8% having access to water on their property, and 13.3% needing to share a communal tap. Adding to this challenge is the fact that South Africa is the 39th driest country in the world in terms of average rainfall.
Aquastats data from the United Nations shows that although South Africa has more renewable freshwater sources than Botswana and Namibia, the distribution of these sources is limited. As a result, only 822.2 m 3 of fresh water is available to every person
Water for socie ty
in South Africa – far less than our drier neighbours Botswana and Namibia, where each person has access to 1 061 m 3 and 2 505 m 3, respectively. With such limited access, it is more important than ever for society to optimise its use of its precious water sources, particularly through methods such as groundwater abstraction and wastewater reuse.
Getting the right solutions
Quality Filtration Systems (QFS) has been involved in a number of groundbreaking projects in groundwater abstraction and wastewater reuse, playing a significant role in changing the statistics.
QFS offers predesigned, containerised solutions that can be installed with minimal site work and can supply water at low costs. With its readily deployable
systems, QFS can help supply communities with limited water supply within a short turnaround time.
“We have the ability to enhance the water needed by society. These systems can be applied to non-potable boreholes, treated effluent water, water storage systems, reservoirs, affected natural water sources, water effluent generated by industries, and various other sources. From cities to distant towns and villages, QFS can readily deploy the solutions needed to alleviate the needs over all spheres of society,” says Herman Smit, managing director, QFS.
He continues: “Society needs experts who can help in boosting its understanding of water resources and how to utilise them optimally. With 22 years in the water industry, QFS is playing its part in advising and assisting society in its thirst for water-
A QFS water reuse solution installed in Ballito, KwaZulu-Natal
QFS’s in-house engineering capability can assist in solving challenges presented by society’s need for water
A QFS containerised ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis unit for groundwater abstraction in the Karoo town of Leeu-Gamka
and counting
This year, Veolia Water Technologies celebrates 20 years of business in South Africa. The company behind some of Southern Africa’s most important and forward-thinking water and wastewater treatment plants welcomes this landmark year with a renewed strategic focus.
Veolia Water Technologies was first launched in 1999 as Vivendi Water, through the acquisition of local water treatment company Chematron, with a complement of 80 staff members. Today, the organisation’s local workforce stands at over 700 employees, making it one of the continent’s largest specialist water treatment organisations.
A large number of additional employees based in France further support Veolia’s ‘Ambitions for Africa’ strategy, which – through cost-effective, reliable and compact treatment solutions, utilising the company’s over 350 proprietary technologies – aims to improve access to water and sanitation, optimise water usage among industry, and ensure environmental compliance. This strategy forms the newest chapter in a history characterised by a consistent ability to reposition the company’s technologies and offerings
in order to meet the evolving market requirements of municipal and industrial water treatment systems across the African continent.
From a strong initial focus on design and build projects – especially since the organisation’s 2005 merger with Weir Envig – with an impressive portfolio of projects that includes the Ambatovy Mine crystallisation plant in Madagascar, the 15 MLD Mossel Bay desalination plant, and the 55 MLD Lower Thukela potable water treatment plant, the company is now Africa’s leader in total end-to-end, customised treatment solutions. These include package plants, operations and maintenance, and the supply of chemicals and spares.
Leaders in package plants
“As the demand for smaller-scale, plug-and-play water and wastewater systems that can be supplied at short notice has increased, it is in the modular
market where Veolia is experiencing concentrated growth,” says Chris Braybrooke, GM: Marketing, Veolia. Initially supplied as made-to-order, customised plants since 2005, these package plants (now branded as Water Techno Packages) are now supplied by Veolia as standard, off-the-shelf solutions.
The benefit of this is even greater fabrication speed, with complete factory-acceptance tested plants being produced in 10 to 12 weeks according to ISO 9001 quality standards.
From its Sebenza production facility in Ekurhuleni, Veolia supplies a complete range of these plants – from containerised or even truck-mounted potable water and trickling filter plants, to high-specification Orion plants for ultrapure water. Their mobile and reliable construction enables supply as far afield as Nigeria and Ethiopia across a range of industries, from mining and oil and gas to tourism.
e nd-to-end water treatment services
Another key growth area for Veolia lies in the increasing demand for
The membrane bioreactors at the Bellville WWTW process 20 MLD in a footprint one fifth of the size of a conventional plant
FOR AFRICA
AMBITIONS
operations and maintenance (O&M) services, as companies seek to rationalise and improve the overall efficiency and profitability of their water cycle.
“Structured O&M agreements benefit companies not just by ensuring plants are professionally maintained and can guarantee compliance; through continuous process optimisation, we can work towards lowering their overall costs of production over time,” Braybrooke explains.
Since 2001, Veolia has supplied O&M services to the Durban Water Recycling Plant, recycling 47.5 MLD of wastewater to near-potable standards for reuse by large-volume industrial customers.
from 80 t/m in 1999 to 350 t/m today, courtesy of the company’s new 6 600 m 2 production facility in Pomona, opened in 2018.
More recently, Veolia has assumed management of a number of plants and over 100 km of potable and sewerage infrastructure for Overstrand Municipality in the Western Cape.
In the industrial sector, outsourced O&M has allowed companies to focus their energy and resources on their core production business, improving operational efficiency. From food and beverage to manufacturing, mining and steel, Veolia executes O&M contracts for all major industries in Southern Africa.
Another core part of Veolia’s services is its Hydrex range of chemicals, which have seen an increase in production
Expanded production capabilities have led to shorter lead times and, as the primary chemical manufacturing hub for the entire continent, the facility services plants all over South Africa, as well as in Angola, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique and Namibia. Recent geographic expansion has also established the company’s presence in North Africa and the Middle East, through contracts in Morocco and Qatar.
Looking ahead
Veolia is constantly innovating and introducing new, tested technologies. This year, Veolia will introduce its AquaVista™ digital platform to African markets.
This award-winning, IoT-based technology allows customers to implement real-time monitoring and diagnostics capabilities to their water works.
AquaVista delivers in-depth plant intelligence to Veolia’s engineers across South Africa, via the organisation’s secure cloud technology. The software, which will be standard in Veolia’s Water Techno Packages in the future, provides real-time support, predictive maintenance and optimisation avenues.
“Constant innovation and the ability to adapt our technologies to market requirements are some of the key factors that have allowed Veolia to become South Africa’s leading water solutions supplier, and will continue to form the backbone as we look to a future of exciting water treatment opportunities across the continent,” concludes Braybrooke.
Veolia’s Biobulk® CSTR technology enables companies to recycle process water, lowering bulk water consumption and harvesting biogas as fuel for the plant’s boilers
Veolia supplied the mechanical and electrical components for the 55 MLD Lower Thukela potable water treatment plant in KwaZulu-Natal
The fully mobile, truck-mounted Mobile Water Treatment Plant can be rapidly deployed to provide potable water production to SANS 241 standards
Do or die for cities
One in four large cities already faces water stress, and demand for water is projected to more than double by 2050. If cities are to keep up, urban water infrastructure will have to be extensively renewed and expanded.
cape Town made a narrow escape, but an increasing numbers of cities worldwide are at risk of reaching Day Zero unless they begin to actively manage and improve the resilience of their entire water basins, warns the new Cities Alive: WaterforPeople report.
a holistic approach
Water basins are vital for supplying cities with water – the very cities that impact water basins’ stewardship for hundreds of miles. And yet, most cities invest very little in their water basins.
The report, endorsed by the International Water Association (IWA), cautions that cities need to expand what they might now consider their water infrastructure to include the entire river basins on which they depend.
This requires far greater “upstream thinking” in how cities approach water management to consider the water basin as a whole.
Rethinking water in cities as a connected network of blue
infrastructure creates healthier, more resilient and prosperous cities. Blue infrastructure is closely related to green infrastructure and can, together, be defined as “natural or semi-natural networks of green (soil-covered or vegetated) and blue (water-covered) spaces and corridors that maintain and enhance ecosystem services”.
The opportunity to retrofit existing grey infrastructure so that it better manages water exists at a large scale, as does the potential to positively influence water management by ensuring that nature-based solutions are at the core of new developments.
Although complex and challenging, strategic, long-term city planning and incremental collaboration through new partnerships and funding arrangements are vital.
“Recognising the importance of the entire water basin is essential, as urban water resilience is not possible without rural water resilience. In simple terms, we must be more water-wise,” says Dr Mark Fletcher, global water leader, Arup.
TOP Adelaide Riverbank, Australia
ABOVE The Sydney Park Wetlands
“With up to 4.3 billion people expected to live in cities by 2050, this is something city leaders and water managers need to be looking at now. While this is a challenge, it also provides a significant opportunity to revolutionise how urban water systems are designed and retrofitted, and how they can deliver greater benefits for all.”
achieving resilience
The Cities Alive report identifies five common themes for successfully reconnecting people with the water cycle and focusing towards ‘blue’ cities.
1
PUTTiNG PeoPLe fiRST
Rapid urbanisation, population growth and extreme weather present major challenges for cities.
Placing people at the heart
of sustainable city planning and design is crucial.
A water-wise approach to the planning and design of water in cities will create more reliable supply, improve water quality, provide effective flood protection, reduce drought conditions, and create more liveable cityscapes – all of which contributes to people’s health and wellness.
The Thai government, for example, has developed a device capable of transforming diseased floodwater into a safe potable supply for its people. In 2011, 65% of Thailand’s provinces spent over four months submerged in flood waters, which can contaminate safe water sources. The Solar Operating System, which can be powered by the sun or batteries, uses silver nanoparticles that coat the ceramic filters and help to kill disease-causing microbes to filter 2 000 litres of water a day.
2
BaSiN-SeNSiTiVe ciTieS
The interactions of water, sediment, nutrients and ecology as they flow through basins can offer
Recognising the importance of the entire water basin is essential
both positives and negatives, depending on whether they are embraced and understood. Recognising these concepts and considering the natural river basin processes are key to achieving successful design for cities focused on resilience, wise water use and sustainability.
Mexico City has embraced this concept, starting to think of its area like the lake it used to be. The city sits in a virtually impermeable former lakebed that causes water to collect, unless it is retained higher up, and both flooding and water shortage are common.
The new Bosque de Agua initiative seeks to change the way residents view Mexico City: not only as a megacity, but also as a forest upon which they depend for their water. The forest provides 70% of the city’s water supply from across its 250 km² area, with an estimated
economic value of US$30 billion (R431 billion).
3
iNTeGRaTed deSiGN
Although typically designed to perform a singular function, urban infrastructure can be multifunctional to allow cities to better respond to future challenges. For example, an infrastructure scheme can be designed to incorporate flood-risk management and water-harvesting, and provide community and habitat benefits.
New York is taking this multifunctional approach with its innovative rainwater harvesting system, which optimises the supply-demand balance. Stormwater run-off from the FDR Drive highway is collected, conveyed, treated to remove oils and sediments, stored, and disinfected before being used to irrigate parks.
4
ciTY ReGeNeRaTioN
Cities that develop in a manner sensitive to natural processes are likely to be more efficient, resilient and
“Water for people is also water by people.”
sustainable. Water can act as a powerful focal point for redevelopment, helping catalyse wider city regeneration. In fact, a 2014 Oxfam report suggests that every dollar invested in wetland restoration returns $15 (R215) in net economic and social benefits.
Singapore has harnessed this concept by transforming into a vibrant city of gardens and water by optimising reservoirs, rivers and canals. The city’s Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters programme aims to improve the quality of water and life of the 8 000 km of waterways and 17 reservoirs in the city’s water supply network, reconnecting ecosystem services to people and the surrounding environment.
5
TR a NS ce N di NG B a RR ie RS
Integrated working is key to generating wider environmental, social and economic benefits to the
planning and design of water in cities.
Siloed thinking and fixed and restricted organisational responsibilities must be replaced by greater engagement, integration and joint working to gain mutual, city-wide benefits. This will involve breaking down barriers between communities, companies and organisations, and forming new positive partnerships.
In Karachi, Pakistan, a group of concerned citizens has developed a water partnership to help meet the needs of one of the largest and most densely populated cities in the world. The Karachi Water Partnership joins the civil and private sector, water professionals and members of the public to collectively drive better management of the city’s water through partnership building, stakeholder engagement, training workshops and education.
Making the transition
By pooling expertise and understanding to apply these five core principles, healthy and sustainable blue cities can be built to meet the needs of those living in them.
“It’s really about people taking responsibility for building water-wise cities – cities that are connected to their basins, designed in a watersensitive way, and deliver services that are sustainable, flexible and robust,” states Corinne Trommsdorff, programme manager: Cities of the Future, International Water Association.
“Building water-wise communities is the key to achieving that. Water for people is also water by people. IWA members are endorsing the Principles for Water-Wise Cities to drive this transition.”
Gardens by the Bay in Singapore
Monthly dam storage measured from space
A unique South African development provides surface water area and volume calculations via satellite.
You cannot manage what you do not measure. In a water-limited economy such as South Africa’s, improved information on the location and volumes of water is a non-negotiable outcome for better water management. In the past decades, manual monitoring has been effective for a limited number of large resources, given the available tools at the time. New methods and software systems developed by GeoTerra Image (GTI) and EkoSource, using satellite imagery, now provide a consistent measurement we’ve come to expect from the latest Industry 4.0 technologies.
EkoSource, in partnership with GTI, is at the forefront, with pioneering techniques that set a new benchmark for the volume and area calculation of private and public dam storage volumes on a monthly basis.
“GTI has led the market in terms of measuring water surface area via satellite for a number of years,” explains Jason Hallowes, director, EkoSource. “A key game changer is GTI’s move to cloud processing, which significantly speeds up interpretation and analysis.”
To illustrate this point, the previous cycle used to take around eight weeks. This obviously presented a major time lag in terms of reporting on the current water security status. Now, with the
methods used and Google’s cloud processing capabilities, the processing of that information takes around six hours.
“There are approximately five satellite passes each month,” says Hallowes. “In addition to storage stats, downloads also help to map out potential volumes available in specific catchment zones.”
A market leader in its field, EkoSource works with the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) to update its National Integrated Water Information System (NIWIS). The NIWIS is one of the key knowledge centres used to manage national water security. EkoSource also supports the Inkomati Usuthu Catchment Management Agency (IUCMA), Umgeni Water and various private sector clients with water management systems. This has enabled the IUCMA to effectively manage the sustainable release of water to downstream irrigation users.
dam monitoring
The DWS continues to use standard monitoring tools to measure and confirm the daily levels at South Africa’s major dams, representing some 50% of the overall water volume in South Africa. However, there are around 28 000 small dams (such as farm dams) across the country that are still unmonitored. They have an impact on water security, since they intercept
run-off before it gets to the rivers and larger dams. On the upside, they can also provide a supplementary supply to towns and cities during drought conditions. Knowing the overall status of water supply in a specific area is thus key in making short-term restriction decisions and can improve overall water security in vulnerable areas.
The GTI and EkoSource dam products can be extended to support information relating to dam safety monitoring. The water surfaces can determine whether dam tailings facilities might be at risk of failure. Additionally, further information can support an understanding of wetland dynamics in various areas.
“We’re also finding that our satellite assessments are proving beneficial in determining sedimentation rates. When dam levels drop, it is possible to identify contour changes resulting from sedimentation and, thus, better understand sediment dynamics in these areas.” Hallowes continues.
Currently, EkoSource is busy testing its dam volume calculation algorithms.
“Once we’ve finalised this exercise, we’ll be able to determine the stored volume of all the man-made water resources in a specific catchment. In addition to South Africa, our plan is to roll out this technology to the rest of Africa, and eventually the world,” Hallowes concludes.
Managing water demand
Water shortages in the Rustenburg area placed significant pressure on mines and communities alike. By accurately modelling its water balance, Lonmin was able to achieve significant improvements in water use efficiency as well as improve water security for the entire community. By Danielle Petterson
Platinum mining in the Rustenburg area led to a significant influx of people, placing immense pressure on the municipality’s water and sanitation services. As a result, the area has experienced water shortages since the early 1990s, sparking considerable focus on finding sustainable water solutions.
Although mines had initially developed in isolation, it was soon realised that cooperation and coordination were required to assist authorities with the constrained regional water sources. From this it was identified that the accelerated implementation of water conservation and water demand management (WC/ WDM) was needed.
Lonmin undertook a systematic approach, using water quality and demand requirements for various mining processes to develop a dynamic water balance model. The mining house’s WC/WDM programme aimed to ensure sustainable water supply and use, to improve compliance and to inform the development of the Lonmin integrated water resource management system.
a sizeable challenge
Lonmin’s significant area of operation boasts a water system spanning roughly 30 km. The mining company is responsible for delivering water to and from numerous mines, storage dams and
pipelines, as well as distributing water to surrounding communities as a water services intermediary.
In order to undergo WC/WDM and understand the potential, a more integrated view of Lonmin’s water resources and how the various mining areas and water uses integrate was needed to identify opportunities to reduce, reuse and recycle.
“It was an extremely confusing system to get involved in because it evolved over 30 years and was not initially designed to have three mines all connected to each other. The mining villages scattered across the area were also not properly planned,” says Mias van der Walt, managing director, Bigen Africa.
Lonmin faced the significant challenges of water shortages and spills, impacted community water services and a substantial compliance burden. The company was also experiencing frequent plant stoppages due to water shortages, amounting to millions of rand per day in production losses.
According to Van der Walt, Bigen Africa was able to identify several areas for improvement. The opportunity existed to optimise external water sources, intertransfer between mining areas, and reuse water in internal systems. In addition, discharges were not controlled and anthropogenic aquifers were not being used as storage sources.
developing a solution
The first step was to define the water demand for all of the mining areas. “That in itself was a huge effort because you need to understand the mining plan, what they are producing, the unit water consumption for the various sections, define the water sources, look at the water demand management strategies, and then develop the water balance. And with that water balance, come up with different water management scenarios and develop a portfolio and WC/WDM projects,” explains Van der Walt.
Using the National Water Act (No. 10 of 1999) and best practice guidelines, Lonmin developed specific strategies to avoid, reduce, reuse and recycle, namely:
• reduce losses through seepage and overflows
• separate water circuits
• integrate regional water systems
• treat available dirty water to a higher standard to improve water reuse:
– dirty to grey water
– raw to potable water
– dirty to potable water.
To assess the impact of these strategies, a number of infrastructure upgrade scenarios were developed and tested. Of the numerous scenarios developed, no single scenario addressed all success criteria. Instead, a cumulative scenario was adopted in order to achieve the
strategic objectives. This scenario included the installation of a cross-mine transfer pipeline between the three mines, developing boreholes from rehabilitated aquifers, and maximising local resources, among others. The results were: no additional water needed for the mining of tailings; a reduction in Lonmin’s water purchases from Rand Water; and reduced environmental discharge.
Lonmin went on to base its long-term WC/WDM programme on the outcome of the optimised scenario. A number of projects were identified, planned and prioritised based on project outcomes in order to achieve the long-term goals.
Significant water savings
This cumulative scenario showed a significant improvement in relation
to the base case, as shown in Table 1. Lonmin’s purchases from Rand Water could be reduced by 4.2 million m3/a – a substantial reduction of 46%. Similarly, environmental discharge could be slashed by 39%, or 643 148 m3/a.
By reducing its demand, Lonmin was also able to free up more water for the surrounding communities, contributing to improved water security.
To replicate these successes, Van der Walt believes a change in mindset around water is needed from management level down. Mine water systems, especially those evolving and expanding over many decades,
are extremely complex and dynamic, but significant water efficiency improvements can be achieved. He argues that there is potential to ringfence sections of water systems, which can also assist the balance sheet of the mine.
It is clear that by revisiting and critically assessing an existing mine water system, a win-win scenario for all stakeholders can be achieved.
“Water is becoming a currency of scarcity, but significant water use improvements are possible through the implementation of various WC/WDM strategies,” says Van der Walt.
BULK WATER S TORAGE SOLUTIONS
TABLE 1: Optimised WC/WDM scenario
Mining area Water use aspect
Karee
Water takes its rightful place in environmental laws
The Nemla IV amendments currently before Parliament place greater emphasis on implementing measures required for treating mine water, strengthening the ability of the authorities to address issues like acid mine drainage and deteriorating water quality before they become an even greater burden on the fiscus. By Kirsty Kilner and Tendai Bonga*
The mining sector has traditionally occupied a principal role in the economic development of South Africa. For the country’s water quality, however, the legacy of mining has been unfortunate. It has resulted in acid mine drainage from gold and coal mines in both Johannesburg and eMalahleni (Witbank), and the loss of precious wetland areas.
According to the Council for Geoscience, there are an estimated 6 000 derelict and ownerless mines in South Africa, and the costs involved in addressing deteriorating water quality arising from these mines has fallen squarely into the lap of the fiscus.
Degradation of water quality, coupled with growing water shortages, has made it increasingly imperative to address mine water management.
c hanging legislation
In December 2014, the ‘One Environmental System’ was introduced in an effort to unify the environmental regulatory system applicable to the mining industry.
This involved myriad legislative amendments, which has resulted in a paradigm shift in the regulation of environmental matters applicable to the mining industry from the
Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (No. 28 of 2002; MPRDA) to the National Environmental Management Act (No. 107 of 1998; NEMA). This shift has not been a smooth one, and a number of subsequent legislative changes have been necessary to fill legislative gaps and provide clarification.
The latest changes are proposed by the National Environmental Management Laws Amendment Bill, dubbed Nemla IV, which is currently being considered by the National Council of Provinces. One of the most important aspects of Nemla IV for the management of mine water relates to proposed changes to the financial provisioning required to be set aside by mining companies for environmental rehabilitation.
Before the One Environmental System took effect, financial provisioning was regulated in terms of the MPRDA. The quantum of financial provisioning required to be set aside was calculated based on a very generic guideline document that was published in 2005 by the then Department of Minerals and Energy. The regulation of financial provisioning has since shifted to NEMA, and the Financial Provisioning Regulations (FP Regulations) that were published under this Act in 2015. It is,
however, anticipated that – following the publication of a revised set of draft regulations in 2017 – the 2015 iteration will soon be replaced.
a step in the right direction
The change in the regulation of financial provisioning has been positive for the management of mine water. Under this new regime, holders of rights to mine or prospect are specifically required to set aside funds for annual rehabilitation, closure activities, and the management of residual environmental impacts following closure – which must expressly include the pumping and treatment of polluted or extraneous water.
The quantum of the provision is required to be determined through a detailed itemisation of all activities and costs, typically requiring mining companies to set aside a great deal more than was previously required under the MPRDA system. The express requirement to set aside funds for the pumping and treatment of mine water has been criticised for placing financial strain on the mining industry. This is, nevertheless, a key development for the management of water in South Africa, as the risks and associated costs of managing mine water following closure
must be specifically catered for by mining companies.
The changes proposed by Nemla IV support the new financial provisioning regime and aim to ensure that section 24P of NEMA is aligned with the revised set of FP Regulations, which are likely to be promulgated later this year.
Protecting water resources
The most powerful aspect of Nemla IV in relation to the management of water is that if the holder of a mining right does not undertake the required rehabilitation or remedial measures, the Minister of Water and Sanitation (in addition to the MEC or Minister of Mineral Resources), will, after providing written notice to the rights holder, be able to access the full financial provision necessary to undertake the required measures.
Given that the mandate of the Minister of Water and Sanitation is the protection of South Africa’s water resources, this amendment has
the potential to result in a marked increase in the implementation of remedial measures required to manage environmental impacts such as acid mine drainage. Nemla IV also makes it clear that the rehabilitation provision can only be used for the purpose for which it was provided, and no other.
If Nemla IV is promulgated in its current form, the failure to comply with certain obligations imposed under section 24P of NEMA will be criminalised. Mining companies and the responsible directors could face penalties of up to R10 million per offence and/or 10 years in prison if successfully prosecuted.
*KirstyKilnerisaseniorassociate andTendaiBongaanassociateat WebberWentzel.Botharespecialists inenvironmentallaw.
financial provisioning obligations under NEMA.
The amendments proposed by Nemla IV will give teeth to the financial provisioning regime under NEMA: first by empowering the Minister of Water and Sanitation to access a mining company’s financial provision where the required measures have not been undertaken; and, second, by criminalising non-compliance with
As a result, Nemla IV has the potential to improve the implementation of measures required to successfully manage mine water and other environmental impacts in South Africa. Whether or not this potential will be realised will, however, ultimately depends on the willingness and capacity of the authorities to enforce these laws.
Providing smart solutions for the responsible management of the world’s most valuable resource… water
LEADERS IN SMART WATER MANAGEMENT
Preparing for emergencies
Be it ageing infrastructure or a natural disaster, utilities need to preserve their water supply in the case of pipe bursts. Italy’s Bermad offers emergency valve solutions to protect water systems when they need it most.
The city of Manila is the capital of the Philippines and has a population of approximately 20 million people in its metro area. It is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where two huge tectonic plates meet. As such, earthquakes are commonplace, and over two dozen moderate to severe earthquakes with magnitudes of 5.4 to 7.8 on the Richter scale have been recorded in the city since the turn of the 20th century.
One of the main reservoirs in Manila is the La Mesa Reservoir. The trunk main that supplies water from this
These emergency shut-off valves are based on hydraulic valves, but with special adjustments to create dedicated emergency shut-off valves.
The emergency shut-off valves have a failsafe feature, which is designed to close immediately if there is a burst in the line. The emergency valve closes to a drip-tight position with no need for external energy or inline pressure. In addition, the valve’s control system is equipped with a security mechanism that prevents the false closing of the valve.
The Bermad emergency shut-off valves are equipped with a control
reservoir passes through a densely populated valley and a major fault line. For this reason, there was a fear that an earthquake could cause the trunk main to burst and consequently cause flooding, which would both endanger human life and deplete the critical water reservoirs in times of emergency.
The Bermad Solution
To protect Manila’s water system in the event of an earthquake, Manila Water design engineers specified 36" Bermad emergency shut-off valves to be installed at the reservoir outlet.
system that enables the automatic operation of the valve. Upon detection of an emergency situation such as a poisoning attempt, burst pipes or an earthquake, the valve immediately closes the reservoir outlet and sends an alert signal to the designated emergency centre or operator.
Although there have been no disasters since their installation, the Bermad emergency shut-off valves have been functioning to the satisfaction of the operators, with the hope that they will never be required to operate in a real-time emergency situation.
Bermad in South a frica
Locally, Macsteel Fluid Control is in the process of rolling out its local manufacturing operation to market in the first quarter of 2019.
After 40 years in the water industry, the company is going a step further and manufacturing quality Bermad products locally.
Macsteel Fluid Control has been working closely with its Italian principal for roughly five years to fine-tune the local casting and assembly of Bermad control and air valves to the necessary standards.
“The locally cast product will be exactly the same as the imported product in terms of quality and performance,” says Rowan Blomquist, CEO, Macsteel Fluid Control.
“We have always supported the local industry through employment, social development initiatives and local assembly. By manufacturing complete valves locally, which we’ve never done before, we’re taking another step towards building and uplifting our local economy.”
The first pump with the characteristic screw centrifugal impeller was developed by Hidrostal in 1960 for a fishing application. Today, the pump is used in many ways throughout the world in countless other handling systems.
The screw centrifugal pump construction is suitable for the handling of solids in suspension and viscous liquids, as well as for applications with larger negative suction heads.
Hidrostal offers a range of versatile, energy-efficient bearing frame pumps, suitable for horizontal or vertical mounting and incorporating the Hidrostal Screw Centrifugal Impeller. Commonly installed in dry areas, the Flexible Coupled Bearing Frame pump is a close coupled rotating assembly fitted with Hidrostal’s standard screw centrifugal hydraulic, suitably engineered to accommodate a standard flange mount electric motor.
The construction of the flexible coupled bearing frame pump mounted on a fabricated base plate makes it ideal for rapid dismantling and enables simple removal and installation during maintenance or shutdown periods, explains Leonard Humphreys, managing director, Hidrostal SA.
The flange mount construction on the drive-end of the pump allows the electric motor to be mounted direct
The original screw centrifugal pump
i
mmersible pumps
The company also offers a range of immersible pumps, which can successfully handle difficult municipal and industrial wastewater. Viscous liquids, fragile flocs, and even live fish pose no problem.
Hidrostal’s dry well immersible pumps (with cooling jacket) have independent closed-loop cooling that enables the motor to run in either a wet or a dry well. As these immersible units do not use pumped media to cool the motors, there are no problems of overheating due to slime build-up in the cooling channel.
The pumps are particularly suited for dry-pit applications where the combination of the screw centrifugal impeller and immersible motor are the state-of-the-art technology. Leakage of the pumped product is eliminated by tandem mechanical seals, avoiding a situation commonly experienced with soft-packed glands. According to Leonard, Hidrostal immersible wastewater/sewage pump stations have frequently been mistaken for clean water stations due to the lack of odour and the cleanliness of the buildings. Immersible pumps are particularly suitable for installation where quiet running, clean surroundings, reliable and long, trouble-free operation are required. For Hidrostal, the highest level of quality is most important, explains Leonard. “Every new area of application is a challenge for Hidrostal.
Our continuous research and development has led to a continually expanding range of systems, which are in use today in very different production environments. The ongoing
technical improvements and optimisations are just as important as the shape of the screw centrifugal impeller.”
Plastic:
the answer to pipeline rehabilitation
When it comes to the rehabilitation of steel or concrete pipes and water tanks or concrete basins, polyethylene (PE) products play an essential role. Thanks to their simple processing, high chemical resistance and costeffectiveness, engineering plastics are often the best solution.
Relining leaking steel and concrete pipes with plastic pipes and concrete protection liners offers an effective solution to preserve and protect the old pipe. However, it is important to determine whether the restoration can take place with or without annulus before undertaking these measures. Expert plastics supplier Agru Kunststofftechnik has been
offering well-proven solutions for both restoration options for several decades.
Refurbishing without annulus
The advantage of refurbishing without annulus is that the old inner diameter remains almost unchanged. A folded and, therefore, reduced PE pipe section, such as the Agru SureFit liner, can be pulled into the old pipe. Thereafter, both ends are sealed and the pipe is pressurised with water vapour. The heat and pressure activate the memory effect, and the Agru SureFit liner regains its original, round shape, forming a second skin inside the old pipe.
Particularly large pipe cross sections can be fitted with a thermoplastic lining consisting of AgruSafe
concrete protection liners for a permanently sealed composite pipe resistant to corrosion, abrasion and chemical media.
Refurbishing with annulus
When renovating with annulus, the pipe cross section is reduced because the new PE pipes must fit into the old pipe, and be of a smaller diameter. This results in an unavoidable annular gap between new and old pipe; however, the smooth surface of the new PE pipe will partially compensate for the reduced transport capacity
The rehabilitation can be undertaken with coiled AgruLine pipes in a standard length of 100 m and outside diameter (OD) of up to 90 mm. For larger diameters, individual AgruLine pipes can be welded step by step in the excavation and pushed into the old pipe. The entire dimension range of available AgruLine PE pipes (from OD 20 mm to OD 3 500 mm) is available for relining.
Top trends in smart metering
As the need to conserve water increases, water utilities around the world are turning to smart technologies to improve operations. Darren Oxlee explores the five trends that utilities need to seriously consider in their quest to become smarter.
Utilities are under increasing financial pressure from non-technical water losses and inefficient revenue recovery that results in millions being lost due to incorrect billing and theft.
Driven by the need to improve operational efficiencies and revenues, cut down on wastage, and enhance customer service, water utilities around the world are turning to advanced
metering infrastructure (AMI) –including smart meters – and the trend is set to accelerate in 2019.
Harnessing technology such as the internet of things (IoT), connectivity, and data analytics not only helps better manage infrastructure and reduce losses, but will also bring changes to the way in which utilities currently operate.
Here are five things utilities must consider in their quest to become smarter:
1. Broader industry partnerships
Private sector companies introducing innovative products and solutions that are redefining smart metering are one of the major drivers of growth in AMI. This draws interest from large telecoms operators who are recognising the opportunity to add additional services to their current offerings.
Darren Oxlee, chief technology officer at Utility Systems
new sLimLine battery pack
Utility Systems has just launched a streamlined replaceable battery pack for its Water Management Device (WMD), to enable its use in a wider variety of meter boxes.
The WMD is Utility Systems’ original remote communicating electronic water control valve and Standard Transfer Specification (STS) Association approved prepayment water management device. When linked to a pulse output water meter, the WMD enables two-way communication, configuration and valve control, as well as the option for STS-approved prepaid water supply using 433 MHz radiofrequency.
The updated battery pack has been carefully designed to ensure that neither lifespan nor capacity is compromised.
2. infrastructure and maintenance
Smart metering will enable far more accurate, real-time data monitoring, helping utilities to reduce the time taken to identify and fix leaks by flagging water losses earlier. Not only will this save costs, but it means more focus and investment can be directed towards proactive maintenance of water infrastructure.
3. changing skills requirements
Switching to smart water metering increases the skill level required by those who are involved in the installation and management of metering infrastructure. As the use of this technology grows, the skills needed will go beyond basic plumbing and into more advanced skills, including IT and communications technologies.
4. customer service and behaviour
Utilities will be able to proactively monitor customers’ accounts, identify issues, complaints and queries, and resolve them much faster than they are currently able to. Additionally, initial studies have shown that once consumers have full visibility of their usage data – via a mobile app, for example – their water consumption drops by about 15%.
5. Regulatory compliance
With near real-time, two-way communication and valve control, smart meters not only provide prepaid water consumers with the ability to top up their water allocation, but also cater for South Africa’s free basic water requirements – all managed at the device level. When coupled with increased billing accuracy, the longterm benefits of investing in smart water metering will outweigh the higher initial capital outlay, as compared to a traditional water system. As such, the growth prospects for smart water metering are enormous. In addition to the financial and operational benefits, municipalities are increasingly including smarter water management as part of their broader smart city development programmes.
Only a very small percentage of existing metered endpoints in municipalities around the country are ‘smart’, and converting the remainder will provide a substantial growth opportunity that the local industry can take advantage of.
Integrated Economic Solution
Premium optical system with reference beam
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More than 150 analytical methods included Bright colour display
Interfaces: Ethernet, USB
Potentially hazardous and wet environments like water and wastewater treatment plants require specialised safety gear. When it comes to footwear, there are a number of factors to consider when picking the right brand.
As the largest manufacturer of PU (polyurethane) and PVC (polyvinyl chloride) gumboots in Africa, Wayne has a deep understanding of the safety risks associated with working in wet conditions.
The company’s wide range of products has been engineered to offer protection against the hazards associated with water treatment plants. Available in a variety of colours, cuts, lengths and safety features – paired with a strong focus on quality, comfort and protection – Wayne gumboots offer a perfect fit for the job.
Gumboots for treatment plants s afety 101
Product
features
While Wayne caters to most industries and applications, various water treatment requirements – particularly in waste and industrial treatments –require a heavy-duty gumboot. Wayne’s heavy-duty gumboots feature steel toe caps and can include a steel midsole where required.
Alternatively, the Egoli 1 and 2 styles offer the option of a nitrile PVC sole as well as the option of the upper in nitrile PVC for durability and improved protection against fats, oils and chemicals. All come with a cleated sole design that provides an SRA level of slip resistance.
Wayne is also the only local manufacturer of PU gumboots in Africa, with its PU range offering a number of specific benefits, including increased resistance to certain chemicals, superior slip resistance (SRC rated), light weight and durability.
PU vs PVc gumboots
PVC gumboots are versatile, durable and provide reliable protection against a wide range of substances.
However, Wayne’s range of premium PU gumboots is fast growing in popularity due to some compelling benefits, including:
• longer-lasting – they can last up to three times longer than PVC gumboots
• higher resistance to certain fats, oils and chemicals
• lighter in weight
• stain resistant
• better breathability and hygiene
• greater flexibility
• better overall comfort for the wearer. The lifespan of PVC gumboots will vary depending on their exact application. Wayne gumboots may exceed a threemonth life cycle even in deep-level mining, where boots are subjected to the harshest conditions for up to 12 hours per day. If properly cared for and not subjected to physical damage or high concentrations of chemicals, solvents or oils, boots can last longer.
caring for gumboots
Taking correct, regular care of gumboots can greatly affect their lifespan, as well as the wearer’s foot hygiene and comfort. The following steps should be taken to ensure the best lifespan for your gumboots:
• clean gumboots as often as possible to avoid the build-up of bacteria and germs
• clean the exterior of the boot with mild soap and water (never use chemicals or solvents, as these will make the boot brittle, causing it to crack)
• use mild soap, water and a scrubbing brush to remove soil build-up in the sole tread pattern
• wash the boot interior with mild detergent and rinse thoroughly
• place the boots in direct sunlight to dry, where there is good air circulation (never use heat to speed up the drying process)
• a clean pair of absorbent cotton socks should be worn every day.
For assistance in selecting the right gumboot for the job, one of Wayne’s expert consultants is able to provide a free site assessment in order to understand the specific requirements of each environment.
the future of sustainable sludge management
The
City of Cape Town plans to build three centralised biosolids beneficiation facilities in a move
Tto
establish a more sustainable sludge management chain. By Danielle Petterson
he use of activated sludge treatment processes for wastewater can result in large quantities of excess primary and/or waste activated sludge – the treatment and disposal of which presents a growing challenge, both in terms of treatment and disposal cost, and environmental legislation. The answer to this challenge may lie in anaerobic digestion (AD).
Sven Sötemann, head: Development and Infrastructure Planning for the Wastewater Branch, City of Cape Town, explains that Cape Town is in a unique situation when it comes to anaerobic digestion.
The City has 25 wastewater treatment facilities, of which 15 are activated sludge wastewater treatment facilities. The majority of these 15 facilities were originally designed as extended aeration plants, without primary sedimentation and long sludge age bioreactors. As a result, only five of the facilities originally had anaerobic digesters.
Of the five, three digester installations are ambient temperature, unmixed digester facilities from when the treatment plants consisted of only trickling filters; two installations are heated and mixed, explains Sötemann.
Currently, one heated (35°C to 38°C) and mixed digester complex and one ambient temperature and unmixed digester complex are in use, while the other three were decommissioned years ago due to concerns about their structural integrity.
The City recognised the need for a new and sustainable sludge treatment and disposal approach, and, after several years of planning, Cape Town’s Wastewater Branch has received approval for the establishment of two centralised biosolids beneficiation (sludge treatment) facilities (BBFs), with the aim to establish a third facility in the future.
By establishing centralised AD facilities rather than installing digesters at each individual treatment plant, the City is able to harness economies of scale at both capital and operational levels, says Sötemann.
Managing cape Town’s sludge
The City of Cape Town currently disposes of its dewatered primary sludge at a hazardous landfill located within the city’s boundaries. Dewatered waste activated (secondary) sludge is applied to ‘sacrificial’ farmland – agricultural land that is used to grow animal feed.
However, new national solid waste legislation seeks to divert organic material from landfill and, in future, legislation will prohibit the disposal of sewage sludge at landfills. While waste activated sludge may be deposited on land used to grow animal feedstock, Sötemann reports that available agricultural land is running out, and an alternative solution for the disposal of both primary and waste activated sludge is needed.
It was, therefore, decided to provide BBFs to cater for Cape Town’s future sludge handling, treatment and disposal needs. The facilities will incorporate imported sludge cake offloading and storage facilities, thermal hydrolysis sludge pre-treatment, highrate anaerobic digestion, digested sludge dewatering, sludge liquor treatment, and combined heat and power (CHP) processes. Funding for the first two facilities (Northern and Southern BBF installations) has been approved, with the design for the Southern BBF almost complete. The Southern BBF is anticipated
anaerobic digestion and energy opportunities in sa
The methane-rich biogas produced via AD presents an untapped renewable energy resource with several prospects for the South African wastewater industry. Although feasibility studies confirm a high potential for biogas-to-energy uptake in the South African municipal sector, several critical steps are required before a municipality should invest in a biogas plant, including the optimisation of upstream sludge management processes and operation of anaerobic digesters.
To this end, WISA will be rolling out two mainstream training courses in 2019, focusing on:
1. Wastewater sludge management, anaerobic digestion and plant optimisation
2. Conducting energy audits at a WWTW, identifying areas and means to reduce energy consumption.
The City of Cape Town hosted two of the pilot training courses and Sötemann reports that the course was very valuable and highly relevant for South Africa’s AD needs.
to go out to construction tender early this year, while the Northern BBF project is expected to go out for professional services tender during the course of the year.
The Southern BBF, located at the Cape Flats Wastewater Treatment Works, will be constructed on a brownfield site, making use of the three existing 1 800 m3 anaerobic digesters. At an estimated project cost of approximately R650 million, this facility is expected to be completed by 2023. The greenfield Northern BBF will be completed over three phases, and is expected to reach completion two to three years after completion of the first installation, at an estimated total cost of R1.2 billion.
According to Sötemann, the Wastewater Branch initially explored potential synergies with other City departments, such as Solid Waste; however, it was decided to provide dedicated sludge treatment facilities for wastewater sludge.
The City is currently not sizing the BBFs to accept waste from surrounding industries, as the capacity is needed to accommodate Cape Town’s current wastewater sludge streams. Each centralised BBF will receive dewatered sludge cake from approximately five to six surrounding ‘donor’ wastewater treatment works (WWTWs). The centralised
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facilities are being designed to accommodate the ultimate sludge production capacities of the surrounding WWTWs, and have been positioned to minimise travelling distance from the donor plants.
However, Sötemann says the Northern and future Eastern BBF may have spare capacity, in which case the City will explore the option of accepting additional sludge or clean organic waste from industry and adjoining municipalities for digestion.
commoditising waste
The benefits of anaerobic digestion are its simplicity, its relatively low-cost operation, and its ability to produce biogas, which allows for heat and energy production. According to Dr Marlene van der Merwe-Botha, director, Water Group Holdings, electricity is one of the highest cost items on the operational budgets of energy-intensive WWTWs; however, when operated correctly, AD allows WWTWs to produce their own
electricity and heat, thereby saving on operational costs and reducing their reliance on Eskom.
Cape Town’s strategy is to implement thermal hydrolysis in order to hydrolyse the sludge upstream of the AD to improve its digestibility, and to achieve a pasteurised treated sludge product, which will allow for the digested sludge to be used beneficially for a larger number of end uses. The biogas produced from the high-rate anaerobic digesters will be used to generate steam for the thermal hydrolysis process, while the balance of the biogas will be used to fuel CHP, which will produce heat and electricity for on-site use.
For the Southern BBF, the generated electricity will be able to supply approximately 70% of the host WWTW’s current electricity needs, thereby offsetting some of the costs of the facility. “We also hope to develop a small future income stream from selling the beneficiated biosolids,” says Sötemann.
Sustainable waste management
“The City of Cape Town’s wastewater treatment plants are still among the best in the country when it comes to treated effluent compliance; however, the recent drought has posed some challenges and raw wastewater flows into our plants have decreased by between 30% and 35%. Although we were expecting the nutrient load to remain the same, we have found that nitrogen and phosphorus loads have increased and, therefore, some of our plants are struggling in terms of their nitrogen removal performance. Therefore, the new designs will take into account the change in our wastewater characteristics,” says Sötemann.
“In terms of sustainability and sludge disposal, this project will be a big leap forward. Our current methods are no longer considered sustainable and this new step forward in sludge management will contribute to the municipality’s plans for making Cape Town a sustainable city.”
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Effecting a paradigm shift
e nding the madness of the flush
Conventional waterborne systems connected to centralised sewers are usually the preferred gold-standard choice for sanitation around the world. On the other side of the technological scale are on-site sanitation systems. Although less popular among users, these remain the most prevalent technology choice in the developing world.
By Jay Bhagwan and Sudhir Pillay*
As concerns the developing world, on-site sanitation approaches are often viewed as a stop-gap solution until conventional waterborne systems can be implemented. The challenge for developing countries is that they need to match the pace of increasing urbanisation and population growth under conditions of increasing water scarcity, and constrained financial and technical resources. Urbanisation is occurring at a rapid rate in developing countries, leaving them with the question of whether they will ever reach universal sanitation coverage via conventional systems, while also managing increasing water, energy and pollution demands.
Instead, a new paradigm shift in terms of the current sanitation approaches is proposed – one that moves away from the current linear design approaches to a holistic model that shortens the management chain through
treatment at source and resource recovery. Through the introduction of innovative technology, it is envisaged that new business opportunities will be created, which could be aligned to the management of the toilets to ensure that services are sustainable.
The centralised approach
Since the last century, the centralised approach has been typified by a network of sewers linked to communities. This network transports large volumes of wastewater to a collection, treatment and disposal point. Historically, the roots of this approach can be traced back to the outbreak of waterborne diseases, especially cholera, on the European continent. While this strategy led to a significant reduction in the outbreak of waterborne diseases, it is extremely wasteful.
In the developed world, the centralised approach underwent continuous improvement: from basic
treatment and dilution strategies to protect public health towards more efficient systems to meet everincreasing environmental protection and control standards. Today, the centralised approach can be considered as the model sanitation approach, especially for urban areas, worldwide.
But while developed countries have continuously improved conventional wastewater-based strategies to become more reliable and efficient over time, developing countries have struggled to implement this technology successfully. This is largely because developing countries need significant investment for centralised sewerage infrastructure. There is a significant unserved population in developing countries and infrastructure provision has to address these backlogs, while also keeping pace with rapid population growth and urbanisation.
Cost is a major driver for the technical approach used. There are generally
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four main aspects considered by developing countries in the selection of a wastewater treatment: infrastructure costs, sustainability, operational costs and simplicity.
A generalised estimate put forward by the World Health Organization/Unicef indicated that the cost per person connecting to a sewer network is 5% to 50% higher than onsite alternatives. Further, the capital cost of this treatment option can be nearly double that of a septic tank (based on a community of 10 000 people and in comparison with the activated sludge process).
Besides the infrastructure investment, a suite of other resources – such as water, energy, and high-level designers, technicians and operators – is required to properly manage wastewater plants and their auxiliary equipment. A lack of these resources can result in infrastructure deterioration and unreliable service provision.
It is clear that the application of the centralised waterborne approach in the developing world has not reached the desired impact, as in the developed world. As a consequence, developing nations still have a heavy reliance on on-site sanitation approaches.
The madness of the flush
Conventional systems continue to put pressure on scarce water resources, require high energy inputs, and continuously pose a threat to the environment.
Arising from a concept of sanitation that is over 200 years old, in the form of flush and forget, is a quagmire of madness. Let’s look at the numbers:
• A human being produces on average between 150 g to 250 g of faecal matter per day.
• He/she uses between 6 ℓ to 13 ℓ to move this away from the toilet to the sewer.
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• Another 200 ℓ to 300 ℓ of grey and brown water is needed to transport this waste many kilometres to a treatment plant.
• Large quantities of electricity and chemicals are then used to treat this faecal matter, with the end point producing an effluent of compliance (which is still a pollutant).
To use this much energy and water just to treat and manage 150 g to 250 g of human waste is madness – this in the face of several emerging constraints such as climate change, water scarcity, rising energy costs, rising chemical costs, emerging contaminants, and a paradigm that is becoming financially prohibitive in both developing and developed countries.
We must end this madness if we wish to secure a water future for generations to come. Adopting offthe-grid or non-sewered sanitation (NSS) offers several benefits, including the immediate direct benefit of some 40% of fresh or treated water available to the system. Furthermore, it can eliminate the pollution threat and consequences resulting from wastewater, as well as the extensive infrastructure requirements.
In fact, NSS can become one of the biggest contributors to water security into the future. This has to come on the back of new, radical and innovative sanitation technology that disrupts the current norms and standards, bringing direct benefits to the 2.4 billion people who are off the grid waiting for such solutions, rather than be dependent on a future designed with the same problems.
developing a new sanitation industry In response to global sanitation challenges, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s Water, Sanitation & Hygiene programme initiated the Reinvent the Toilet Challenge in 2011, to address the limitations of traditional sanitation approaches.
An ambitious goal – to develop the next generation of toilet systems in a five-year period – was set, and grants were awarded to 16 research teams from around the world to develop innovative toilet technologies. The number of research teams involved in this initiative has since expanded, and a number of technological advancements have been made.
The innovative, off-grid sanitation prototypes developed through the foundation’s initiative focused primarily on mechanical, physical, heating and chemical treatment processes, such as liquid/solid separation, hydrothermal carbonisation, combustion, and electrochemical treatment, in order to
Non-sewered sanitation can become one of the biggest contributors to water security into the future
treat human excreta almost immediately. These new technologies have the potential to address the limitations of current sanitation interventions, by eliminating pathogens on-site, recycling and reusing limited resources, meeting user experience and acceptance, minimising environmental pollution and possess the potential to link sanitation infrastructure to innovative management approaches. Water is not wasted and human excreta is transformed into by-products of potential economic value, allowing for linkages to new business and service delivery models that have the potential to reduce the financial burden on municipalities.
In South Africa, the Water Research Commission – in partnership with the Gates Foundation, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Department of Science and Technology, Department of Water and Sanitation, and eThekweni Municipality – has been driving an in-depth science and research programme to feed into the solutions of the future.
The early indications with regard to this disruptive sanitation agenda are that the greatest opportunities exist in non-biological processes, which also offer elements of valorisation and beneficiation. Recognising this progress and development, the Department of Trade and Industry launched the first ever water and sanitation industrial platform in 2017, as part of its Industrial Pathway Action Plan (IPAP).
Through innovation, we can shift the paradigm – moving our towns and
cities towards the more responsible use of our water, energy and nutrients – while achieving the main aim of sanitation: protecting public health and the environment.
The IPAP programme of the South African government offers us this platform, in shifting our approach while serving our needs in terms of backlogs, and also creating opportunity for new jobs. This is an opportunity to grow a new service and operation and maintenance industry through the use of innovative products that result in smart supply chain management.
Through the appliance-based model, there could be opportunities to grow businesses that manufacture toilets and their parts. Having the operation and maintenance component included as part of the sanitation management model will enable the provision of quality facilities and sanitation services that municipalities struggle to fulfil. In addition, the approach seeks to recover potentially valuable by-products, which opens up other servicing models to ensure the sustainability of the approach. Developing countries should take advantage of this opportunity to leapfrog developed countries that have followed a linear design approach to their water and sanitation supply.
*JayBhagwanistheexecutivemanager: WaterUseandWasteManagement and SudhirPillaytheresearchmanager: WaterUseandWasteManagementatthe WaterResearchCommission.
Toilet interface Collection Emptying Transport Treatment and disposal Faecal sludge management chain
Toilet interface Treatment Reuse/ beneficiation
Off-grid technology disrupters
FIGURE 1 Current versus proposed approach to sanitation provision
s afe, off-grid sanitation for communities
Recent press coverage has highlighted the fact that inadequate and unsafe sanitation facilities in schools across South Africa are endangering the lives of thousands of school children. It is clear that an urgent, innovative sanitation strategy is required.
Although waterborne sanitation is often the preferred option, there is simply not enough water or sewerage infrastructure to make this a reality for all. However, a complete lack of sanitation services results in untreated human waste that flows into rivers or contaminates the surrounding landscape and has a serious effect on the lives of the people who rely on these resources for water and food.
an alternative solution
Human waste needs to be safely managed from the point of entry, to
when it is removed from a toilet facility. Enviro Loo’s advanced technological design enables the processes of dehydration and evaporation to occur without any soil or water contamination, as the decomposition takes place in a sealed unit. In order to preserve scarce water resources, the future has to include systems such as the Enviro Loo that allow for no water wastage and no soil or water contamination, with minimal maintenance costs.
Working together with local communities, the company has established a social facilitation team to achieve community buy-in to the sanitation technology. The Enviro Loo business model also aims to further job creation through the employment of local community members trained in the installation and maintenance of locally installed systems.
Using advanced mobile technology and the philosophy of putting the customer first, Enviro Loo has developed the Loo Solve app to provide maintenance schedules and a global positioning location system to access information about installed systems at any time. Enviro Loo is already providing safe sanitation facilities to thousands of rural South African learners, recently having undertaken sanitation projects at the Mante and Kgoboko primary schools in Steelpoort, Limpopo, sponsored by Rhodium Reefs/ Eastplats mines.
A new ablution block at Kgoboko Primary School, with standard ceramic toilet bowl
WC/WDM: Implementing leakage reduction
ThispaperisthefifthinaseriesofsixarticlesbyDerekHazeltononWC/WDM.Theearlierarticlesappearedin theJuly/August,September/OctoberandNovember/December2018andJanuary/February2019issuesof Water&Sanitationafrica(Vol.13No’s4,5&6andVol.14No.1).
The previous articles in this series have provided details of how to plan and launch an integrated water services authority WC/WDM turnaround project. In this issue, the focus is on the approach that should be used to implement the first of the central aims of WC/WDM: the reduction of the total leakage losses in a water supply system. These leakage losses comprise the distribution system losses plus the leakages on customers’ properties.
By Derek G Hazelton
The first step in planning for the implementation of leakage reduction involves developing a good overall understanding of the different systems making up the water supply infrastructure of a water services authority (WSA) based on the available schematics and drawings.
These systems should then be divided into subsystems; as implementation proceeds, the systems and subsystems should be divided into isolatable zones that comprise about 2 000 households or their equivalent.
When selecting systems and subsystems, do not be influenced by a lack of input bulk meters, as all the necessary flow rates can be measured using the techniques described in the third article of the series.
As the first aim of any WC/WDM project is to reduce the total leakage losses, minimum night flow (MNF) measurements should be used as the starting point, because excessive MNFs reveal the losses in the distribution system together with the leakages on customers’ properties. Once all the MNFs and average daily demands have been measured, the results can be used to select the order in which the systems and subsystems should be listed to implement the required leakage reduction.
implementing leakage reduction in five steps
Thereafter, the leakage reduction should
be implemented using a total of five steps, as follows.
1. Check if the leakage can be reduced, by fitting a pressure-reducing valve (PRV) installation, to reduce the pressure in the selected system, even for short periods at night, when the water demand is low. Apart from high pressures causing new leaks to occur more frequently – and thereby reducing the life of the infrastructure significantly – the leakage from existing leaks increases as the pressure at the leakage point increases.
Even if the area of the hole remains the same, which happens in steel pipe distribution systems, the leakage will increase alongside the pressure, in accordance with a square-root relationship. For example, if the pressure doubles, the leakage will increase by 41%.
But, in the case of leaks in other materials and fittings, the area of the hole increases alongside the pressure. For example, if the pressure doubles, the leakage will increase by up to 800% in the worst cases.
PRV installations do not eliminate leaks and are no substitute for repairing leaks as described in steps three to five of this article. However, these installations frequently have the shortest payback of all the actions taken in a WC/ WDM turnaround project. When PRV installations are designed optimally, customers will welcome the eradication of unnecessarily high pressures; however, care must be taken not to lower the quality of the service, by introducing excessive pressure reduction.
2. Check any areas of the system that experience frequent pipe bursts. These are often caused by high transient pressures, commonly called water hammer. Most WSA managers are becoming acutely aware of the damage caused by the practice of operating systems intermittently, when there is a critical water shortage, to reduce water consumption. This damage is triggered by pressure transients occurring when the system is being re-pressurised, causing major pipe bursts. Similar pressure transients occur in badly designed systems, when pumps trip after a power failure. They can also occur at pump start-up, or when an isolating valve is closed, or even opened, too quickly.
WSA managers, and even their PSP WC/WDM advisors, need to be aware that frequent pipe bursts are often caused by pressure transients. Such pressure transients can be checked for and measured using pressure transducers and loggers. Thereafter, except for transients caused by pump trips, these can be reduced to an acceptable level by making small modifications to the system. The effectiveness of the modification can then be tested using the same transducers and loggers. With respect to overcoming pump trip transients, it is recommended that a specialist be appointed. They can then optimise the proposed solutions using computer programme modelling, before the system modifications are installed.
Derek G Hazelton, Pr Eng., FWISA, founder and manager of TSE Water Services
3. Repair visible distribution system leaks from pipes, and fittings such as fire hydrants and customer metering points. Repairing visible leaks early in the project is important for customer motivation. Figure 1 illustrates a leaking standpipe in Motherwell, Port Elizabeth. Utilities must not expect customers to manage water responsibly while they behave negligently.
4. Locate leaking fittings, such as toilet cistern inlets and outlets, taps, and leaking pipework on customers’ properties. Then, replace or repair them as appropriate.
5. Assuming the MNF is still excessive, locate and repair invisible distribution system leaks. The location of leaks in underground pipes, especially in nonmetallic plastic ones, requires skilled artisans. It is, therefore, recommended that an experienced specialist be contracted to do this work. Large and remote utilities should include the training of motivated staff or community members in the contract scope. There are many methods of locating leaks. Some methods, such as noise loggers, are used in combination with others. The most common method uses a simple, yet sophisticated, acoustic listening stick. Figure 2 illustrates how such a stick is used.
Greater Philippolis: a case study
The town of Greater Philippolis in the Free State was experiencing serious water supply problems due to excessive water demand caused by widespread leakage losses and low payment levels. This caused the reservoirs to empty.
To prevent this from happening, the WSA throttled the supply to Philippolis, which in turn starved Bergmanshoogte of water. The excessive demand could not be
met because of the capacity of the 2.6 km bulk pipeline to the reservoirs. Despite the cost and long construction period, the WSA replaced the entire pipeline with a larger-diameter main. Thereafter, the distribution pipeline from the reservoirs became the limiting component with respect to the system meeting peak demands.
As shown in Figure 3, the problem could have been resolved more beneficially, at a much lower cost and more quickly, by supplying Bergmanshoogte directly from the bulk feed pipeline to the reservoirs. This would have entailed installing a simple PRV with a fixed outlet pressure (PRV1 in Figure 3), and closing an existing isolating valve in the distribution pipeline to stop backflow into the Philippolis subsystem.
In addition, because the filling of the reservoirs is through top-entry discharge points, a cross-connection pipe, fitted with a non-return valve (NRV), should be installed between the reservoir outlet and inlet pipes, to provide for times that the pumps used to fill the reservoirs are not operating.
As can be seen from Figure 3, the Philippolis water supply system is divided
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FIGURE 1 Standpipe still leaking three months after being reported (Photo by Joseph Chirume, Elitsha Community Newspaper, February 2018)
e nsuring leakage reduction is sustained over the long term
Without the motivated participation of all the stakeholders in every facet of the WC/WDM turnaround project, the best PSP can only achieve short-term leakage reduction. Thus, the tender document must include:
• the motivational education of councillors, relevant utility staff
FIGURE 2 Operator using a listening stick to locate a leak
members and all water users
• capacity-building and skills training of utility staff and community members. To sustain the reduced leakage rates, the utility’s management needs to deploy community members, its own staff or contractors, in that order of preference, for the following (summarised in Figure 4):
• To maintain all the pressure management infrastructure and equipment.
• To proactively detect leaks. All official infrastructure monitors, operators, maintenance personnel, meter readers and customers should be trained and motivated to do this.
• To respond to major pipe bursts within three hours, most moderate pipe leaks
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within six hours, and all such leaks within 24 hrs. Respond to all minor leaks, including those at customer meters and connections, promptly as practical but always within five working days. Thereafter, repairs should be completed swiftly, and the quality of repairs should be such that repeat call-outs to repair the same leak should be insignificant. The latter requires that, as well as the pipe repair itself being carried out effectively, the quality of the following
aspects must be carried out with equal care: the pipe bedding, backfilling, the full reinstatement of manholes, top surfaces, etc., and the re-pressurising and flushing of the pipeline, if relevant. With respect to reinstating top surfaces, if the repair teams have not been trained to do this professionally, roads/paving artisans should be there, immediately after the repair is finished, to complete the work without any delay.
• To continue the MNF monitoring and to follow up all MNF increases immediately, especially if no leaks have been reported.
• To monitor water volume and money balances monthly – important, only once cost recovery is being implemented. These values should then be used to monitor KPI trends and compare the calculated KPIs with annual and long-term targets (refer to articles 2, 3 and 4 of the series).
Forafulllistofreferences,pleasecontact the author at tsewater@icon.co.za.
4 Four key factors that must be attended to forever in order to sustain the target leakage losses over the long term
FIGURE 3 Greater Philippolis after recommended infrastructure changes have been made
FIGURE
