Hammanskraal is another Gauteng region where water supply is erratic in the best of times and non-existent in the worst of times. But good news has finally arrived to its residents, nearly 18 months after suffering from a Cholera outbreak. Magalies Water has commissioned Phase 1 of the Klipdrift Modular Treatment Plant.

The Klipdrift Modular Treatment Plant is the largest of its kind in Africa, adding 50 Mℓ/day capacity to the existing Klipdridrift Water Treatment Plant (42 Mℓ/day), bringing the total capacity to 92Mℓ/day.

Built next to the existing Klipdrift Treatment Plant, the Klipdrift Modular Treatment Plant is being built in four phases. Each completed phase will bring in 12.5 Mℓ/day of potable water into the bulk supply scheme. The current, completed first phase will supply water to parts of Mandela Village, Marokolong, Ramotse, Kekana Gardens, Kudube Unit 9 and Babelegi Industrial and Bridgeview informal settlement. The next phases of the project will continue into 2025.

Magalies Water is the implementing agent for the project and manages the Klipdrift Treatment Plant. The water utility already supplies parts of Hammanskraal, but the additional capacity of the package plant will allow it to take over Tshwane’s supply area.

To improve drinking water provision to the residents of Hammanskraal, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) last year allocated R758 million for the project.

David Magae, spokesperson for Magalies Water emphasises that the DWS, alongside the City of Tshwane and Magalies Water, is committed to ensuring that the people of Hammanskraal get clean water.

“Because Hammanskraal was facing a crisis in terms of water supply and water quality, conventional solutions like building a traditional water treatment plant were not an option as that would have taken many years to implement. We therefore opted for a package plant.”

Advantages of package plants

Tecroveer, a leader in water and resource recovery solutions, was appointed as contractor by Pro-Plan Consulting Engineers.

Package plants are not a new technology, they have been deployed around the country for many years. But it is a first to have a 50 Mℓ/day packaged plant that is one of the largest in the world – both in terms of individual unit size and total capacity.

“When it comes to infrastructure roll out in South Africa, we want to build better, faster and more efficient infrastructure, while considering climate change and demand by growing communities. This package plant is one such example,” states Deputy Minister David Mahlobo, who was present at the launch.

Compared to traditional water treatment infrastructure, package treatment plants have a reduced footprint, saving land space and are  faster to deploy. Speed of construction is a particular advantage – phase 1 of the project was completed in seven months.

The design combines all traditional water treatment steps in a single modular unit, with capacities ranging from 1 Mℓ/day to the current largest of 12.5 Mℓ/day. The process steps – degritting, flocculation, dissolved air flotation desilting, continuous filtration, and disinfection – are all achieved within a single unit, without any interconnecting pipework or pumping. The total head loss over these steps is less than 1 metre.

Unlike traditional gravity filters, continuous filtration technology means there are no backwash pumps, no complex automation, no downtime during backwashing, and consistent water quality at all times. The units are simple, with bulk mixing and distribution achieved hydraulically, having only two automated valves and a power consumption of less than 2 kW per Mℓ of water treated. The units are enclosed in a building with an overhead crane to accelerate installation and for ongoing maintenance.

A purpose-built manufacturing facility has been erected at Tecroveer’s factory in Glenhavie, where two 12.5 Mℓ/day units can be manufactured in parallel. Thanks to the pre-engineered modular design and the purpose-built manufacturing facility, the time from order placement to delivering safe and pure water is achieved in an unprecedented four to five months.

Everything else, apart from mechanical items such as gearboxes the modules 100% locally implemented and manufactured.

“There were a few factors that played in our favour as the source of raw water was readily available. There was also existing infrastructure such as a pump station and reservoirs that could absorb the new load,” notes Magae.

As with most construction projects, there are often unforeseen hurdles. One such example was the bedrock that needed to be excavated for construction to take place. A process of chemical blasting was used to crack the rock, which was then broken into pieces with rock breakers and removed.

A 97 km bulk pipeline was built specifically for the package plant to abstract water from the Pienaars Rivier.  Potable water produced from the package plant will eventually be supplied across Limpopo, North-West and Gauteng Provinces.

Vandalism

“We are in the final stages of designating this plant as a national key point, ensuring its recognition as a site of strategic importance and protecting it against sabotage. We are also working closely with our security cluster to make sure that all necessary security measures are implemented in accordance with national key point requirements. We currently have armed security protecting all assets at the Klipdrift Water Treatment Plant,” adds Magae.

Unfortunately, the Hammanskraal community have experienced the effects of vandalism first hand where, just before the launch of Phase 1 of the Klipdrift modular treatment plant, some water coming from the new plant along the reticulation pipeline was contaminated. This was due to a linked pipeline system from the Temba Water Treatment Plant and illegal connections, that backwashed into the system. This resulted in the need for further water analysis and a slight delay.

Once the vandalism was dealt with and the illegal connections closed and the pipes were flushed, further testing was conducted by Magalies Water, the Department of Water and Sanitation as well as the City of Tshwane to ensure that the water was of a potable standard.  All water that passes the reticulation system must be of good quality and meet the standard as required by the law. The Minister also called on all water quality tests to be published openly and communicated to the public.

The battle against illegal utility connections continues with the City of Tshwane enlisting the services of the Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) and the South African Police Service (SAPS) to improve ways of identifying and eliminating illegal utility connections.

Talking about measures that needed be taken to curb infrastructure vandalism, Deputy Minister Seitlholo called on the municipality to work with communities and the SAPS to curb vandalism and to bring to book those who commit malicious damage to water infrastructure.

“Vandalism is costing this country millions of rands and is a key issue faced by municipalities across the country. This is also an example where illegal water connections also threaten the health of ordinary citizens. There needs to be more engagement with law the police,” says Seitlholo.

He adds that often infrastructure is vandalised by people who benefit from either providing water tanks or replacing the broken infrastructure.

Another example of vandalism in the area was the recent fire at the Pyramid substation that left parts of Rooiwal, north of Pretoria, without power and water was believed to be a blatant act sabotage. The Leeuwkraal Dam was contaminated because the Rooiwal Wastewater Treatment Works did not have electricity and the plant had to temporarily cease operations and, consequently, discharged untreated sewage into the Apies River, which feeds the Leeuwkraal Dam.

Fortunately, Phase 1 of the Klipdrift Package Plant has been completed just in time to lift some spirits this festive season to address the Hammanskraal community’s urgent need for safe water and an end to having to allocate a large portion of their monthly income to purchase bottled water.

“While the innovative modular design and the associated agile project management processes are key elements in the success of this emergency intervention, they are not the only factor. The collaboration, openness, integrity, clear intention, commitment, and vision of all parties involved – from National and Local Government to Magalies Water Board, ProPlan, Tecroveer, community stakeholders, and the people of Hammanskraal – have been equally vital. Without this collective effort, the project could never have materialised or been completed in such record time,” states Izak Cronje, CEO, Tecroveer.

“Magalies Water is excelling as an implementing agent and the project thus far and been carried out in a timely, environmentally sensitive and sustainable manner. The completion of Phase 1 is a huge milestone for us, as it exemplifies what’s possible when stakeholders come together to address critical needs with urgency and innovation. A special thank you to Minister Pemmy Majodina for your leadership and vision, which made this success possible,” concludes Magae.