The prestigious WISA 2012 conference is about to get underway, taking place in Cape Town from 6 to 10 May. Debbie Besseling speaks to the conference’s chairperson Dana Grobler about what delegates can expect from this year’s event.

The idea behind the “water footprint” theme is to say that humans, through their various social and economic activities, have an impact on all aspects relating to water. Grobler says “in other words, water resources are being impacted as a result of the process of water being utilised, becoming contaminated, and then requiring to be cleaned in waste water treatment systems before being returned often for re-use. The concept of the water footprint implies that the conference will look at the issues and challenges in their broadest sense and the associated impacts that humans have on water.”

The conference expects to attract more than 1500 delegates. “The conference will be different in the sense that we are bringing in water resources, together with what we classically call the water services sector and water researchers. This will be the first time that there is a concerted effort to bring together these three groupings that actually form the pillars of water management.”

The conference also includes an exhibition which will be providing opportunities for exhibitors to display advances in water technologies which can support water conservation, water re-use and developing and using alternative water sources.

“Delegates can look forward to attending any of the 162 formal papers that will be presented, and viewing 66 posters that will be on display. There will also be a wide variety of workshop topics (28 in total), which will include the Blue Drop and Green Drop workshops, to support the Department of Water Affair’s initiative to implement regulatory mechanisms for the water services sector.
Although corporate responsibility towards the environment in general has progressed well during the last two decades, the issue of corporate responsibility towards water is in its initial stages in South Africa” says Grobler.

Challenges faced in the water sector
“If one simply considers the amount of media attention given to water related issues in South Africa, there are undoubtedly some serious challenges in terms of water resource management, water services delivery and provision of water supply. This includes issues of acid mine drainage, de-salinisation, lack of service delivery, hydraulic fracking and aquatic ecosystem deterioration” comments Grobler.

To put these issues into perspective South Africa has gone through a period of about 100 years of developing and using water resources to support economic activities, but we now enter an era in which we have no option but to improve the management of this limited resource to ensure a continued sustainable economic situation. South African’s do not have any further major water resources that can still be developed. We therefore need to effectively manage the resources that we have, and that would imply that we should focus on water conservation and demand management, the re-use of water and the minimisation of the impact on the aquatic ecosystems which supports the sustainable supply of water.

In terms of water services, the Department of Water Affairs should be commended for the efforts they’ve put in place to establish the Blue and Green drop incentive-based regulatory mechanisms that addresses the issues of water management in local and district municipalities. In doing so the Department has also created awareness amongst politicians and councillors of local municipalities of the need to technically make provision for maintenance and management of equipment that will ensure adequate water supply and prevention of waste water contamination of water resources. This is simply the start of a much broader needed focus on infrastructure maintenance and management and building the skills base that is required to achieve this.

In closing Grobler comments: “The WISA 2012 conference provides an important opportunity to participate and deliberate these issues and contribute towards the solution that is required to improve the planning and management of water in Southern Africa.”