Water Sensitive Design: Building a

Community of Practice in South Africa

Dr Kirsty Carden

Urban Water Management research unit

University of Cape Town

24 November 2015

2 WEF Global Risk report 2015

A global risk is an uncertain

event or condition that, if it

occurs, can cause significant

negative impact for several

countries or industries within

the next 10 years.

3 South Africa’s water ‘crisis’ - “too much, too

little, too dirty”

• Low rainfall

• High evaporation

• Poor water quality

• Leakage / wastage

• Population growth

• Quality of life

• Urbanisation

• etc…….

4 WRC - Water Sensitive strategy

Developing a strategy in terms of water sensitivity

is core to our future sustainability

• Water is a fundamental enabler of all life

• Primary catalyst for human development

• Increasing urbanisation provides an opportunity to plan

(and manage) differently

Need a vision as well as enabling legislation

www.wrc.org.za

5 WRC - Water Sensitive Design Lighthouse

Develop a critical mass of knowledge

around the integration of planning

activities for the adoption of Water

Sensitive Design in South Africa

6 The SA Guidelines for SuDS

• Introduction to SuDS

• Design criteria and methods

• Source controls: green roofs, rainwater

harvesting, soakaways, permeable

pavements

• Local controls: filter strips, swales,

infiltration trenches, bio-retention

areas, sand filters

• Regional controls: detention ponds,

retention ponds, constructed wetlands

7 WSUD for South Africa

• Strategic framework for WSUD in SA

• WSUD and development planning

• Institutional / policy considerations

• Guidelines for WSUD activities

Stormwater management –

Sustainable Drainage Systems

(SuDS)

Sanitation / wastewater minimisation

Groundwater management

Sustainable water supply

Modelling tools for WSUD

8 Grounding the WSUD concept in SA

• Tools – guidelines, manuals etc.

• Transfer – capacity building

• Tactics – engaging stakeholders

• Trials – research / pilot implementations

9 Way forward – ‘agents for change’

• Common vision / Champions and coordinating bodies

• Institutional fragmentation / Bridging organisations

• Organisational responsibilities / Accountability and targets

• Political incentives and/or disincentives / Market receptivity

• Organisational commitment / Strategic funding and planning

• Technological path dependency / Trusted science and data

• Community capacity to participate / Socio-political capital

Create Learning Alliances where stakeholders can

engage in collective sense-making and vision-building

10 ‘Reliable science’ - WRC Project K5/2412

A feasibility study to evaluate the potential of

using Water Sensitive Design principles to

strengthen planning for water sensitive cities of

the future

Overall aim: to test the WSUD concept and

framework within a selected catchment(s) and/or

municipality(ies) in South Africa

11 ‘WSD champions - WRC Project K5/2413

Development and management of a Water

Sensitive Design Community of Practice

programme

Overall aim is to “strengthen the researcher /

stakeholder and implementer interface in order to

leverage partnerships and facilitate, manage and

document technology transfer opportunities from

the planning and design phases through to the

piloting (adapting) and implementation phases”

12 Social learning and Learning Alliances

• Enabling environment through social learning

• Shared interest, joint activities, discussion

• Enhanced generation of knowledge through collaborative learning

processes

• Adaptive management embedded in social learning processes

“Learning Alliances are platforms that bring together stakeholders from a

range of institutions: Municipalities, service providers, universities, and in

some cases NGOs and user groups – to think, act and learn, using action

research to test ideas” (Butterworth et al., 2011)

13 Developing the Community of Practice

• Scope WSD project opportunities throughout SA

• Develop and maintain Learning Alliances

• Establish and maintain database / website

• Raise awareness / undertake appropriate WSD

training

• Identify institutional challenges to implementing WSD

• Strengthen and broaden researcher base

14 Overview of related studies

1. Overview of WSD in SA – drivers and barriers

2. Learning Alliances

a) SuDS transitions – Johannesburg

b) Cape Town WSUD strategy

c) Liesbeek River Life Plan

3. Density Syndicate – ‘TRUP’

4. Integrating WSD frameworks into development

standards and rating tools

15 1) Overview of WSD systems in SA

• Benchmark WSD / SuDS projects in SA

• Prioritise 15-20 exemplars for detailed review:

• 24 individual developments

• 5 metros and 4 small-medium sized towns

• 86 Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS)

• Identify barriers and drivers to SuDS uptake

• Synthesise lessons learnt in project database

16 SuDS categories

Rainwater and stormwater harvesting

19%

Detention systems

16%

Bioretention systems

16%

Retention systems

12%

Biofilter systems 9%

Porous surfaces 9%

Swales 6%

Gross pollution traps 6%

Wetland systems 3%

Infiltration systems

2% Proprietary

systems 1%

17 Rainwater and stormwater harvesting

Rainwater harvesting (roofs only) Stormwater harvesting

Philippi, CPT

Ixopo

Airport Ind, CPT

Rustenburg

Germiston, EKU

18 Dry retention systems

Roodeport, JHB

Ixopo

Philippi, CPT

Centurion, TSH

19 Detention systems

Waterfall, JHB

Ridgeside, ETH

Ridgeside, ETH

Rustenburg

20 Bioretention systems

Ixopo

Inner City, CPT

Menlyn Maine,

TSH

Hillcrest, ETH

21 Biofilter systems

Roodeport, JHB

Inner City, CPT

Centurion, TSH

Umhlanga, ETH

22 Porous surfaces, swales, wetlands

Stellenbosch

Hillcrest, ETH

Muizenberg, CPT

Midrand, JHB

Ridgeside, ETH

Rustenburg

23 Challenges

• Lack of understanding of system functionality

• Increased maintenance = high cost burden

• Responsibility for system maintenance

• Lack of political willpower to implement

• Capacities of technical departments low

However:

• Municipal infrastructure constraints provide driver for

improved quantity management

• Municipal by-laws provide additional mechanisms (e.g.

building regulations)

24 Opportunities

• Policy implementation enables broad SuDS uptake

• Energy ‘crisis’ drives growth in awareness around

sustainability / sustainable development

• Public and private sphere response

• Involvement of GBCSA (& others)

System integration → water harvesting

25 2a) Transitions through SuDS - Jhb

Method

• Investigate drivers for adoption of SUDS - interviews with practitioners at JRA, EISD, Joburg Water, City Parks, consultants, Vodacom

• Assess prevailing dynamics within UWM context in the City

Preliminary results

• “First-order learning processes” - regulations and protocols; niche-level innovations

• “Second-order learning processes” – stakeholder engagement required to facilitate wider learning and institutional embedding

‘Transition arena’ for stakeholders to engage in collective

sense-making, articulate realities / expectations as well

as build a vision

26 2b) WSUD strategy - CoCT

• Inland and Coastal Water Quality group meetings

• One-on-one meetings with city officials

• Establishment of WSUD working group

• Development of WSUD strategy for the City

How can this be expanded to a national LA?

How can it be set up?

How will it be maintained, and energised?

How do we get those who are champions within the LA to contribute?

27 2c) Liesbeek River

28 Liesbeek River Life Plan

30 Workshops

31 3. Density Syndicate – TRUP

32 Implementing WSD on the TRUP site

• Rainwater and stormwater harvesting

• Greywater treatment and recycling

• Groundwater recharge (stormwater and greywater recycling through SuDS)

• Riverbank filtration

• Wastewater harvesting - harnessing of biofuels, water reuse for irrigation, nutrients from biomass

33 5. WSD frameworks and green rating tools

Facilitate paradigm

shift required to

address water related

issues in South Africa:

• National

government

• Local authorities

• Non-regulatory

incentives

• Green rating

systems

34 Integration hierarchy for WSUD

35 Supporting interventions / CoP activities

1. Awareness-raising workshops / seminars

2. Website / brochure

3. Engagement on policy / links to SDGs

4. Water saving game

5. Conference papers / articles

6. Etc.

36 1. Raising awareness

Dialogue platforms on where / how WSD can be

implemented – using WSD feasibility case studies; e.g.

• Integrating rainwater / drainage into the urban water cycle

• Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) with a view to providing a

supplementary water supply on the Cape Flats

• Assessment of the effectiveness of water conservation and water

demand management (WC&WDM) strategies employed by the City

• Assessment of the potential benefits of waterscapes / green

infrastructure on ambient temperature in the City

37 2. Website - www.wsud.co.za

38 UWM brochure

39 3. Engagement on policy issues

• Identification of barriers and drivers (key ‘selling’ points)

for the implementation of WSD in South Africa

• Detailed review of institutional challenges associated

with integrating WSD into the planning environment

• National, local and inter-governmental policy required to

influence planning and design for WSD in SA

40 4. Changing behaviour – water demand targets

41 Journal / conference papers and other articles

42

EDUCATION

and POLICIES

RESEARCH

and TECHNOLOGIES

MANAGEMENT

and KNOWLEDGE

EXCHANGE

ACCESS to

and QUALITY

of WATER

I N T

E L

L I G

E N

C E

T E

C H

N I Q

U E

S

C O

M M

U N

I T Y

S U

S T

A I N

A B

I L I T

Y

Increasing impact

• International

collaborations

• IWG WSUD

• EU projects; e.g.

WISER

• Future Water – UCT

research institute

WSD as the unifying concept

43 ‘Tipping point’?

44 Acknowledgements

• South African Water Research Commission

• Key researchers and PG / UG students from the Urban

Water Management research unit at UCT, specifically:

Prof Neil Armitage

Dr Kevin Winter

Mr Lloyd Fisher-Jeffes

Mr David Ellis

www.wsud.co.za

CPD Validation No.

IMESA15-CL40NAT

46 Transdisciplinarity in WSD

47 Resilience-based water management

Blue water

Sector approach

dominated by

economics and

engineering,

emphasis on

supply

Integrated blue

water

An economic

approach to

freshwater

including

environmental

flows

Integrated blue

and green

water

Adding land

interactions,

surface runoff

and infiltration to

food, energy,

and ecosystem

services

Green and blue

water with

social and

ecological

interactions

Resilience

based,

addressing the

need to sustain

rainfall, capture

resource value,

and cross scale

interactions and

feedbacks

IWRM

SuDS

WSUD

Evolution from the 1990s to present day realisation

Adapted from Rockstrom et al., 2014

48 Integrating WSD into local authority policy

49 SDGs by development sector

50 Changing the domestic water cycle

Precipitation

Evapo-

transpiration

Small volumes

of runoff

Infiltration Wastewater

discharge

The Farm House

Rainwater

Harvesting

Groundwater

Greywater

reuse

51 Changing the domestic water cycle

Precipitation

Evapo-

transpiration

Large

volumes of

runoff

Reduced

infiltration Wastewater

discharge

Municipal

potable water

The 20th century house

52 Changing the domestic water cycle

Precipitation

Evapo-

transpiration

Reduced

volumes of

runoff

Increased

Infiltration

Reduced Wastewater

discharge

Reduced Municipal potable

water demand

The water sensitive house

Stormwater

Harvesting

Rainwater

Harvesting

Groundwater

Grey water reuse

53 Household water use game

54 6. SuDS Franschhoek

Project Phase Project Description Project Timeline

I Conceptual plan and design development 24 months

II Development, operation and maintenance 24 months

III Exit strategy, transfer and handover 12 months

55 Concept of SuDS innovation centre

56 Spatial framework

57 Suggested activities over 5 years

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