By Matthias Hitzel
With over 4,000 mm, the Ajara region in the southwest of Georgia has the highest precipitation in the Southeastern Europe and, according to scientific forecasts, the precipitation will further increase. Due to anthropogenic climate change, an increase of intensity and frequency of storm events is already experienced. Furthermore, climate change leads to longer droughts during summer, making small scale farmers increasingly dependent on irrigation schemes. Already during recent years, environmental disasters, mainly landslides, have made entire villages uninhabitable and forced people to leave the area and become “eco-refugees” that depend on state handouts and social security programs. The current water infrastructure has turned out to be unsustainable and increases the risks of further landslides and soil erosion.
On behalf of the Georgian government, as well as local governments and funding from Germany (KfW) and the EU, MACS together with GITEC is designing new climate resilient rural water supply and sanitation systems. The new systems are designed to increase resilience and water security in the face of climate change while minimizing also negative environmental impacts. This is achieved for instance by using more reliable water sources, avoidance of water over-abstraction and safeguarding minimal environmental river flows while also considering the changing water availability and demands. Moreover, erosion control, soil conservation and protection of endangered species through for example forestation activities are an integral part of the project. The introduction of septic tanks is a paradigm shift, as up to now all wastewaters have been either infiltrated into the soil or disposed in rivers where they cause contamination and related hygiene and health risks.
Given the vulnerable local environment, construction companies need to apply adequate technologies and work methods that minimize the environmental impact and risks. This includes that no roads will be constructed, and trenching processes must avoid heavy machinery as this might lead to an increase of the landslide risks. Manual trenching, transport of materials by ropeway shall be considered. It goes without saying that any environmental damage (e.g. tree cutting, etc.) that cannot be avoided has to be compensated.
An operation and maintenance system based on self-sufficiency and cost recovery will be implemented ensuring high service quality, reduction of water losses and collection and adequate treatment of septic tank content while reducing pressure and protecting water sources. A water quality monitoring system measures the capacity of all rivers and springs in rural Ajara to assess the impact of climate change thus enhancing the resilience of rural water supply in the region.
MACS is assisting the Ajara Water Alliance in the implementation of the Ajara Rural Water Supply and Wastewater Program. All steps of the program implementation are based on active participation of the inhabitants of the program regions. This regards, planning, implementation and future sustainable operation and maintenance of the climate resilient water supply and wastewater systems.
The water supply of Choma was initially based on the two surface water resources Muzuma Dam with lake (completed 1967, 18 km from the town centre) and Choma Dam. One of the challenges SWSC is facing is inadequate infrastructure due to its old age and increased demand for water and sewerage services, due to population growth and increased commercial activities. However, the main problems are under-performance of water sources and dilapidation of existing infrastructure on one side, and thus commercial and apparent water losses (together non-revenue water, NRW) on the other side, compromising the overall water supply provision in Choma. This contrasts with the rapid growth in demand due to high population growth. Reducing NRW will only address the water deficit in the short term. The high number of low-income households live in peri-urban areas where there are poor water supply and sanitation services, and sewer systems are non-existent.
The objectives of the component of the project include the improvement of water resources efficiency, improvement of access to drinking water and strengthening of the climate resilience of the target group, while also improving the resilience in water supply through innovative climate adaptation measures and preventive planning of ground and surface water management in the face of the fast-growing population and tourism.
MACS participates in this Project as Minor Consortium Member next to Posch & Partners (Lead) and NIRAS A/S, mainly focusing on th eImplementation of the Accompanying Measures for O&M and ESHS.
Harald Valdix
Senior Operations & Maintenance Consultant
Harald Valdix
Senior Operations & Maintenance Consultant
Harald is a Technical Engineer in Wastewater Technology, with a post-graduate degree from the Technological University Merseburg, Germany. He used to be a technical utility director for over 20 years and also worked as an operations engineer. Altogether, he has over 25 years of professional experience in the water supply and wastewater sectors.
In his work, Harald focuses on operations and maintenance procedures, manuals and workflow analysis, with special attention directed to improvements in the management of technical water and wastewater facilities.
Harald has excellent communication skills in German as well as English and works well in international and interdisciplinary teams.
