10 Company news

degree at Birmingham University. He is focusing SRK’s Pretoria office turns ten on modelling work for a long-term Umvoto project for the Overstrand Municipality, where the firm he Pretoria office enhanced when the discovered an excellent groundwater supply and is of SRK Consulting office established a GIS T now testing the aquifer and monitoring systems for celebrated its tenth year applications section. long-term sustainability. in November last year. “We have all the special- Anne Rosenkranz (23) is completing her B.Sc in The Pretoria office is one ist skills to drive these Geosource Management at the University of Aachen, of 37 SRK Consulting initiatives,” said Braune. in Germany. This is her first work experience and branches in 16 countries. The Pretoria office liaises she is keen to get an overview of various hydrogeol- SRK partner and with other SRK offices ogy specialisations before studying for her masters founder of the Pretoria Moses Maliba (Ekurhuleni Metro), Matt Braune and regarding contracts in degree. office, Matt Braune, Brian Middleton (SRK Consulting) other parts of South Vancouver-born Paula Hay (22) has completed a reported that the Pretoria Africa and beyond. degree in Social Science at the University of Utrecht. office initially focused on stormwater management Looking forward, Braune said new strategic She has visited South Africa on several occasions, and and river rehabilitation projects. Today, professional initiatives in the Pretoria office are asset manage- is assisting with an Umvoto project exploring social services offered have grown to include disaster risk ment, relating to the creation of asset registers vulnerability linked to water issues. assessments, planning for disaster management for local authorities concerning stormwater Len von Scherenberg (24) is in his last year of centres and compilation of disaster management networks and enterprise risk management. Water Management Studies at Germany’s Dresden plans for national government, local authorities “We will also go further into environmental com- University. He plans to do his masters thesis after the and southern African countries, as well as water pliance for both the industrial and governmental internship. He is currently working on a project in resource assessment and environmental manage- sectors. This will be expanded under the umbrella the Eastern Cape, focusing on literature research and ment. These professional services were further of disaster management.” examining geological maps to assess groundwater resources. Utility unveils Foreign students “The interns programme has become interna- upgraded sewage find new home at tionally renowned since Umvoto first accommodated students about nine years ago, says Helen Seyler, treatment plant SA groundwater who oversees the programme. “It is a highly instruc- firm tive environment as South African and foreign stu- ohannesburg Water has unveiled its upgraded dents learn from one another while gaining practical Northern Wastewater Treatment Plant. experience on cutting-edge projects. Our goal is to J our international interns have arrived at Cape The Northern Works is by far the biggest in the access funding, accommodation and institutional Town earth sciences consultancy Umvoto Africa. city. Rapid population growth and extreme weather F support for the students, as to date the company has This brings the total of young people who put pressure on the works. This resulted in the works supported the initiative single-handedly.” have gained experience at the consultancy to 40. becoming unable to cope and, at times, led to spill- Undergraduate and honours students from the ages when the sheer volume of water reaching the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Fort Hare, works exceeded its ability to treat it. , , Pretoria and Limpopo Hence Johannesburg Water embarked on a universities have come to gain experience at the project to increase the capacity of the plant. The ulti- firm. Masters students have travelled from as mate treatment capacity of the new unit will be 150 far afield as the UK, Germany and France, while Mℓ/day constructed in three increments of 50 Mℓ/day students from African countries such as Madagascar to pace the growth in wastewater flow to the works. and Kenya have also benefited from Umvoto’s The new treatment plant includes sedimenta- interns programme. tion, flow balancing, biological nutrient removal, acti- New intern Matt Webb (26) hails from the Lake vated sludge treatment with supplementing chemical District in the UK. He recently finished his masters dosing facilities, secondary clarification, effluent disinfection and effluent outfall and site services. On the sludge treatment side, the plant includes primary sludge fermentation with disposal The Gansbaai Water Treatment Works was one of the of the fermented sludge to the previously refur- Technical Excellence Winners in this year’s AQUATAN- bished digesters from Unit 2, waste activated sludge SAICE Most Outstanding Civil Engineering Project thickening in gravity thickeners. The thickened Awards. With the award are Garth Gademan of SSI, sludge is then treated in dewatering facilities under Stephen Müllar and Peter Scholtz of Overstrand a separate project to handle the increased sludge Municipality and Francois Gibbons of SSI. masses from the new treatment capacity.

The Water Wheel Jan/Feb 2010 Project watch 11

WRC project reaches out to future scientists

rojects funded by the Water Research Commis- The project has already touched the lives of Secondary School, and Stellenbosch High School. In Psion (WRC) not only impact positively on the several prospective scientists. Grade 11 learners addition, bursaries ranging from R500 to R1 500 have end-users of the research outcomes, and the scien- from selected schools around Stellenbosch, who been presented to learners with top science marks. The tists and post-graduate students doing the research, showed the best marks in science, have been bursaries were sponsored by CSIR, SU and the WRC. but also on future scientists. invited to visit the facilities of the Department of In other news from the project, Wendy Stone, So a number of high-school learners have Microbiology at SU. Among others, the learners the student involved in the project, not only passed benefited from a joint bioprospecting project have been given the opportunity to obtain some her honours degree cum laude, she has also been between (SU) and the CSIR. first-hand experience with the basic methods awarded as the most outstanding honours student by Funded by the WRC, the project is aimed at obtain- used in microbiology, such as how to work with the South African Society for Microbiology. According ing anammox bacteria from different South African a microscope, aseptically prepare dilution series to project leaders Prof Alf Botha and Dr Jac Wilsenach, environments. Initiated to find a specialised group and spread plates, as well as separate DNA these achievements could not have been accomplished of bacteria able to oxidise ammonia to nitrogen fragments using gel electrophoresis. without the support of the WRC and they thanked the gas, the project holds great potential for the future The schools involved were Kayamandi High institution for their commitment to investing in the of wastewater treatment. School, Kylemore High School, Lückhoff High Senior future of the country.

Right: Dr Jac Wilsenach of CSIR and post- graduate student Wendy Stone on the open ocean during a sampling exercise for anammox bacteria from the ocean floor off St Helena Bay.

Far right: Vusumzi Ncaphayi of Kayamandi High School receiving a bursary, sponsored by the WRC, for most outstanding learner in the field of science, from Prof Alf Botha of Stellen- bosch University.

Delegates training in management of aquifers

successful training course on risk management Aof aquifers has been presented at the University of the (UWC). The course was presented by Geohydro­logical and Spatial Solutions International (GEOSS) and sponsored by the FETWater programme. FETWater is jointly funded by the Flemish government, UNESCO and the Department of Water Affairs (DWA), with the Water Research Commission acting as the imple- menting agent. The course was given in the form of field monitoring and the use of various items of field equipment was demonstrated by members of the DWA, UWC and GEOSS. Delegates representing UWC, DWA and various municipalities commented on the standard of excellence enjoyed in conveying a com- plicated topic in an simple, yet informative, manner. In addition to the course itself, an informal social event provided excellent opportunities for network- ing and the sharing of knowledge – one of the aims Delegates attending the course on risk management of aquifers presented at the University of FETWater. of the Western Cape.

The Water Wheel Jan/Feb 2010