Desalination plant under scrutiny

A PROPOSED desalination plant at Wlotzkasbaken for the new Trekkopje Uranium Mine in the Erongo Region will be under public scrutiny at Swakopmund today as part of the mine’s environmental impact assessment (EIA).

Apart from supplying fresh water to the mine, the desalination project is mooted as having the potential to provide water to other commercial and domestic users in Erongo. The project has been welcomed by the Erongo Regional Council (ERC), but not everyone is confident about its potential impact.A recent visit to the site by members of the ERC, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and UraMin (the owner of the Trekkopje Uranium Project) led to the ERC approving recommendations made by the investigation team.The ERC’s feedback report stated that the project “is seen as a positive step towards sustainable utilisation of water resources in the region”.In view of the anticipated benefits – the relief of pressure on underground water sources, water supply to the whole region, and economic activities such as fish farming and salt manufacturing – it was recommended that the ERC approve the establishment of the desalination plant.According to a public information report by UraMin, the proposed desalination plant will be situated just south of the protected lichen fields, and will be placed on the landward side of the Henties Bay road to accommodate concerns about access to the beach front.The infrastructure will consist of two pipelines running parallel into the sea; a sump on the beach front and a desalination plant about 1,8 km from the beach, with the majority of the plant located below ground.There will also be a permanent pipeline from the plant to a proposed reservoir in the region, about 45 km northwest of Swakopmund Plant conservationists have reservations about the project, as the desalination plant and pipeline would be close to the most prominent lichen field in the coastal Namib Desert, just north east of Wlotzkasbaken.The project has been welcomed by the Erongo Regional Council (ERC), but not everyone is confident about its potential impact.A recent visit to the site by members of the ERC, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and UraMin (the owner of the Trekkopje Uranium Project) led to the ERC approving recommendations made by the investigation team.The ERC’s feedback report stated that the project “is seen as a positive step towards sustainable utilisation of water resources in the region”.In view of the anticipated benefits – the relief of pressure on underground water sources, water supply to the whole region, and economic activities such as fish farming and salt manufacturing – it was recommended that the ERC approve the establishment of the desalination plant.According to a public information report by UraMin, the proposed desalination plant will be situated just south of the protected lichen fields, and will be placed on the landward side of the Henties Bay road to accommodate concerns about access to the beach front.The infrastructure will consist of two pipelines running parallel into the sea; a sump on the beach front and a desalination plant about 1,8 km from the beach, with the majority of the plant located below ground.There will also be a permanent pipeline from the plant to a proposed reservoir in the region, about 45 km northwest of Swakopmund Plant conservationists have reservations about the project, as the desalination plant and pipeline would be close to the most prominent lichen field in the coastal Namib Desert, just north east of Wlotzkasbaken.