NATSURV Workshop

NATSURV: National Surveys of Water and Effluent Management in the Pelagic Fishing, Fruit and Vegetable Processing and Power Generating Industries

BACKGROUND
The management and regulation of industrial water use and effluent production present many challenges, but also significant opportunities for cleaner production and recoverable resources in South Africa.

The Natsurv series of publications were developed by the Water Research Commission of South Africa from the mid-1980’s onwards. By conducting national industrial water and wastewater surveys of all classes of industry, water and effluent management and best practice within different important industrial sectors in the South African economy was documented. Due to sector demand, reviews to the series began in 2013. This workshop will focus on recently completed and current Natsurv studies. The aim of the research was to evaluate the industrial processes the specific industries in terms of current practice, best practice and cleaner production, as pertaining to water and effluent management. The regulatory environment within which these industries operate also received specific attention. Natsurv 19: Water and wastewater management in the fruit and vegetable processing industry and Natsurv 16: Water and wastewater management in the Power Generating Industry are revisions of previous editions, whereas Natsurv 18: Water and wastewater management in the pelagic fishing and fish processing industry is the first edition, with this industry not being included in the past.

The workshop will include a presentation of each industry by a specialist and will share research results in terms of a detailed overview of each industry, i.e. its history, growth, economic profile, challenges and opportunities in water and effluent management., as well as each industry’s specific water consumption, effluent production, recycle and reuse trends, and appropriate technology application. The industries’ adoption of concepts such as cleaner production, water pinch, energy pinch, life cycle assessments, and water footprints will also form part of the workshop.

OBJECTIVE
The intended outcome is to inform the target audience of new concepts of water and wastewater management in the relevant industries that can be used to benchmark their practices, and allowing regulators and industries to engage in informed discussions. Consultants working in the various industrial fields will also be informed of the current status quo and potential opportunities.