Construction World July 2017

CONSTRUCTION WORLD

JULY

2017

WATER ENGINEERING

Water use licences are required by a range of water users from mines

and industry to property developers and farmers; even public sector

organisations like local authorities, provincial authorities and road

agencies may need authorisation for projects.

According to Manda Hinsch, partner and principal water and

environmental scientists at SRK Consulting, the new regulations

are a positive step that aligns the timelines for Water Use

Licence Authorisations (WULAs) with those already applying

for environmental authorisations as required by the National

Environmental Management Act (NEMA).

“Both processes now promise authorisations within 300 calendar

days, if all documents and studies are in order,” said Hinsch. “In the

past, receiving water use authorisation could take up to three to five

years.” She said these delays often led to applicants simply starting

project construction without the necessary authorisation, since

the positive socio-economic impact of proceeding was deemed to

outweigh the negative environmental impacts.

“Also, assessment processes within the department were not

always well-monitored, so it was difficult to track the stage which an

application had reached within the process,” she said.

Hinsch said the process will now begin with a pre-application

meeting with the water authority, followed by the submission of the

application within five days. A date for a site visit then needs to be

finalised within five days after that, and the visit itself must take

place within 30 days.

The authority is then expected to respond within five days

of the site visit, outlining the exact requirements for the WULA.

The applicant then has 105 days to prepare and submit the

necessary technical reports, as well as conduct the public

participation processes.

Following submission, the authority has 10 days to acknowledge

receipt of the application, and 139 days to consider the documenta-

tion and make a decision – after which it has five days to actually

issue the decision.

“The new regulations also formalise the public participation

requirements, which were neglected in the past – particularly

if a WULA was required without the need for an environmental

authorisation,” said Hinsch.

“These regulated timelines are tight, and place pressure on both

the department and applicants to work quickly and efficiently,”

she said, adding that SRK also makes use of in-house specialists

to undertake the

hydrological and

geo-hydrological

studies, often required

for WULAs, further

simplifying and

speeding up

the process.



The aim of the dialogue was to provide input into the conceptual-

isation of the country’s new master plan on water and sanitation.

This plan is expected to be finalised as early as the end of the year.

Speaking at the dialogue, Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation,

Pamela Tshwete, challenged stakeholders in particular big

business, to assist with the development and implementation of

the master plan.

In response, Eskom’s water management lead, Nandha Govender,

presented private sector initiatives the public utility is implementing

together with corporate partners, the Department of Water and

Sanitation and civil society through the Strategic Water Partners

Network (SWPN). SWPN is a multi-stakeholder partnership aimed

at helping close South Africa’s 17% demand-supply water deficit

gap, by 2030. For example, the partnership has worked to address

some of the water resource management challenges affecting South

Africa’s mining industry.

Although mining companies currently treat their effluent in

accordance with national regulations, the continued installation

of energy and capital intensive mine water treatment facilities

is unlikely sustainable in the long run. While a relevant regional

approach for an entire mining area is ideal, it requires agreement on

actionable solutions, as well as how costs are partitioned among

mining companies – with respect to operational mines, and the

state – with respect to non-operational mines as required by law.

To address this challenge, the SWPN helped establish a mine

water coordinating body in the Emalahleni (formerly Witbank) coal

mining area, which begins approximately 100 km east of the capital

city, Pretoria and runs mostly along the Olifants River catchment.

The mine water coordinating body brings together area stakeholders

from the public and private sectors and civil society to address

some of the mine’s most pressing challenges.

Over the next 30 years, several mines are expected to close

in the Emalahleni region. At present, area stakeholders must

determine who will manage, operate, maintain and finance post

closure discharge water treatment facilities, already built by mining

companies. Given that costs will not be recovered by selling treated

water to municipalities alone, even when initial capital costs are

subtracted, another solution must be found.



Water and sanitation strategy

Recently, South Africa held its first National Water a

Sanitation Dialogue. It gathered stakeholders from

the agriculture, manufacturing, energy and mining

sectors amongst others.

AECOM recently worked on the Eastern Basin Acid Mine Drainage (AMD)

treatment plant. Acid mine drainage is generated when ore and other

sulphide-containing mining waste is exposed to oxygen and water.

Curbing delays in licencing

Recent regulations from the Department of Water and

Sanitation (DWS) will hopefully overcome the long

delays in securing water use licences, and allow more

streamlined implementation of projects.

Manda Hinsch, partner

and principal water

and environmental

scientists at

SRK Consulting.