3.4 Analysis
147
When considering water security as a concept, SANBI (2020) defines it within
the ambit of population growth and economic development in the catchment, which
has resulted in the uMngeni River system being unable to meet the current water
demands in the area.
The UEIP has several objectives that are aligned to ecological infrastructure,
governance, institutional capacity, policy, knowledge generation, collaboration and
co-learning. Firstly, it sets out to establish strategic investments in the ecological
infrastructure that will contribute to water security enhancement in the catchment.
Secondly, it would like to improve governance in order to slow down the degradation
rate of the ecological infrastructure. Thirdly, the partnership wants to strengthen the
institutional capacity to rehabilitate, maintain and protect the ecological infrastructure. A fourth objective is to foster an enabling policy environment for investment
in the said rehabilitation and management activities and to improve the knowledge
base that informs the policy and practice on ecological infrastructures. Lastly, the
collaboration between the various partners will focus on ‘effective’ collaboration,
coordination and co-learning, which enables the partnership to consolidate, grow
and demonstrate its value (SANBI 2020).
Since its inception seven years ago, the UEIP has initiated three demonstration
projects, namely, the Baynesspruit and Palmiet River Rehabilitation initiatives and
the Save Midmar Project. Three local governments manage the respective projects,
namely, the Msunduzi Local Municipality, the uMgungundlovu District Municipality
and the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality (SANBI 2020).
Msunduzi is a UEIP partner in the Baynesspruit Rehabilitation project, and its
efforts in the Baynesspruit, a tributary of the Msunduzi River, focus on water quality
deterioration due to pollution from ‘illegal industrial waste discharge, solid waste and
contamination from dilapidated storm-water and sanitation infrastructure. Activities
to address these problems include alien vegetation control, riverbank rehabilitation
to reduce soil erosion, citizen science and school projects to clean-up the river’
(SANBI 2020). The overall aim of the project is to restore the existing ecological
infrastructure areas (SANBI 2020).
The uMgungundlovu District Municipality partners with the KwaZulu-Natal
Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs on the
Save Midmar Project. They coordinate their activities to restore the ecological infrastructure in important areas around the Midmar Dam (Figs. 3.11 and 3.21 ), which
is a major reservoir that stores water for use by Pietermaritzburg and Durban and
the surrounding areas. The dam also hosts the popular annual Midmar Mile sporting
event. Sewerage, industrial pollution and upstream agricultural activities have been
responsible for the deteriorating water quality. Save Midmar focuses on wastewater
infrastructure construction and repair, wetland rehabilitation, as well as community
education and outreach (SANBI 2020) involving WESSA’s education and learning
efforts (p. 129) (Taylor 2020).Researchers from UKZN assist eThekwini in the
Palmiet River project, which aims to address the river’s deteriorating water quality
(p. 123). Furthermore, the initiative focuses on improving governance by fostering
‘good relationships’ with catchment stakeholders, in order to understand the socioeconomic and political dynamics, especially in informal settlements. Pollution, which
147
When considering water security as a concept, SANBI (2020) defines it within
the ambit of population growth and economic development in the catchment, which
has resulted in the uMngeni River system being unable to meet the current water
demands in the area.
The UEIP has several objectives that are aligned to ecological infrastructure,
governance, institutional capacity, policy, knowledge generation, collaboration and
co-learning. Firstly, it sets out to establish strategic investments in the ecological
infrastructure that will contribute to water security enhancement in the catchment.
Secondly, it would like to improve governance in order to slow down the degradation
rate of the ecological infrastructure. Thirdly, the partnership wants to strengthen the
institutional capacity to rehabilitate, maintain and protect the ecological infrastructure. A fourth objective is to foster an enabling policy environment for investment
in the said rehabilitation and management activities and to improve the knowledge
base that informs the policy and practice on ecological infrastructures. Lastly, the
collaboration between the various partners will focus on ‘effective’ collaboration,
coordination and co-learning, which enables the partnership to consolidate, grow
and demonstrate its value (SANBI 2020).
Since its inception seven years ago, the UEIP has initiated three demonstration
projects, namely, the Baynesspruit and Palmiet River Rehabilitation initiatives and
the Save Midmar Project. Three local governments manage the respective projects,
namely, the Msunduzi Local Municipality, the uMgungundlovu District Municipality
and the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality (SANBI 2020).
Msunduzi is a UEIP partner in the Baynesspruit Rehabilitation project, and its
efforts in the Baynesspruit, a tributary of the Msunduzi River, focus on water quality
deterioration due to pollution from ‘illegal industrial waste discharge, solid waste and
contamination from dilapidated storm-water and sanitation infrastructure. Activities
to address these problems include alien vegetation control, riverbank rehabilitation
to reduce soil erosion, citizen science and school projects to clean-up the river’
(SANBI 2020). The overall aim of the project is to restore the existing ecological
infrastructure areas (SANBI 2020).
The uMgungundlovu District Municipality partners with the KwaZulu-Natal
Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs on the
Save Midmar Project. They coordinate their activities to restore the ecological infrastructure in important areas around the Midmar Dam (Figs. 3.11 and 3.21 ), which
is a major reservoir that stores water for use by Pietermaritzburg and Durban and
the surrounding areas. The dam also hosts the popular annual Midmar Mile sporting
event. Sewerage, industrial pollution and upstream agricultural activities have been
responsible for the deteriorating water quality. Save Midmar focuses on wastewater
infrastructure construction and repair, wetland rehabilitation, as well as community
education and outreach (SANBI 2020) involving WESSA’s education and learning
efforts (p. 129) (Taylor 2020).Researchers from UKZN assist eThekwini in the
Palmiet River project, which aims to address the river’s deteriorating water quality
(p. 123). Furthermore, the initiative focuses on improving governance by fostering
‘good relationships’ with catchment stakeholders, in order to understand the socioeconomic and political dynamics, especially in informal settlements. Pollution, which