The South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) has proudly awarded the City of Cape Town’s waste water treatment plant a certificate for achieving the requirements of SANS/ISO 50001: Energy management system. The certificate was presented at a ceremony at the waste water treatment plant in Bellville, today. The certification ceremony coincides with World Quality Day, observed on 10 November each year.
“The City of Cape Town is a beacon for all municipalities to drive quality and to certify their delivery of services against South African and international standards. The waste water treatment plant, included in the Directorate of the Department of Water and Sanitation in the City of Cape Town has undergone intensive review of its energy use and has implemented solutions in accordance with the requirements of SANS/ISO 50001. We are proud to acknowledge this achievement. With better energy management and more efficient operational management, it can only result in cost savings and improved service delivery to communities,” said Jodi Scholtz, Lead Administrator of the SABS.
Scholtz explains that the waste water treatment plant had to develop an energy baseline, implement performance criteria, procure devices to measure the energy consumption and then develop an energy policy as well as an energy management system to ensure efficiency of operations. “The entire organisation had to shift its culture to embrace energy management and efficiency as a goal to achieve consistent and reliable operations of the plant. Since the plant also has SANS/ISO 9001 certification to validate its quality management, it became easier to facilitate the certification process for their energy management system,” said Scholtz.
The SABS will conduct surveillance audits over the next two years, as part of the terms and conditions to maintain SABS certification. Recertification shall occur in the third year before the current certificate expires. The Engineering and Asset management branch of the Water and Sanitation Department in the City of Cape Town is currently certified to SANS/ISO 14001: Environmental Management System and SANS/ISO 45001: Occupational health and safety management systems.
SANS 50001 is the South African National Standard (SANS) for Energy Management. The national standard was adopted in 2019 from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). SANS/ISO 50001 provides a practical way for all organisations to improve energy use through the development and implmentation of an energy management system.
Source: SABS
