84th IMESA Conference in collaboration with IAWEES (International), Virtual conference, Cape Town, 17 - 19 November 2021

Abstract

Water scarcity, increased pollution, unprecedented population growth and climate change are collectively driving the need to reuse water with the aim to enhance water security, sustainability, and resilience. It is clear that South Africa¿s already strained water resources will become even more stressed in the near future. The Department of Water and Sanitation predicted that by 2030 water demand will reach 17.7 billion m3, far more than what is available to allocate. An Atlas for potential industrial bulk scale water reuse was produced from publicly available Natsurv and WARMS data. A web-based Decision Support System (DSS) tool is being developed to enable municipal and industry partners, and water quality managers to make informed decisions for possible reuse options. The tool aims to directly assist by linking industrial effluent volumes and quality to fitness for use, and linking it with specific industries in the geographical vicinity based on industry specific water quality and quantity requirements.