Stewardship Multi-Stakeholder Partnership (SMSP) paving the way for a Just Transition, ensuring future water security in the Rosslyn Industrial Area

The Natural Resources Stewardship Programme (NatuReS) is spearheading efforts to establish a Stewardship Multi-Stakeholder Partnership (SMSP) approach as an instrument for consensus-building processes for Just Transition in selected economic zones with extreme resource use pressure in South Africa. SMSPs are participatory formats in which the public sector, private sector and civil society work together to develop joint solutions for more sustainable management and use of natural resources. In this context, NatuReS supports the ongoing work in the Rosslyn Improvement District (RID) lead by the Capital City Business Chamber (CCBC) towards a more sustainable way of production, improved water efficiency, and heading towards an Eco-Industrial Park (EIP) approach in the Rosslyn Industrial Area (RIA). The RIA is located in the northern part of the City of Tshwane (Pretoria) and is home to major industries including a concentration of automotive industries and large companies including BMW, Nissan, South African Breweries, Renault, TATA, and Nampak. More than 200 businesses operate from Rosslyn and provide employment to more than 20,000 workers. 

Building on this foundation and to support measures for improved water security in the RIA, NatuReS contracted the consultancy GITEC, which specialises in digital water and wastewater measurement as well as water resource efficiency. For a week in early August, the partners went on several site visits to discuss solutions for the state of water and wastewater metering and the potential for more resource efficient ways of production. The engagements included the City of Tshwane (CoT) Municipality as well as nine medium, large, and multinational companies from several sectors such as automotive, leather processing, packaging, train maintenance, beverages, and feed production, that are active in the Rosslyn Industrial Area. The CoT expressed interest in collaborating around the digitisation of meters for water supply as well as wastewater discharge quality, as the reading of meters and the assessment of effluent quality is still done manually, which is labour-intensive, costly, and time-consuming. Recognising this challenge, and as the RIA is not a fenced-off industrial park with a closed pipe-system, a study on water supply network mapping of the region could be an important first step to establish a baseline where metering equipment would be best suited. A consecutive step could then be to install respective equipment. 

The companies all meter their water supply and treat it, if necessary before, it is discharged to the municipal sewer system. While some companies already use digital equipment to assess their water consumption, some expressed interest in adopting such technology. Beyond metering, all companies are very keen to explore opportunities for water reuse, both internally and with other businesses in the area. For example, one company’s treated wastewater could become the process water of another company and does not necessarily need to be of potable quality. This same concept could also be explored for water used for heating and cooling. This appetite for collaboration illustrates the growing interest in industrial symbiosis, a form of industrial ecology where companies collaborate to exchange resources like materials, energy, and water to reduce waste and improve efficiency, is not limited to water. There is potential for collaboration around waste and energy. Therefore, NatuReS together with the CCBC, is planning to organise a workshop for interested companies to strategically discuss these topics and develop joint projects.

These local-level efforts are particularly important because South Africa is confronted by significant and interlinked natural resource pressures that threaten long-term economic stability and social cohesion. Water, in particular, has emerged as one of the most critical pressure points. The country faces chronic water stress exacerbated by climate change, ageing infrastructure, and mounting demand from both industry and growing urban populations. The Gauteng Province, in which the administrative capital of Pretoria and the economic capital of Johannesburg are located, is projected to face serious challenges in the future due to limited water sources and a rapidly growing population. Concurrently, the province is the economic engine of the country contributing to over 34% of South Africa's total GDP, and accounting for nearly 7% of Sub-Saharan Africa's GDP. Therefore, ensuring long-term water security is crucial to maintaining this status.

In Rosslyn, the seeds of collaboration are already being planted. By bringing business, government, and civil society to the same table, the SMSP approach is proving that sustainable water security and industrial competitiveness are not opposing goals, but mutually reinforcing ones. More than a local initiative and building on work being done in the East London IDZ, Rosslyn can demonstrate how South Africa’s economic hubs can align industrial growth with responsible resource management. It is a powerful reminder that a Just Transition is not only possible, but achievable when we act together.