BUSINESS
Cape, construction is one of the top Western Cape and its people. In our view,
three key sectors responsible for we need to save water and grow the
economic growth, employing close to economy at the same time. It is not one or
230 000 people. With this appreciation, the other. We need to make very practical
government’s message for the industry commitments in how we deploy water-
is to “reduce water usage as much as saving measures in our daily activities.
possible without affecting production”, At PPC, we have implemented
says Solly Fourie, head of economic comprehensive water management
development and tourism at the Western programmes aligned to our integrated
Cape Provincial Government. water use licenses and the environmental
and social impact assessment. Our
action by industry players, it is more approach to water management is driven
likely that the industry will experience by a few principles, including:
delayed investment, reduced productivity, •
Responsible water management
importation of products previously sourced — to avoid causing harm to the
locally, increase in input costs, lower environment or communities where
product demand and resultant profit loss, we have operations;
potential retrenchments, and reputational
•
damage to the entire industry.
Failure to manage the impact of the
short- and long-term value;
•
water shortage will have a significant
negative impact on the economy of the
Optimal water usage to generate
Management of quality and quantity
of water; and
•
Ensuring and promoting compliance
Without collaboration and concerted
Rob Rein, executive: sales and marketing at
PPC.
with the legal and other requirements.
In the Western Cape, we have specifically
implemented measures to mitigate the
impact of the ongoing drought and have
employed alternatives from an operational
perspective to ensure continuity of supply.
These include some innovative solutions
like increased temperature control limits
on the kiln, continuous reduction in
irrigation volumes and change in irrigation
schedules, use of grey mine water for
process and dust reduction, and an
enhanced water monitoring regime.
Over and above the measures that we
undertake in our own operations, we have
developed some guiding tips to encourage
responsible water use on construction
sites. These will vary from one site to the
other, depending on the type of project
being undertaken. Easy to implement and
effective measures to reduce the amount
of water used on sites can include using
non-potable water to mix concrete and
mortar, re-using water for dust suppression,
construction of pits to wash vehicles, or
using non-potable water for construction.
The industry has been encouraged to
measure and manage water usage and
also to investigate alternative sources of
water for construction, like:
1. Groundwater
2. Basement water (city building sites)
3. Treated effluent
4. Run-off water.
The government and the NHBRC have
committed to working collaboratively
to allow ease of use of the alternative
sources of water for construction. This
will however be done while ensuring that
quality standards are maintained.
In truth, no single company has all the
solutions to our current crisis, and thus
it is important to share lessons and
experiences, and to have unity of purpose.
Mitigating the impact of the ongoing drought
requires collaboration from all stakeholders.
This is exactly the approach we have
adopted at PPC. ■
JUNE 2018
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