East Rand Water Care Company established in 1992 as a Section 21 Company. Main shareholder is the Ekurhuleni Municipality. ERWAT is responsible for managing waste water within Ekurhuleni.

The Welgedacht plant is currently a 35ml/day plant that serves in Blesbokspruit catchment area in Ekurhuleni Municipality managed by ERWAT. At present the plant is designed for 35ml/day but is overloaded and is treating in excess of 60ml/day. The plant is therefore operating under extreme pressure. Based on a moderate growth rate of 3% in the surrounding areas (mainly Boksburg, Benoni, Daveyton, Brakpan and Springs) a 50ml/day is immediately required and an additional 50ml/day plant will be required in 2021. Overloading the plant compromises the plants ability to meet the required effluent standards. This has a dire effect on the environment as well as on general health. In addition, the Blesbokspruit into with the plant discharges its effluent is a particularly sensitive area which places additional pressure on ERWAT to ensure that the plant performs optimally.

New technological solutions incorporated
The most significant technology being incorporated is the energy saving technologies into the design of the plant. For this specific project, Palace Technologies has conducted life cycle cost analysis of technologies to be employed within the Bioreactors i.e. fine bubble diffused aeration versus mechanical surface aeration. Although mechanical surface aeration was traditionally utilised due to robustness, low cost and operator preference the use of the more efficient fine bubble diffused aeration technology could not be overlooked due to the large energy savings offered.

Importance of the water treatment plant in preserving life
The plant is extremely important in the preserving of life. Waste water has to be treated prior to release back into the environment. Release of untreated waste into our river systems not only creates a human health risk but damages the health of the receiving water bodies in a relative short period of time. One of the biggest effect it has on life within water bodies is that is absorbs much of the dissolved oxygen with the water, which leads to diminishing plant and animal life within the rivers.

An experience surpassing twenty years
Palace Group’s first waste water treatment projects dates back to more than twenty years ago with Olifantsvlei and Bushkoppies in1989. In recent years, the company has been heavily involved in waste water treatment for ERWAT. This began in 2003 when the Palace/BCP JV was appointed by ERWAT to render consulting engineering services for the process design, preliminary design, tender design, and detail design and construction supervision of the Waterval 50Mw/day plant extension.
Email: info@palacegroup.co.za
Website: www.palacegroup.co.za