Advanced Certificate in Water Treatment
Health Sciences and Social Services - Rehabilitative Health/Services
Purpose and Rationale
Qualification Purpose
The purpose of this qualification is to provide experienced process personnel working at water and wastewater treatment plants with the necessary skills and competencies to register as Class IV process controllers (in the event of no work experience) or Class V process controllers (those with four years of work experience). Applicants apply at the Department of Water and Sanitation for registration, and the registration criteria are currently based on the years of service and the qualifications obtained. There is currently no professional body involved in this process. The scope of practice will include water treatment and wastewater treatment process control; water and wastewater chemistry and analysis; water plant management; water microbiology and relevant water legislation, enabling the graduate to not only operate water and wastewater treatment plants efficiently and effectively but also to improve the quality of its performance, operations, and outputs.
As a process controller with this qualification, the qualifying learner will be able to supervise the operation of water and waste water treatment plants as well as to investigate and solve operational problems enabling the plant to produce drinking water of good quality and effluents from wastewater treatment plants. Upon successful completion of the qualification, the graduate will be eligible to enter the Diploma in Water and Science and Technology qualification (National Qualifications Framework (NQF) Level 6).
The qualifying student will be able to:
- Operate water and wastewater treatment plants efficiently.
- Perform laboratory testing of samples for basic chemical or microbiological parameters.
- Assist with the Blue and Green Drop Certification process.
- Implement safety procedures in all operations of unit processes in a water and wastewater treatment plant.
- Apply acquired scientific knowledge to improve the operation of unit processes in a water and wastewater treatment plant.
- Produce final effluents that comply with legal requirements and national standards.
- Manage human and technical resources in a sustainable manner.
- Work in a team to solve operational problems on water and wastewater treatment plants.
- Act in accordance with the prescribed professional ethical codes of conduct.
Qualification Rationale
According to the Water Research Commission, South Africa has 4000 skilled process controllers and 1200 water and sanitation engineers required in local governments. The seriousness of the situation was reported in numerous Blue and Green Drop reports which reflected the quality of drinking water and wastewater of the treatment plants in the country. A total of 4500 sampling sites have been established countrywide. One of the factors which have contributed to the poor state of drinking water and wastewater treatment works is a lack of skilled process controllers. Sanitation services in South Africa are also lagging behind the targets set for basic access to water supplies as more than 8.68 million people were without adequate sanitation services of which 2.47 million didn't have any sanitation infrastructure. Since the introduction of the Blue and Green Drop Certification process, the Water Care section has been inundated with requests from the Water Sector to offer training for staff currently employed at water/wastewater treatment plants in order to comply with the new regulations.
Obtainment of the Advanced Certificate will provide water process controllers with an opportunity to advance their applied competencies to such an extent that they may assist with Blue and Green Drop Certification and use investigatory skills to assist in bettering the services rendered. The main aim of this project was to assist the institution in the development of new qualifications to address the needs of the water sector in South Africa. This has enabled the institution to involve and consult extensively with the major role players in the water sector. A number of two and three-day workshops were held during the six years to determine the current needs of the water sector. Based on all the above-mentioned factors it is very clear that there is an urgent need to provide well-trained manpower to the South African water sector.
As the niche of higher qualified process controllers increases, it will impact positively on the standards and quality of service delivery at South African water and wastewater treatment plants. The qualifying learners will find employment not only at the Department of Water and Sanitation, Water Boards, and Water Services Authorities but also at Municipalities and private companies throughout Southern Africa.
Outcomes
- Demonstrate detailed knowledge of the main areas of legislation, treatment processes, water analysis, water microbiology, water chemistry and plant management, including an understanding of and an ability to apply the key terms, concepts, facts, principles, rules and theories of such disciplines to unfamiliar but relevant contexts, in a water treatment plant### and knowledge of water treatment and how that knowledge relates to other environmental practices.
- Demonstrate an ability to evaluate, select and apply appropriate methods, procedures or techniques in processes of investigation or application within a defined context in water treatment.
- Demonstrate an ability to identify, analyse and solve problems in unfamiliar contexts in water treatment, gathering evidence and applying solutions based on evidence and procedures appropriate to the field.
- Demonstrate an understanding of the ethical implications of decisions and actions, within an organisational or professional context in water treatment, based on an awareness of the complexity of ethical dilemmas.
- Demonstrate an ability to evaluate different sources of information, to select information appropriate to the task, and to apply well-developed processes of analysis and evaluation to that information### and an ability to present and communicate information reliably and coherently using appropriate professional and occupational conventions, formats and technologies for a given context in water treatment.
- Demonstrate an ability to make decisions and act appropriately in familiar and new contexts in water treatment, demonstrating an understanding of the relationships between treatment systems, and of how actions, ideas or developments in one system impact on other systems.
- Demonstrate an ability to evaluate performance against given criteria, and accurately identify and address task-specific learning needs in a given context in water treatment, and to provide support to the learning needs of process controllers where appropriate.
- Demonstrate an ability to work effectively in a team, and to take responsibility for own decisions and actions and the decisions and actions of others within well-defined contexts in water treatment, including the responsibility for the use of resources where appropriate.
Assessment Criteria
Associated Assessment Criteria Exit Level Outcome 1:
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Knowledge of Water and Wastewater Treatment Processes:
- Demonstrate detailed knowledge of water and wastewater treatment processes to produce quality drinking water and wastewater effluents.
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Water Quality Parameters:
- Apply detailed knowledge of water quality parameters and their impacts on human health and the environment in water and wastewater contexts.
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Relevant Water Legislation:
- Apply knowledge of relevant water legislation and its impact on treatment plant operation to ensure compliance.
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Management Principles:
- Demonstrate knowledge of management principles for supervising subordinates in water and wastewater treatment contexts.
Associated Assessment Criteria Exit Level Outcome 2:
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Operate and Control Treatment Processes:
- Ability to operate and control treatment processes to produce good quality water or effluents.
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Chemical Dosage Selection:
- Select optimum chemical dosage for treatment to produce quality water and effluents.
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Water Analysis:
- Perform basic chemical, physical, and microbiological water analysis and interpret results to solve water quality issues.
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Resource Utilization:
- Ensure proper utilization of human resources for efficient water treatment plant operation.
Associated Assessment Criteria Exit Level Outcome 3:
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Problem Solving:
- Ability to identify and solve unfamiliar problems in water treatment process to produce good quality water cost-effectively.
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Quality Parameters Evaluation:
- Evaluate different quality parameters to solve operational problems.
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Control Options Identification:
- Identify control options to solve operational problems in water treatment plants.
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Operational Adjustments:
- Act on instructions to adjust operation of unit processes.
Associated Assessment Criteria Exit Level Outcome 4:
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Ethical Codes Application:
- Interpret and apply ethical codes consistently for proper water and wastewater process control.
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Professional Accountability:
- Practice professional accountability to ensure compliance with discharge permits and prevent pollution.
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Ethical Conduct Standards:
- Apply standards for ethical conduct in water treatment and analysis for reliable results and sustainable solutions.
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Laboratory Responsibility:
- Practice professional responsibility in the laboratory for precise analytical results and waste chemical management.
Associated Assessment Criteria Exit Level Outcome 5:
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Operational Data Evaluation:
- Evaluate control data to recommend adjustments for improved water treatment plant performance.
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Information Gathering:
- Gather relevant data for Blue or Green Drop assessment.
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Reporting:
- Write technical reports and present results orally.
Associated Assessment Criteria Exit Level Outcome 6:
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Operational Decisions:
- Make decisions to change control parameters for improved water quality.
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Unit Process Relationship:
- Understand relationship between unit processes and operational changes.
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Impact Analysis:
- Understand impact of operational changes on quality parameters.
Associated Assessment Criteria Exit Level Outcome 7:
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Performance Evaluation:
- Evaluate unit processes against water quality standards to identify learning needs for improvement.
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Key Performance Areas:
- Evaluate key performance areas to support subordinate learning needs in water treatment and analysis.
Associated Assessment Criteria Exit Level Outcome 8:
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Teamwork:
- Work effectively in a team to operate a water treatment plant and solve operational problems.
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Decision Making:
- Make decisions to improve product water quality.
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Responsibility:
- Take responsibility for adjusting chemical dosing rates and plant equipment usage.
Integrated Assessment:
- Incorporate formal and informal assessment strategies aligned with Exit Level Outcomes.
- Assess for learning and of learning within an active learning environment.
- Ensure alignment with the purpose statement of the qualification.
Formative Assessment:
- Continuous assessment to inform learners of progress throughout the year.
- Used for developmental purposes and feedback for improvement.
- Includes assignments, demonstrations, practical work, projects, and tests.
Summative Assessment:
- Assessment at the end of a learning experience to determine competence level.
- Results expressed in marks with regard to specified outcomes and standards.
- Includes examinations, portfolios, presentations, and tests.
Qualification Details
- Type
- Advanced Certificate
- NQF Level
- 06
- Min. Credits
- 120
- SAQA Source
- More Information
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This page includes information from the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) . Builtneat Pty Ltd trading as Study Start, has modified all or some of this information. SAQA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.