DuPont donated a multi-technology water treatment plant that will provide safe, pure water to Reneilwe Primary School and the local community of Temba, Hammanskraal (north of Pretoria). The U.S. Embassy in South Africa also collaborated on the project, helping to ensure five “water champions” from the community received training from Kusini Water, a South African NGO, to autonomously operate and maintain the plant.
The area’s water sources are reportedly afflicted by high levels of nitrate and phosphate contaminants, making municipal water unsafe to drink. The new ultrafiltration membrane and ultraviolet light system removes impurities from groundwater pumped out of a new borehole and can supply up to 4,000 liters of healthy drinking water per hour, driven by solar power, according to DuPont. A water kiosk was built to dispense it to the local community and generate revenue for the school to operate the system sustainably. DuPont Water Solutions sponsored the project and partnered with Kusini Water to get water flowing in just four months, as permission for the project was granted in October 2020
“In South Africa, one out of three schools do not have access to safe water and clean sanitation, putting our school children at risk of serious sickness from waterborne diseases,” says Kusini Water CEO Murendeni Mafumo. “We are delighted that the community of Temba is now one of over 50 sites in the country we have helped in our mission to provide five million people with five million liters of safe water in five years. Our thanks go to DuPont Water Solutions and the US Embassy for partnering on this vital community-led project.”
The announcement coincided with World Water Day in March. “World Water Day is all about the vital importance of fresh water,” says Semano Sekatle, regional commercial manager, DuPont Sub-Saharan Africa. “We are delighted to be involved with such a beneficial project as this, which contributes to sustainable development goal 6 – clean water and sanitation. With the right partnership approach, no one in this world need suffer from a lack of safe water, as effective and highly advanced technology is available that can be community-run.”
For more information, visit: www.dupont.com
