The Water Wheel May/June 2019 1 CONTENTS 04 UPFRONT WATER SUPPLY 12 Keeping the taps on: Richards Bay at the water crossroads WATER HISTORY 16 Travels of Robert Jacob Gordon – Part 4 ALTERNATIVE WATER SUPPLY 20 Seawater desalination: Thoughts on implementation WATER AND THE ENVIRONMENT 24 Ecological Disaster took Kamfers Dam by Surprise DROUGHT 26 What Cape Town’s drought can teach other cities about climate adaptation WATER KIDZ 28 Africa’s beautiful rivers THE WATER WHEEL is a two-monthly magazine on water and water research AT A GLANCE published by the South African Water 30 Nqweba Dam Research Commission (WRC), a statutory organisation established in 1971 by Act of Parliament. Subscription is free. Material in this publication does not necessarily reflect the considered opinions of the members of the WRC, and may be copied with acknow- ledgement of source. Editorial Committee: Dr Sylvester Mpandeli (Chair), Ms Khosi Jonas, Ms Manjusha Sunil, Mr Bonani Madikizela, Dr Mamohloding Tlhagale and Sudhir Pillay. Editorial offices: Water Research Commission, Private Bag X03, Gezina, 0031, Republic of South Africa. Tel (012) 761 9300. Fax (012) 331-2565. WRC Internet address: http://www.wrc.org.za Follow us on Twitter: @WaterWheelmag Editor: Lani van Vuuren, E-mail: [email protected]; Editorial Secretary: Dikeledi Molutsi, E-mail: [email protected]; Water strapped Richards Layout: Anja van der Merwe, E-mail: [email protected] Bay is considering various Printing: Oshiang Printers augmentation options. Article Email: [email protected] on page 12. The Water Wheel May/June 2019 3 Upfront FLUID THOUGHTS Sanitation innovation – a key to Africa’s WRC CEO, Dhesigen Naidoo development strategy The demographic dividend, new production revolution, shifting has to reversed by 2030. This is in an environment of increased wealth patterns, accelerated urban transition and climate change water scarcity and although the International Monetary Fund and the green economy are the megatrends that will influence (IMF) in its Regional Economic Outlook report pegs a continued this continent’s future claims the latest analysis in a report named recovery, it is still a low growth rates forecast of 3.5% in 2019. In ‘Africa’s development dynamics – growth, jobs and inequalities’ addition, this is a region with low energy access and security. The compiled by the African Union Commission in partnership with International Energy Agency (IEA) in its Energy Access Outlook the OECD. 2017 concluded that 95% of the 1.1 billion people without access to electricity were in Sub-Saharan African countries. These are By 2063, Africa will constitute 30% of the global population with difficult boundary conditions. It will take high levels of innovation, 3 billion inhabitants, more than doubling the current population creativity and ingenuity to meet both the SDGs and lay the of 1.25 billion. More than that it will be that region of the world foundations of sustainable development within this framework. with the most youthful population. What we do now will determine whether this computes into a demographic dividend Fortunately, we have already achieved some important starting or a demographic burden. points. One of these is in sanitation. The Water Research Commission together with its local and international partners, For an already underserviced continent with respect to basic many working under the banner of the Gates Foundation needs of water, sanitation, energy, health and nutritional security; Reinvent the Toilet programme, have developed a suite of the prospect of a doubling of the population in the next half cutting-edge innovative technologies and solutions that has century is daunting. We are rapidly reaching, and in some cases the potential to revolutionise sanitation. These state-of-the- exceeding the Planetary boundary conditions on the one hand art technologies share the following characteristics – firstly, and have the objective of ensuring universal access to these basic they are designed to use less than a litre of water per flush services and facilitating economic growth on the other. with some using no water at all. Secondly, the engineering genius at the back end means on-site or decentralised safe and But as Pliny the Elder remarked ‘Ex Africa semper aliquid novi’ hygienic treatment of the waste. This means financial savings – “there’s always something new coming out of Africa.” Africa in construction costs as the kilometres of massive sewerage can pioneer global sustainable development, not despite, but pipelines as well as large wastewater treatment plants are no precisely because of its current low industrialisation levels. longer needed. This means while the global North has to invest in high cost retrofitting in order to switch from the current high carbon, water intensive, waste producing economic model; Africa can “The WRC has, together with its leapfrog directly into the sustainable development paradigm. She local and international partners, already has a wonderful example of this leapfrogging with mobile telephony which has provided proliferated access to hundreds developed a suite of cutting-edge of millions of Africans while saving most of connected Africa from the eyesore of millions kilometres of high maintenance and innovation technologies.” aesthetically challenging overhead telephone wire networks. This goes along with the saving of the vast quantities of water Another of those critical domains that has this possibility is that conveys the human waste vast distances to the treatment sanitation. The current African backlog which is primarily in works as required by the current model. Add to this the huge Sub-Saharan Africa is estimated at 570 million people who don’t energy savings in the treatment works themselves and you yet have access to improved sanitation, and if we are to achieve have already an amazing trinity of efficiencies – in water, power the Sustainable Development Goal for sanitation, this situation and money - precisely in the areas of greatest scarcity on the continent. 4 The Water Wheel May/June 2019 Upfront The boon does not stop there. Add to this the beneficiating concomitantly low carbon sanitation. If we go further than the of the waste on site. This ranges from using the waste in basic SDGs to making this a pivot point to revolutionise sanitation ways like fertilizers and first level energy source through biochar, provision with large-scale adoption, meaning the conversion to more sophisticated value addition through biogas capture, in the Global North as well, then we have the bedrock of true protein and lipid extraction and you have the beginnings of sustainable development. an innovative 21st century industrial value chain. Together with this comes the promise of greater economic growth, enterprise Africa will indeed have brought forth something new - better development and job creation. This will facilitate our ability as a phrased as former President Mbeki reminds us as “Semper continent to meet our SDG goals and creating the mechanisms aliquid novi Africa affert”. Let us in this Africa Month 2019 for our partners in Asia, Latin America and other parts of the re-engage the possibility of the African Century where this Global South to be able do the same. continent leads in the shaping of a better Africa and a better world. If we manage to achieve this, we will be introducing a model for low cost, high beneficiation, low water, low energy and of course WATER DIARY Water engineering Brazil. ‘Community challenges: Multidisciplinary 21-24 May 2019 Visit: https://www.3wceh2019.floripa.br and interinstitutional interventions as Stellenbosch University is offering a four- vehicles to solutions in the developing of day course on the sustainable design, World water South Africa’. construction, operation and maintenance 25-30 August Enquiries: Yolandi Jordaan, of large, hydraulic structures. The course Hosted by the Stockholm International Email: [email protected], has been structured to give state-of- Water Institute, World Water Week will Tel: 082 553 6463. the-art theory and practice on dam site be held in Stockholm, Sweden, with the and dam type selection, geotechnical theme ‘Water for society – including all’. and structural dam design aspects, and For more information, Young water professionals hydraulic design. Visit: www.worldwaterweek.org 20-23 October Email: [email protected] The 6th South African Young Water Research and development Professionals Biennial Conference will be Wastewater treatment 11-13 September held in KwaZulu-Natal. 23-27 June The Water Research Commission will be Visit: https://ywpzaconference2019.co.za The 16th IWA World Conference on hosting its fourth biennial Symposium at Anaerobic Digestion will be held in Delft the Sandton Convention Centre. For more Groundwater (The Netherlands). information, 20-23 October Visit: https://www.ad16conference.com Visit: www.wrc.org.za The 16th Groundwater Division Conference and Exhibition will be held Young water professionals Municipal engineering in Port Elizabeth under the theme 23-27 June 2-4 October ‘Conservation, demand and surety’. For The International Young Water The 83rd annual conference of the more information, Professional (YWP) Conference will take Institute of Municipal Engineering of Visit: www.gwd.org.za place in Toronto, Canada. This conference South Africa (IMESA) is taking place at the is one of the vehicles in which the IWA Durban International Conference Centre Emerging contaminants supports YWPs to develop themselves