Water, Sewage & Effluent July-August 2017 | Page 10

Water, the most valuable resource Loss of water is something that an arid country such as South Africa can ill afford. Municipalities are increasingly urged to find ways and methodologies to counter the effects of the climate and usage, and to enhance water recycling and water treatment technologies. In the May/June edition of Water, Sewage and Effluent, Part 1 of the Report to the Water Research Commission addressed the aims, methodology, and outcome and findings. D espite massive underground reserves of water in some of Africa’s driest areas — including the Sahara Desert — and scientists’ assurances that these huge reserves could provide a buffer against the effects of climate change for years to come, the continent is, in most parts, a desert by definition. We can no longer 8 afford to take advantage of this vital resource. The second extract from the Water Research Commission Report continues here. Guidelines Monitoring systems are proposed for the three key components of a potable reuse plant, namely raw Water Sewage & Effluent July/August 2017 water monitoring, operational and control monitoring, and compliance monitoring. The monitoring makes provision for early detection of deteriorating incoming raw water quality, rapid changes in the raw water quality, maintenance of treatment barriers in the plant through setting of operational alert levels for the