Consulting engineers are playing a valuable role in supporting municipalities to upgrade wastewater treatment works (WWTWs), underpinning vital sanitation services to communities while ensuring that only wastewater of high enough quality is discharged into watercourses.
At Kouga local municipality in the Eastern Cape, SRK Consulting recently designed and implemented an upgrade of the St Francis Bay WWTW. This had become necessary with the growth of the St Francis Bay, Cape St Francis and Sea Vista communities, and was the third upgrade since the plant began operations in 1995. In Gauteng, SRK is involved in 10 wastewater treatment projects, where it is applying a range of specialised input to ensure that treatment plants operate optimally.
Under-capacity is a challenge in many of these plants, as their hydraulic and organic loading grows over time. Volumes of wastewater coming into the plants gradually exceed their design capacity, while organic loading also varies according to the type of effluent which is treated. Any underperformance of the plant exacerbates the results. Sub-standard performance then leads to the risk of watercourse contamination, as effluent is not properly treated before it leaves the plant. This in turn poses risks to both the human population and the natural environment downstream of the plant.
IMPORTANCE OF UPGRADES
Good engineering means timeous planning and implementation of regular upgrades and expanding facilities where necessary. Municipalities need to underpin this discipline by tracking and forecasting population numbers to estimate the future capacity required by treatment plants. In those cases where plants cannot keep up with the demands of a steadily urbanising population, the planning departments of municipalities play a vital role in guiding the technical requirements of new or larger facilities.
Consulting engineers collaborate closely with municipalities on this score, both in the large urban centres and in smaller towns and rural areas. The wide range of professional disciplines in our industry includes civil engineers, process engineers and water scientists – each with a vital contribution to wastewater treatment.
