Residents across Drakenstein will benefit from this R1.4bn grant as it will ensure increased bulk sewer capacity to unlock future developments, which include social and private residential housing, commercial hubs, and industrial opportunities. The benefits are: Improved quality of effluent released into the Berg River – vital for the livelihood of surrounding communities (domestic and agricultural, and especially growers of export fruit and produce); Improved sewage treatment processes, as well as reduced energy demand, and operation and maintenance costs at the Paarl WWTW;
Ensured compliance with prescribed effluent quality standards;
Significant economic and socio-economic benefits (i.e. job opportunities, as well as attracting public and private sector investment, ensuring the growth of the local economy);
An increased tax base and revenue generation; and
Sustainable opportunities such as green energy (i.e. transforming sludge into biogas) which will reduce the high electricity demand at the Paarl WWTW.
The BFI project is necessary, considering that several integrated residential and commercial developments with noticeable economic and socio-economic benefits are planned, specifically to the south of Paarl, which would put added pressure on existing systems. With the BFI project, the wastewater and sludge treatment capacity for Paarl, Wellington, and surrounds will increase and help to accommodate the current demands and to cater for future demands and developments. One of only 22 SA municipalities to receive Green Drop status Drakenstein Municipality recently became one of only 22 wastewater systems out of 850 in South Africa and one of only three Western Cape municipalities to receive Green Drop status from the DWS.
The Green Drop certification is an incentive- based regulation programme of the DWS. Municipalities receive Green Drop status when they achieve scores of 90% or higher against stringent Green Drop assessment requirements. The Municipality’s Hermon Wastewater Treatment System scored an impressive 93%. At the event, Councillor Theuns Bester, Mayoral Committee Member for Engineering Services at the Municipality, thanked the DWS for playing such an instrumental role in providing the funding for these upgrades. “We are not only thankful for the funding and the upgrades, but we are excited about the future developments and revenue this project brings,” he said.
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VARS | November
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