Featured
Mendy Shozi: Water’s Importance Cannot Be Overstated
Water is scarce, wasted, and taken for granted. It is also a vital source of life and dignity. Mendy Shozi, President of the South Africa Youth Parliament for Water and project manager at Bremen Overseas Research and Development Association, is in her words “water...
Featured
Navigating Resistance: Overcoming Barriers to Regulatory Reform in South Africa’s Water Sector
Introducing new regulations often meets with resistance, and the water sector in South Africa is no exception. Regulation 3630 is an example and stems from various sources, including institutional inertia, stakeholder interests, and socio-economic factors....
Featured
Making Every Drop Count In Gqeberha
Droughts are not new to Gqeberha (formerly called Port Elizabeth). Located in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province, Gqeberha experiences a semi-arid climate with erratic rainfall, making it prone to periodic water scarcity. This has inspired a unique partnership...
Featured
Reducing Risk and Building Trust with Bureau Veritas
A world leader in testing, inspection and certification services, Bureau Veritas operates in agri-food, industry, commodities as well as building and infrastructure markets. Water is a critical resource across all these sectors, and as its quality declines, water...
EWSETA UNLOCKS OPPORTUNITIES FOR SMMES AT AFRICA ENERGY INDABA
Six SMMEs, within the green energy sector, will showcase their technology and services at this week’s Africa Energy Indaba, when they form part of EWSETA’s (Energy and Water Sector Education and Training Authority) SMME Village. The SMME Village...
AI’s thirst for water: an opportunity for water professionals
In today’s digital landscape, big data and artificial intelligence (AI), including ChatGPT, has transformed the way we work and interact. However, what often goes unnoticed is the enormous amount of water that AI consumes. By Boitumelo Pako...
Sasol Pricing Decision by CAC Clears Path for Competition Commission to Take Legal Action
The Competition Appeal Court (CAC) currently rejects Sasol’s attempt to challenge the Competition Commission’s probe into the alleged overpricing of natural piped gas. This refusal by the CAC opens the door for the commission to take...
World Bank supports the global rollout of distributed renewable energy in Africa
Achieving universal access to energy by 2030, both in Africa and globally, relies heavily on Distributed Renewable Energy (DRE), according to Raihan Elahi, the lead energy specialist at the World Bank Energy Sector Management Assistance Programme....
Trade, Agriculture, and Construction Continue to Impede South Africa’s Economic Growth, Narrowly Avoids Recession in Q4 2023
The South African economy faced challenges in various sectors, with trade, agriculture, and construction identified as primary impediments to growth, according to Stats SA. Although the nation narrowly dodged a technical recession, experiencing a...
PULSE – Gross Fixed Capital Formation in 2023Q4 may underestimate performance in the construction sector
The Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) estimates released by Stats SA for the fourth quarter of 2023 indicate ongoing pressure on the construction industry, particularly in residential and civil construction works. Residential investment has seen...
Sustainability
Growing a profitable, sustainable chemical sector
The South African chemical industry’s commitment to sustainability is growing with more companies joining the global Responsible Care initiative. The initiative promotes the improvement of the safety, health and environmental performance of the...
Polystyrene Packaging Council changes name to reflect social upliftment focus
The Polystyrene Packaging Council – the product recovery organisation (PRO) for expanded polystyrene (EPS) and high impact polystyrene (HIPS) in South Africa – has announced that it is changing its name to the Polystyrene Association of South...
Metal packaging organisation encourages recycling ahead of Clean-Up and Recycle Week SA
MetPac-SA, the new industry body representing the interests of the local metal packaging industry, will be joining forces with the various packaging streams in South Africa during the month of September to encourage households to practice mindful...
Bad habits fuel illegal dumping
Statement by the City of Cape Town’s mayoral committee member for safety, security and social services, alderman JP Smith. The City of Cape Town’s Law Enforcement Department recently impounded its 100th vehicle used for illegal dumping. The...
African Chemicals Imbizo promotes growth and investment in local chemical sector
The Chemical and Allied Industries’ Association (CAIA) exhibited and participated at the Third African Chemicals Imbizo at the Moses Mabida Stadium in Durban this week. CAIA Executive Director Deidré Penfold congratulated the Durban Chemical...
Industrial symbiosis wins victory in war on waste and pollution
Over the past three months, over 190 000 tonnes of waste has been diverted from landfill and converted into valuable feedstock for South African industry as part of the Industrial Symbiosis (IS) Programme at the National Cleaner Production Centre...
Events
Industry News
Opinion
Deregulation and technology will fulfill South Africa’s power needs
South Africa has long dominated Africa’s growth charts. And I believe that South Africa has the potential to be the fastest-growing economy on the continent again. There’s one issue that we must address, and that’s the issue of electricity. Simply...
DWS officially implements the 90-day turnaround on water use licence
The Department of Water Affairs has implemented its plan for a 90-day turnaround on water use licence (WUL) applications – applying this new timeframe as of 1 April 2021. This step is to be applauded, according to SRK Consulting environmental...
Opinion
Introducing ‘climate-smart’ mining on the road to Industry 4.0
Reducing our carbon footprint to mitigate the impact of climate change, as outlined in international treaties like the Paris Agreement, and accelerating the journey to the all-electric mine, is a business priority for many mining companies and...
Water
Metro News
City of Cape Town cracks down on illegal dumping
People who litter and dump waste illegally, should start shaking in their boots, because Cape Town City’s Anti-littering and Dumping Task Team will be out in full force to bring those who dump to book. If found to be on the wrong side of the law,...
Tshwane’s plans for a waste management revamp
South Africa’s waste management approach faces numerous challenges, particularly as environmentalists call for traditional waste processing measures to be done away with. Limited resources, population growth and poor infrastructure are increasingly...
N2 roadworks construction to resume
Construction is expected to restart on the N2 near Ballito to complete ongoing roadworks, after several months of stoppages at the site. The SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) said it was looking to get construction on site to complete the roadworks...
Engineering
Creative engineering for the future
By Dr Kourosh Kayvani As the world becomes increasingly complex, ambiguous and volatile, creative and innovative design must underpin the way we frame and solve problems facing humanity and our environment. Engineering design has obviously always...
Construction industry should embrace technology
Despite substantial investments, the construction industry is struggling to gain the full benefits of technologies including advanced data and analytics, mobility, automation and robotics. This is the key finding from Building a technology...
The role of geosciences in sustainable planetary occupation
Extinction probably isn’t at the forefront of everybody’s mind right now, because most people are preoccupied with more immediate concerns; how will I afford to educate my child? Why can’t I get a decent WiFi connection?...
Technology
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Water & Sanitation Africa
The official magazine of the Water Institute of Southern Africa (WISA), the magazine publishes content dealing with the supply, governance, financing, treatment and measurement of water and sanitation in southern Africa.