Clearing up Knysna’s water situation
Knysna’s potable water has been discoloured recently but, Acting Municipal Manager Dawid Adonis says, the water is perfectly safe to drink.
“More importantly, we are working to resolve the situation as soon as possible. We know about the problem, we know what is causing it, and we are working to correct it.”
The upgrades to the Charlesford pumpstation were completed in May this year. “This has increased the pump tempo, allowing us to process more raw water,” Adonis explained. “The increased pumping capacity and activity has temporarily increased the colour and turbidity of the water at the weir, and pumps more silt into the water treatment works.”
The municipality has requested the assistance of experts in the field to propose solutions in eliminating the colour in the water. “While the quality of raw water pumped from Charlesford will clear once the new pumps have settled into the natural river sump, we have identified measures to improve the situation now,” he said.
Certain corrective measures will be put in place to address the increase in colour and turbidity:
- Replacing of the existing silica sand filter media with glass filter media
- Automation of chemical dosing
- Improving of infrastructure
“In the interim, the process controllers have not option but to use water from the Akkerkloof Dam when the Charlesford water is grossly discoloured,” Adonis continued. “The water from the Akkerkloof Dam is of a better quality and has a lower colour and turbidity. This is not ideal, as the Akkerkloof Dam is our main storage dam and should be kept at 100% capacity. We need to have an available water source should the main bulk supply from Charlesford be disrupted due to low rainfall, mechanical or electrical failure, or a pipe burst.”
“Keeping this in mind, as well as our commitment to providing water that is of a standard our residents expect, we are working hard to remedy the situation at the Water Treatment Works as quickly as possible.”
Knysna Municipality remains committed to providing water that is compliant with the relevant legislated standards and ensures that all potable water is tested by an independent SANAS accredited laboratory.