SOUTH AFRICAN WATER LEGISLATION
What You Need to Know.
South African water legislation is aimed at regulating the use and management of water resources within the country. The legislation is designed to promote sustainable development, ensure equitable access to water, and protect the environment.
Monitoring and risk management are essential components of South African water legislation. The government has established a comprehensive framework for monitoring water resources and managing risks associated with water use.
The National Water Act of 1998 is the primary legislation governing water management in South Africa. It establishes a system for managing water resources based on the principles of sustainability, equity, and social justice. The Act also establishes a system for monitoring water resources, including the development of a national water resource strategy, water use registration, and monitoring of water quality.
In addition to the National Water Act, there are several other laws and regulations that govern water management in South Africa. These include the Water Services Act of 1997, the National Environmental Management Act of 1998, and the National Water Resources Strategy.
The Water Services Act of 1997 regulates the provision of water services, including the supply of water to households and the treatment of wastewater. The Act establishes a regulatory framework for monitoring and ensuring the quality of water services.
The National Environmental Management Act of 1998 establishes a system for managing the impacts of human activities on the environment. The Act requires the monitoring and assessment of the environmental impacts of water use and development projects.
The National Water Resources Strategy provides a framework for managing water resources in South Africa. The strategy emphasizes the need for integrated water resource management, which involves the coordinated management of water resources across different sectors and regions.
The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) is responsible for implementing and enforcing South African water legislation. The DWS is responsible for monitoring water resources, issuing water use licenses, and regulating water use.
The DWS uses a risk-based approach to manage water resources in South Africa. This approach involves identifying and assessing potential risks associated with water use and development projects and implementing measures to mitigate these risks.
The DWS has developed several tools and guidelines to support the implementation of the risk-based approach. These include the Water Allocation Reform Policy, the National Water Resource Strategy, and the Strategic Framework for Water Services.
In conclusion, South African water legislation is designed to promote sustainable development, ensure equitable access to water, and protect the environment. Monitoring and risk management are essential components of the legislation, and the government has established a comprehensive framework for managing water resources and mitigating risks associated with water use. The Department of Water and Sanitation is responsible for implementing and enforcing the legislation, and it uses a risk-based approach to manage water resources in South Africa.
LEGIONELLA
In South Africa, Legislation regarding Legionella is not very specific, which allows opportunities for avoidance of the required standards due to personal interpretation of the regulations.
Legionella is currently legislated as follows in South Africa:
- Legionella falls under the auspices of the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act, No. 85 of 1993
- A component of the OHS Act is the Regulations for Hazardous Biological Agents (HBA)
- The HBA Regulations apply to every employer or self-employed person at a workplace whether the HBA’s are deliberately or not deliberately produced, processed, used, handled, stored or transported.
- The HBA Regulations are all encompassing, and determine the need for: Risk Assessment, Adequate Training and Information, Monitoring and Record Keeping
- HBA’s are ranked based on their perceived potential to inflict harm to humans. Legionella is normally identified as a Group 2 HBA, however, should there be a known presence of immune compromised individuals (e.g. in hospitals), Legionella becomes classified as a Group 3 HBA
- In addition, Legionnaires Disease is recognized as a “Notifiable Disease” within South Africa, this in turn requires any medical practitioner or individual which positively identifies a case of Legionnaires Disease being forced to notify / report the case to the appropriate local authority
SABS Guidelines:
A South African Standard has been developed which is specific to Legionella Control. The reference for the document is SANS (South African National Standard) 893 (1 & 2)
- Risk management
- The Control of Legionella in Water
Legionella Prevention
What is Legionnaires’ Disease?
Legionnaires’ disease is a potentially fatal pneumonia caused by legionella bacteria. It takes its name from the first known outbreak at an American Legion convention in Philadelphia in 1976. Infection is caused by inhaling small droplets of water contaminated by the bacteria, from sources such as showers, whirlpool baths, taps and cooling towers. People over the age of 45 are more susceptible to infection, as well as smokers and people whose immune system is impaired.
Initial symptoms are similar to those of flu and corona viruses, including headache, high fever and vomiting, followed by more severe symptoms which can include breathing difficulties and hallucination. Legionnaires’ disease is most often treated with antibiotic drugs and recovery often takes several weeks.
How To Prevent Legionella Growth?
Legionella bacteria may grow in any system containing water, such as cooling towers and hot and cold water services. They survive low temperatures and thrive at temperatures between 20°C-45°C, especially where there is scale, corrosion and other bacteria.
Water is used in various ways in today’s factories and offices, and each use should be risk assessed as advocated by the local authorities. In order to comply with their legal duties to prove legionella disease, the owners of the premises should:
- Identify and assess sources of risk
- Prepare a scheme for preventing and controlling the risk
- Implement, manage and monitor precautions and control measures, such as frequently open the tap in case offices and sites are not in use.
- Keep records of the precautions/control measures
- Appoint a person to have managerial responsibility
Can I Do More To Prevent Legionella Growth?
Yes. Tesla Water can help you with a risk assessment to identify any potential sources of risk. We can arrange for specialists to visit your premises to carry out an assessment of your water services, identify any problem areas, put in place control measures including temperature monitoring and hygiene checks, modify any systems which are at high risk from legionella contamination, take water samples for testing, and treat any existing bacteria.
The WaterQ product can help to ensure a safe water environment, legal compliance and peace of mind and help and support you to avoid a legionella outbreak.
SANS 241 – SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL STANDARD for Drinking water.
This document is referenced in the Water Services Act, 1997 (Act No. 108 of 1997)
SANS 241 specifies the quality of acceptable drinking water, defined in terms of microbiological, physical, aesthetic and chemical determinands.
Water that complies with SANS 241 is deemed to present an acceptable health risk for lifetime consumption (this implies an average consumption of 2 L of water per day for 70 years by a person that weighs 60 kg).
Water services institutions or water services intermediaries (or both) should ensure that water provided by them complies with the numerical limits given in this part of SANS 241.
Water services institutions or water services intermediaries (or both) should monitor and maintain monitoring programmes informed by the routine water quality monitoring programme and risk assessment processes described in SANS 241-2.
Our Clients
