1. Options To Increase the Water Availability SSC Meeting on 30 April 2013, Bundu Lodge, Nelspruit

2. 1.Removal of Invasive Alien Plants (IAPs) 2.Ground water development 3.System operating rules 4.Eliminating unlawful water use 5.Water reallocation 6.Dam construction 7.Water resource classification 8.Rainwater and fog harvesting 9.Water reuse Options To Increase The Water Availability

3. Estimated infested area in Kwena Dam catchment - 77 km 2 Estimated infested area in Primkop Dam catchment – 18 km 2 Focus should firstly be on riparian zones. Removal Of IAPs Options To Increase The Water Availability

4. Removal Of IAPs CatchmentStream flow Reduction million m 3 /a Estimated yield increase due to Removal of IAPs million m 3 /a Crocodile Upstream Mbombela 178 Crocodile within Mbombela101 Sabie Upstream Mbombela00 Sabie within Mbombela10.5 Total289.5 Options To Increase The Water Availability

5. Groundwater resource hold opportunities at most of the water demand centres. Special techniques for Borehole siting are recommended, e. g. ‒ High density airborne Survey. ‒ Radon emanation technique. Estimated yield increase – approximately 100 000 m 3 /a – 200 000 m 3 /a per water demand centre. Groundwater Development Options To Increase The Water Availability

6. Areas with High Groundwater Potential Options To Increase The Water Availability

8. Real - time operational model for Crocodile River System - limited scope for reducing water losses. Real - time operational model for Sabie River under development. Improved systems operations for White River System Klipkopjes, Longmere and Primkop Dams is possible and could increase the yield by at least 1 million m 3 /a. System Operating Rules Options To Increase The Water Availability

9. Extent of unlawful water use in the entire catchment is currently unknown. Will become known after completion of Validation and Verification Processes. This option has not been factored into the Water balance as yet, owing to the uncertainties. Definite possibility and needs to be investigated further, and if possible included in final strategy. Eliminating Unlawful Water Use Options To Increase The Water Availability

10. Full water entitlement can be purchased from interested irrigation farmers. Needs to be implemented with caution, to avoid social consequences. Fallow irrigation lands with no farm workers should be targeted. Water saved through WC/WDM could also be traded. Water Reallocation Options To Increase The Water Availability

11. Six dams considered: 0 – 20 million m 3 /a yield: ‒ Boschjeskop Dam( Nels River) ‒ Ngodwana Dam Raising ( Ngodwana River - tributary of Elands River) ‒ Lupelule Dam on a tributary of the Elands River > 50 million m 3 /a yield: ‒ Montrose Dam - Crocodile River ‒ Mountain View Dam - Kaap River ‒ Strathmore Dam – Revolver Creek. Dam Construction Options To Increase The Water Availability

12. Dams Investigated Options To Increase The Water Availability

13. DamCapacity million m 3 Yield million m 3 /a URV @ 8% R/m 3 Boschjeskop13020R 4.50 Ngodwana Raising 10020R 19.00 Lupelule237R 16.50 Mountain View6050R 0.53 Strathmore6075R 0.50 Montrose21060R 4.50 Dam Construction (Continued) Options To Increase The Water Availability

14. Of the six dams evaluated, two could immediately be discarded on financial grounds, i.e.: –Raising of Ngodwana Dam –Lupelule Dam Montrose Dam’s URV is relatively high and there will be significant environmental impacts Three dams remaining to be considered, i.e.: –Boschjeskop Dam –Mountain View Dam –Strathmore Dam Dam Construction (Continued) Options To Increase The Water Availability

15. If Mountain View or Strathmore dams are chosen, a water exchange needs to be made Downstream irrigators who currently receive their water from Kwena Dam will now be allocated out of Mountain View or Strathmore Dam More Kwena Dam water can then be made available to parts of MLM area located upstream of Kaap/Crocodile confluence Social, financial and environmental implications of such a exchange needs to be investigated Dam Construction (Continued) Options To Increase The Water Availability

16. Montrose Dam

17. Mpumalanga Biodiversity Conservation Plan (MBCP) National Freshwater Ecological Priority Areas (NFEPA) Water Quality Impacts Socio economic impacts Environmental Screening Criteria Used Options To Increase The Water Availability

18. Conclusion of Environmental Screening In summary, the dams which will have the least impact on the surrounding environment would be Mountain View, Strathmore and Boschjeskop Dams. If social and environmental impacts are taken into consideration, Mountain View Dam and Strathmore Dam would be the preferred options. Options To Increase The Water Availability

19. Sabie River currently in A/B Ecological Category. If Sabie River Reserve is optimised additional yield may become available. Subject to full stakeholder engagement process. This will be part of the resource classification process of DWA. The Crocodile River situation can also be investigated The classification project for the whole Inkomati WMA has started Water Resource Classification Options To Increase The Water Availability

20. Rainwater Harvesting Rainwater harvesting can reduce the reliance of water users on surface water resources. It is however not a solution on its own and can only supplement water supplies. It is estimated that full implementation of rainwater harvesting will reduce the reliance of existing sources by about 5%. However, rainfall harvesting is not yet competitive in terms of cost. It is however recommended that municipal bylaws be passed compelling all new housing development to be installed with rainwater harvesting tanks. Options To Increase The Water Availability

21. Fog harvesting The escarpment to the south of Nelspruit experiences high incidences of fog and there is potential for fog harvesting to supply domestic water needs. Kaapsehoop could benefit from such a scheme. However, the amount of water that could be harvested is difficult to determine without a pilot plant. It is recommended that a pilot plant be constructed at Kaapsehoop. Options To Increase The Water Availability

22. Water reuse The reuse of water through treating domestic and/or industrial effluent is an option which would reduce the reliance of water users on fresh water sources. The process is however relatively expensive. Water reuse is practiced in several towns and cities in South Africa but is mostly applied for industrial and mining use. The reuse of effluent for domestic purposes is less common. Its an option that is being actively promoted in Durban as a viable reconciliation option but there is some resistance to the concept on cultural grounds.

23. Options To Increase The Water Availability Water reuse (Continued) In the case of coastal cities and towns which discharge effluent into the sea there is a direct benefit to reuse of effluent. In the case of inland recycling the benefit is less since the effluent is generally discharged into the river and is already being used by downstream users. There is no legal requirement for municipalities to return their effluent into the river. They may reuse it if they wish. This could however have implications on downstream users who are already indirectly using this effluent.

24. Discussion Options To Increase The Water Availability