Managing stormwater in South African neighbourhoods: When engineers and scientists need social science skills to get their jobs done
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Managing stormwater in South African neighbourhoods : When engineers and scientists need social science skills to get their jobs done. / Tanyanyiwa, C. T.; Abrams, A. L.; Carden, K.; Armitage, N. P.; Schneuwly, R.; Mguni, P.; Herslund, L. Byskov; Mclachlan, J.
In: Aqua-Water infrastructure ecosystems and society, Vol. 72, No. 4, 2023, p. 456-464.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Managing stormwater in South African neighbourhoods
T2 - When engineers and scientists need social science skills to get their jobs done
AU - Tanyanyiwa, C. T.
AU - Abrams, A. L.
AU - Carden, K.
AU - Armitage, N. P.
AU - Schneuwly, R.
AU - Mguni, P.
AU - Herslund, L. Byskov
AU - Mclachlan, J.
PY - 2023
Y1 - 2023
N2 - Stormwater harvesting via managed aquifer recharge in retrofitted infrastructure has been posited as a method for resource augmentation in Cape Town. However, the existing guidelines on stormwater retrofits are technically inclined, occidental, and generally misaligned with the realities and socio-economic contexts of developing nations like South Africa. Water and urban practitioners from developing nations cannot just 'copy and paste' existing guidelines as different socio-economic dimensions and colonial histories typically hinder 'traditional' approaches. This paper assesses how a transdisciplinary team navigated these realities in a case study of a retrofitted pond in Mitchells Plain, Cape Town. We applied a framework by Trisos et al. (2021) for reflection and thematic content analysis. The framework was used to unpack how the team encountered, addressed, and learned from the challenges during retrofit process. We found that the retrofit process within a context of under-resourced South African communities can be viewed as developmental work with a strong emphasis on continuous community engagement. Thus, we suggest that in the South African context, water practitioners should consider, at the fore, interaction with local communities, including awareness of racialised histories, to ensure projects are successfully implemented and completed.
AB - Stormwater harvesting via managed aquifer recharge in retrofitted infrastructure has been posited as a method for resource augmentation in Cape Town. However, the existing guidelines on stormwater retrofits are technically inclined, occidental, and generally misaligned with the realities and socio-economic contexts of developing nations like South Africa. Water and urban practitioners from developing nations cannot just 'copy and paste' existing guidelines as different socio-economic dimensions and colonial histories typically hinder 'traditional' approaches. This paper assesses how a transdisciplinary team navigated these realities in a case study of a retrofitted pond in Mitchells Plain, Cape Town. We applied a framework by Trisos et al. (2021) for reflection and thematic content analysis. The framework was used to unpack how the team encountered, addressed, and learned from the challenges during retrofit process. We found that the retrofit process within a context of under-resourced South African communities can be viewed as developmental work with a strong emphasis on continuous community engagement. Thus, we suggest that in the South African context, water practitioners should consider, at the fore, interaction with local communities, including awareness of racialised histories, to ensure projects are successfully implemented and completed.
KW - community engagement
KW - interdisciplinary research
KW - stormwater harvesting
KW - INFORMAL SETTLEMENT
KW - EXPERIENCES
KW - WATER
U2 - 10.2166/aqua.2023.173
DO - 10.2166/aqua.2023.173
M3 - Journal article
VL - 72
SP - 456
EP - 464
JO - Aqua-Water infrastructure ecosystems and society
JF - Aqua-Water infrastructure ecosystems and society
SN - 2709-8028
IS - 4
ER -
ID: 346539628