Urban Water Reuse in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, South Africa

South Africa faces significant challenges in water and energy supply. Recurring droughts, increasing water demand due to urbanization, and outdated water and wastewater infrastructure exacerbate the already strained resource situation, particularly in the Eastern Cape province. At the same time, there is a lack of qualified personnel to operate and modernize the existing infrastructure. Insufficient supply security not only affects the population but also threatens industrial and agricultural production. It is particularly critical that many municipal wastewater treatment plants are overloaded and can no longer meet legally required effluent quality standards. In addition, the energy supply is unreliable due to outdated grids and a lack of resilience, further constraining the operation of resource-intensive infrastructure. Without technical and structural countermeasures, existing supply risks are likely to increase further, hindering the socio-economic development of the affected regions.

More about the BMUKN funded ecReUse project