Constructed Wetlands: Additional heterogeneous configurations on existing infrastructures in Silvertown, Alexandra Township, Johannesburg

Abstract

Greywater disposal is a service issue that has yet to be addressed fully in urban informal settlements of South Africa. Greywater exposure poses great health dangers if this wastewater is disposed of incorrectly. Silvertown proved to lack infrastructure for greywater disposal and showed prevailing evidence of physical exposure to disposed greywater. There are no formally defined manners of greywater disposal in Silvertown. Therefore, there is a need for infrastructural development to support safe greywater collection, disposal, and possible treatment. Heterogeneous Infrastructure Configuration (HIC) scholars have pointed out that empirical work still needs to be done to validate the theoretical arguments that infrastructural growth in the Global South does not emphasise uniformity and standardisation. To address the greywater disposal problem, constructed wetlands (CWs) were implemented in Silvertown (a section of an informal settlement) as a proposed solution for greywater disposal. This study investigated how the CWs integrated with existing infrastructure over three years. A participative, iterative design process was implemented to help create links between the residents and the existing heterogeneous infrastructure. In this research, HIC was used as a theoretical framework to help understand the dynamics that shape the engagement with the CWs by the residents of Silvertown and integration with existing infrastructure. Notably, in the absence of the provision of infrastructure and services, the people of Silvertown have actively constructed the environment around them to provide the required services and infrastructure. It was also evident that “people as infrastructure”, as Simone (2004) phrases it, emerged as a prominent process in the provision of services. A qualitative study which included semi-structured interviews, unstructured interviews, and observations collected over three years was used to collect data from Silvertown. The research findings showed that CWs made significant progress beyond just offering a solution for greywater disposal and the controlled/treated release of contaminated water through integration with related infrastructure and services. However, it was also noted that the effectiveness of the CWs was hindered by challenges such as vandalism and negligence. A collective effort was needed from the service providers and the residents to ensure the functionality and sustainability of planned infrastructures such as CWs in Silvertown.