MOSSEL BAY NEWS - A film crew from a French television channel, FRANCE 2, visited the Mossel Bay Municipality's desalination plant on Wednesday, 7 September.
This was part of the filming of a global documentary on water desalination in Africa.
The documentary seeks to explore how desalination plants can aid in sustainable water supply and combat water shortages caused by drought conditions.
The award-winning desalination plant in Voorbaai was completed in 2011. It has had many visitors over the years who sought to learn from Mossel Bay in terms of addressing drought-related issues.
Mossel Bay's desalination plant is the largest in South Africa and ensures that Mossel Bay is the only municipality not only in the province but also in the country that has water security.
The desalination plant is currently in the preservation and operated by five staff members.
According to Len Nel, who manages the plant, equipment is being kept in mint condition as maintenance is vital to its efficient operation. Filters and membranes are washed weekly, which allows the plant to be fully operational at short notice. This can be as fast as two hours from a directive being given to produce water.
A reporter for France TV Afrique, Fabien Fougère, who called FRANCE 2 the "BBC of French television", said visiting Mossel Bay was a logical choice.
"We think it is a good example of what can be done to desalinate sea water. Also, because it is the biggest plant in the country, we wanted to explore the process."
When operational, the desalination plant feeds into the Langeberg resevoir, from where water is distributed in the municipal water network. As recent as 23 December 2021, the desalination plant supplied water to the network when the pipeline from the Wolwedans Dam to the Klein Brak River waterworks malfunctioned.
During monthly meetings of the municipality's Direcorate of Infrastructure Services' Department of Water and Sanitation, the local dam levels are discussed and analysed.
Should these levels become a source of concern, the desalination plant may come into production if necessary. The maximum capacity of the plant is 15 megalitres per day.
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