Aquatic Monitoring for Ekurhuleni Water Care Company

Project Overview

Established in 1992, East Rand Water Care Company (ERWAT) provides bulk wastewater conveyance and treatment to thousands of industries and more than 3.5 million people. It currently operates 19 wastewater treatment works that release between 700 to 1,000 megalitres of wastewater, both domestic and industrial, per day.

Project Role

Knight Piésold was appointed by ERWAT to conduct aquatic bio-monitoring at 19 wastewater care works (WCW) on a quarterly basis. The aim of the bio-monitoring is to assess the impact of the WCW on the receiving aquatic environment. To comply with the Water Use Licence conditions from the Department of Water and Sanitation, aquatic bio-monitoring and toxicity testing need to be conducted downstream and upstream of each WCW.

The project entailed the following aquatic monitoring services:

• Collection of water samples for chemical and toxicity analysis
• Collection of diatom samples
• Performing SASS v5, IHAS and FAII assessments at each river site
• Compiling reports based on the data obtained from the assessments and laboratory analyses
• Provide onsite training for interns
• Present drainage region results to plant managers