Water and Sanitation Department hosts National Eutrophication Management Strategy webinar to mitigate the impact of water pollution in South Africa
In continuous efforts to mitigate the impact of water pollution across the country, the Department of Water and Sanitation hosted a webinar on the recently approved Eutrophication Management Strategy for South Africa (EMSSA) on Wednesday, 20 March 2024.
The Strategy aims to mitigate excessive nutrient enrichment in water bodies, protect water ecosystems and secure water resources that are suitable for various uses. It also addresses nutrient inputs from sources such as agricultural, industrial, mining, and urban, along with wastewater treatment plants.
The webinar was attended by national, provincial and local government departments, Catchment Management Agencies, sectoral institutions, civil society members and non-governmental entities, amongst others, who voiced their inputs on some of the best practices of eutrophication management.
During discussions, the Department used the opportunity to disseminate and raise awareness about the approved EMSSA; streamlined the reporting process in relation to Eutrophication Management and positioned the sector for partnerships and collaboration.
To ensure the collaboration and information sharing across all African countries, Mr Obinna Anah, the Knowlwdge Management, Communications and Visibility Officer at the African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW) participated in the webinar. Dr Francis Oseke from the National Water Resources Institute in Nigeria was also in attendance and shared lessons learned in Eutrophication Management from an international perspective.
The EMSSA was initiated in 2019 by the Department of Water and Sanitation, and completed in 2022, in response to the degradation of water quality trends caused by extensive nutrient loading observed across the country.
The strategy provides a plan of action that needs to be adopted and implemented by the water sector to achieve goals and objectives of the National Water Act, 1998.
The Eutrophication Management Strategy will assist to limit anthropogenic nutrient-loading of water resources; reduce excessive primary production of algae and aquatic weeds in surface water resources; protect aquatic ecosystems and their biological diversity; secure water resources that are fit-for-use on a continuous basis; and support ecologically sustainable development and justifiable socio-economic growth.
The strategy supports the clearing of hyacinth and the water lettuce as part of the eutrophication management process.
The EMSSA aligns with national goals, including the Integrated Water Quality Management Strategy and the National Water Resource Strategy, aiming to transform the water and sanitation sector regarding eutrophication management and pollution prevention.
For more information, contact
Wisane Mavasa, Spokesperson for the Department of Water and Sanitation
Cell: 060 561 8935
E-mail: mavasaw@dws.gov.za
