Water Quality Monitoring in the SADC region

Date
2006-11-14T12:50:19Z
Authors
Macatsha, Nosimo
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Abstract
Water plays a global role in an enormous variety of ways. More importantely it also plays a fundamental role on a regional and local scales where it has a profound effect on the environment and socio economic development. It is a prerequisite for many of the mans activities and as such it must be managed and protected accordingly. In this water quality plays a fundamental role and water quality monitoring is a foundation stone of any serious efforts to manage water resources on any scale. The research conducted focused on water quality monitoring in the SADC region. It looked at the current practice and the gaps present with respect to the real needs and international best practice. SADC region is characterized by trans-boundary water systems where pollution of water resources is often not understood properly nor has been seriously studied. A regional Water Quality Monitoring Program is advocated to address these issues and is seen as one of the prerequisites for effective water resources management in the SADC region. Existing Water Quality Monitoring in individual countries of the SADC region has been studied on the basis of existing (limited) information and gaps with respect to international best practice have been identified. Recommendations have been made regarding the establishment of the SADC Water Quality Monitoring program. A set of principles on which this should be based have been formulated. It has been concluded that SADC countries do not have an appropriate water quality monitoring in place and that what does exist is not in line with the best practice recommendations. It is suggested that without an appropriate regional water quality monitoring program water quality could become one of the limiting factors of the future economic development in the region.
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Student Number : 0107471X - MSc research report - School of Civil and Environmental Engineering - Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment
Keywords
Water, socio economic development, water quality monitoring, SADC region, trans-boundary water systems
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