SERVICES

Limnology is the study of freshwater systems. Part of FAWR’s service offering is to assess freshwater systems, identify what potential impacts there are, and develop management actions that can be implemented to address these impacts. A limnological assessment looks at the interaction of the chemical, physical and biological components of the system and identifies the linkages that affect the operation of the system as whole. Our assessments include:

• Predictive modelling for the trophic status of dams;
• Siting of abstraction depths in dams;
• Flow path profile of water moving through dams;
• Assessment of point source contamination on water systems;
• Assessment of non-point source contamination of water systems;
• Greenhouse gas emissions from dams;

Water quality assessments fall into two main categories, status assessments and impact assessments. With status assessments, catchment water quality is analysed to identify the current and historical water quality in rivers and dams. This provides an overview of the fitness for use of the water for various users, such as ecological, agriculture, recreation and drinking water. The diversity of activities that affect water quality is best managed through a catchment management forum or agency, which identifies what are the critical water quality parameter levels below which users are negatively affected. The catchment is then managed to ensure these water quality parameters, referred to as receiving water quality objectives, are constantly met over time. Feeding into this process are water impact assessments. These assessments are typically focused on specific areas of either point source contamination (waste water treatment works, industrial effluent discharge etc) or non-point source contamination (irrigation return flows etc). FAWR routinely undertake both catchment scale and focussed water quality assessments, using statistical, GIS, and other tools to interpret water quality and characterise the impacts

FAWR uses a range of tools to interrogate water quality. We use models such as Lake2K to predict water quality. For industry and commerce, we set up water and salt balances which detail all water circuits including climatic factors such as evaporation and transpiration and through the solution of load calculations, we can account for non-metered water. For agriculture we determine optimum water quality for crop growth and utilise available resources to achieve this

FAWR underpins all its services with the philosophy of Integrated Environmental Management (IEM). This promotes the integration of the principles of environmental management as set out in the National Environmental Management Act (Act 107 of 1998) (NEMA), which compels finding the right balance between development and the environment. IEM ensures that environmental considerations are taken into account at every stage of the life of a project, process or policy. IEM considers the environmental elements in a ‘cradle to grave’ concept (i.e. from the inception of the idea right through to the decommissioning or the end of the project).

FAWR has experience in various approaches to waste water treatment, ranging from formal waste water treatment plants to decentralised sanitation systems and treatment options.  We have done designs for wetland construction for contamination control and also do research to find ways of recovering nutrients from waste water for future use.

FAWR undertake Environmental Impact Assessments for any activity that triggers the requirement for an EIA as listed under the Regulations published as part of the National Environmental Management Act (No. 107 of 1998) as amended. The EIA process is a planning and decision–making tool. It identifies potential positive and negative impacts that a proposed project may have on the receiving environment (including the biophysical, social and economic environments), and recommends ways to avoid, minimise or mitigate the negative impacts and enhance the positive ones. It is an independent objective assessment that guides the regulatory authority in approving or declining the environmental authorisation to proceed.

The National Water Act, Act 36 of 1998 (NWA) regulates the surface and subsurface water of South Africa. Water is considered a scarce commodity and should therefore be adequately protected. Amongst other, the act deals with the protection of water sources, water uses, water management strategies and catchment management, dam safety and general powers and functions. A core component of this management is the licencing of any activity that may have a detrimental impact on the receiving water resource. The water resource includes rivers, dams, groundwater, wetlands and estuaries. FAWR assists applicants with the compilation and submission of Water Use Licence applications to the Department of Water and Sanitation and ensures compliance to provisions of the National Environmental Management Act as well.

We do crop water use modelling using mainly the Soil Water Balance model (SWB).  This tool can assist farmers to schedule irrigation, estimate potential yields and determine crop water use efficiency.  It is also a useful tool for hydrological assessments and catchment managers. 

A water footprint is the volume of water required to produce a product, or by a certain entity (for example a business or individual).  This water footprint can be evaluated in terms of the sustainable water use in the catchment where the water is used.  This information can assist businesses and farmers to quantify, manage and assess the sustainability of their water footprints.  FAWR has experience in water footprint assessments and auditing, as well as sustainability assessment of the water footprint.  We have also developed a catchment management tool based on a water footprint framework, to determine the catchment-scale water use. 

“Permaculture is the conscious design of human living environments that are reflections of the ecological principle that underlies nature.  This principle is applied to all aspects of the human endeavour to create and attune a new natural civilization into the greater universal system.  It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter and other material and non-material needs in a regenerative way. Permaculture design is a system of assembling conceptual, material, and strategic components in a pattern which functions to benefit life in all its forms.   “A design is a marriage of landscape, people and skills in the context of regional society”. (Bill Mollison). The process of permaculture design spirals through every aspect of the human endeavour.  FAWR has professional scientists to create permaculture landscapes.

We have professionally registered scientists to conduct vegetation assessments for Environmental Impact Assessments in South Africa.

FAWR specialises in constructing suitable anaerobic digestors for energy production.