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EVENTS - 2004

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Announcements

DEVELOPMENT OF THE NEW SOUTH AFRICAN SLUDGE GUIDELINES WORKSHOPS

(Permissible Utilisation and Disposal of Sewage Sludge, Edition 2)

Background

The current guidelines for land disposal and agricultural reuse of wastewater sludge were published as the Permissible Utilisation and Disposal of Sewage Sludge, (Edition 1) of 1997 [PDF - 1MB]. These Guidelines deal with the application of sewage sludge to land and amongst other criteria, set permissible limits for concentrations of heavy metals in sludge that are acceptable for unrestricted (limited to 8 ton/ha/year application) agricultural land use. As the 1997 Guidelines provided for only a few application alternatives and difficulty was, furthermore, encountered with interpreting the values set for heavy metals, an Addendum [PDF - 460KB] (Addendum no 1 to Edition 1, of the 1997 Permissible Utilisation and Disposal of Sewage Sludge) to the guidelines was prepared to rectify these shortcomings. This Addendum links the handling and disposal of sewage sludge to several other legislative documents and was developed as an interim document to assist in the responsible handling of sewage sludge.

Shortly after initiating the development of the Addendum, the Water Research Commission started with a research programme to further develop the knowledge base for the management of sewage sludge within the South African context. Although the results of these research projects do not provide all the answers, it is believed that they do enable the formulation of an update to the 1997 version of Permissible Utilisation and Disposal of Sewage Sludge. It is envisaged that this second edition of the Guidelines will combine relevant aspects of the addendum and limits for metals, nutrients and organic pollutants based on scientific criteria to ensure credibility and user acceptance. The development of the second edition of the South African Sludge Guidelines is taking place in a phased approach that requires input from stakeholders such as the sludge producers, users and regulators. The Water Research Commission has appointed ERWAT to revise and update the South African Sludge Guidelines. WISA Anaerobic and Sludge Processes Division will be hosting a series of workshops in association with the WRC and DWAF.

It is crucial that stakeholders give their input into the development of this document. Your participation in this workshop will be appreciated and will significantly contribute to a better product that is acceptable to all stakeholders.

Dates and Venues

Date Province / Region City
15 November 2004 KwaZulu-Natal Pietermarizburg
16 November 2004 Limpopo Polokwane
29 November 2004 Free State and Northern Cape Kimberley
30 November 2004 Western Cape Elsenburg (Stellenbosch)
8 December 2004 Gauteng CSIR
26 January 2005 Eastern Cape East London
27 January 2005 Mpumalanga Nelspruit
3 February 2005 North West
(Crocodile Marico Water Management Area)
NECSA

Workshop Cost and Registration

No registration fees apply. The Water Research Commission and the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry have sponsored these workshops. Please note that no provisions have been made to compensate delegates financially for attending the workshop. We do require registration to ensure that we have adequately catered for you and have a document pack ready when you arrive. Please register by sending (preferably via e-mail) the following details to Mrs Judith Forster at jforster@golder.co.za or Fax: 011-3150317 (Mark for attention Judith Forster): Title, Initials and Surname, Company, Position, Contact details (Address, e-mail, telephone, fax).

Programme

Facilitator: Dr Heidi Snyman: Golder Associates Africa

Time Topic or activity
09h30 - 10h00 Registration and tea/coffee
10h00 - 10h10 Welcome by DWAF and/or WRC
10h10 - 10h30 History of wastewater sludge legislation and guidelines in South Africa
10h30 - 11h00 International trends in wastewater sludge guidelines and legislation
11h00 - 12h30 Framework and basis of the new South African Wastewater Sludge Guidelines with emphasis on the proposed metal and other limits
12h30 - 13h15 Lunch
13h15 - 14h00 Discussion and feedback
14h00 - 15h00 Practical examples and case studies
15h00 - 15h15 Summary and closing


Related documents

  • Progress report: Permissible utilisation and disposal of sewage sludge, Ed 2


More information

Mrs Judith Forster
Golder Associates Africa (Pty)Ltd.
Tel: (+27)(0)11 254 4800
Fax: (+27)(0)11 315 0317
E-mail: jforster@golder.co.za


Hosted by

WISA Anaerobic and Sludge Processes Division
in association with
Department of Water Affairs and Forestry
and
Water Research Commission