A research report submitted to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in Partial Fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Science in Engineering, 2017 / Access to good quality drinking water is essential for the maintenance of public health. To guarantee a steady supply of good quality water, water treatments plants are designed to provide potable water that meets national and, where necessary, local water quality standards. While the protection of natural water resources against pollution, and proper treatment of water at treatment plants are both crucial to the provision of safe drinking water, the reality is that the quality of treated water can degrade during distribution. Microbial proliferation within distribution systems can cause problems such as unpleasant tastes and odours as well as the proliferation of pathogenic microorganisms. For most utilities, it is biofilm that grows on pipe surfaces that act as permanent inocula continuously inoculating the bulk water as it flows through the distribution system. Distribution system biofilm growth and the resulting impact on water quality can be minimized by various treatment processes, designed to remove biodegradable organic matter (BOM) from the water. The removal of BOM is of great importance to water utilities because it eliminates bacterial regrowth and the many associated water quality issues. Hence, the spatial and temporal mapping of biodegradable organic carbon (BDOC) offers water utilities an effective strategy in managing the BOM in the distribution system. This research is aimed at evaluating the applicability of BOM measurement protocols to monitoring biostability and biofilm formation potential within a drinking water distribution system (DWDS). This study specifically investigated the efficacy of a simplified version of the high-density BDOC test as a protocol for monitoring BDOC in finished water. The high-density BDOC protocol was found to be a more streamlined approach in contrast to the assimilable organic carbon (AOC), and provides a suitable monitoring mechanism for lowering biofilm formation potential in DWDSs. / CK2018

Industrial effluents with high concentrations of heavy metals are widespread pollutants of great concerns as they are known to be persistent and non-degradable. Continuous monitoring and treatment of the effluents become pertinent because of their impacts on wastewater treatment plants. The aim of this study is to determine the correlation between heavy metal pollution in water and the location of industries in order to ascertain the effectiveness of the municipal waste water treatment plant. Heavy metal identification and physico-chemical analysis were done using Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) and multi-parameter probe respectively. Correlation coefficients of the measured values were done to investigate the effect of the industrial effluents on the treatment plants. Heavy metal resistant bacteria were identified and characterised by polymerase chain reaction and sequencing. Leeuwkuil wastewater treatment plants were effective in maintaining temperature, pH, and chemical oxygen demand within South Africa green drop and SAGG Standards whereas the purification plant was effective in maintaining the values of Cu, Zn, Al, temperature, BOD, COD, and TDS within the SANS and WHO standard for potable water. This findings indicated the need for the treatment plants to be reviewed.The industrial wastewater were identified as a point source of heavy metal pollution that influenced Leeuwkuil wastewater treatment plants and the purification plants in Vaal, Vereenining South Africa. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Serratia marcescens, Bacillus sp. strain and Bacillus toyonensis that showed 100% similarity were found to be resistant to Al, Cu, Pb and Zn. These identified bacteria can be considered for further study in bioremediation. / Environmental Sciences / M. Sc. (Environmental Science)