Water. Desalination + reuse
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City tries supply- and demand- side response to crisis As the water crisis in the City of Cape Town, South Africa, un- folds, the city's Water and Sani- tation Department is introducing a ra of measures to ensure that the taps keep on running. These include a mixture of demand-side management, and temporary and longer-term supply-side initiatives. Since 1 February, Level 6B water restric - tions have been implemented, limiting residents to 50 litres of water a day. However, with little effective metering in place, the city authorities are struggling to enforce the rules. In some instances, resi - dents reportedly chased away contractors who had come to install water meters amid public confusion about the policy. The tariffs associated with the Level 6B restrictions are designed to target those with higher levels of use, although it's unclear what impact the new rates have had on consumption. Water and politics On social media, #dayzero caught on — referring to the day on which water was expected to run out — and appeared initially to act as a focus for conservation messages. The phrase quickly also generated a backlash among activists who considered it to be a deliberate effort of fear- mongering by the city authori - ties. In mid-February, day zero was pushed back to 9 July, from 4 June, mainly thanks to farmers in Groenland transferring water from their private reservoirs into Steenbras Upper Dam. On 13 February, the govern - ment declared the drought a national disaster, suggesting that central funds might be released to support the City of Cape Town; although apart from an already-committed sum of $5.9 million, no further funds appeared to be pledged. The crisis took another twist when, on 14 February, South Africa's president Jacob Zuma was forced to resign by his own party, the African Na - tional Congress, in a move that potentially further complicates the response to the water crisis. The national minister of water Nomvula Mokonyane, a close ally of Zuma's, had earlier tasked Umgeni Water, supplier of bulk potable water in KwaZulu-Natal province, on the country's east coast, to support the City of Cape Town in producing a desalina - tion plant on V&A Waterfront. The move was unpopular with some officials in Cape Town, which is run by the opposition Democratic Alliance party. Private operators One temporary desalination pro- ject did get the green light: QFS and Osmoflo won a contract to supply, install, and commission a fully containerised 2,000 m3/d seawater reverse osmosis and multimedia filtration facility on V&A Waterfront. The plant is to be delivered as a rental contract for a minimum of 24 months, and is expected to complete within eight weeks and to be operational by the end of March. The plant will comprise seven 40-foot containerised units, to be shipped from Osmoflo's facility in Dubai. Further, two temporary plants of 7,000 m3/d each were due to be installed by end of February at Monwabisi, and Strandfontein. Amid measures from the utility, a number of private firms are taking matters into their own hands. Oceana, a canned fish producer, is to install two desali - nation facilities: An 800 m3/d plant costing $1.7 million at its St Helena Bay factory by end of March, and a proposed second plant of 600 m3/d at its factory at Laaiplek. Beer-maker SABMiller and salt producer Marina Sea Salt are reportedly moving ahead with Nelson Mandela Bay Metro Municipality, on a proposed large scale desal plant near Port Elizabeth. And nuclear operator Eskom is developing two desali - nation projects, one to supply Koeberg Nuclear Power Station; and the other a large, joint pro- ject with City of Cape Town. The authorities of the City of Cape Town continued to roll out crisis measures as the ongoing drought showed few signs of abating. A er South African president Jacob Zuma's forced departure, it remained unclear what impact the declaration of a national disaster would have on the drought response The V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, South Africa, is the site earmarked for a potential long-term, large scale desalination plant project. The national ministry of water has drafted in Umgeni Water, bulk water supplier for KwaZulu-Natal province on the country's east coast, potentially to help procure the plant. KwaZulu-Natal is home to Richard's Bay Desalination Plant, a 10,000 m3/d facility that began producing water in 2016. Residential water tariffs soar amid crisis The City of Cape Town has hiked water tariffs for residents as part of its measures to curb demand. However, in the absence of an effective metering system, it's unclear how accurately the rates will be applied. Water remains free for the poorest households. m3 per household (Level 4) (Level 6B) per month to 31 January from 1 February 0 to 6 $0.39 $2.57 6 to 10.5 $1.52 $4.50 10.5 to 20 $2.23 $9.78 20 to 35 $3.75 $29.34 35 to 50 $9.78 $78.23 More than 50 $25.95 $78.23 Commercial/industrial flat rate $4.89 1 ZAR = $0.086 City of Cape Town counts down to #dayzero Day Zero 9 July 2018 (was 4 June 2018) Dam levels 24.4 per cent (decline of 0.5 per cent) Total consumption 523,000 m3/d (73,000 m3/d above the daily target of 450,000 m3/d) Level 6B restrictions make it compulsory for residents to use no more than: 50 litres per person a day 26 Far Site March 2018 Water. desalination + reuse