Use it once.Then use it again.

01 · The problem

We use water once. Then we lose it.

On a typical site, treated drinking water flushes toilets, washes vehicles and irrigates gardens, then leaves through the sewer to a municipal works. Much of that water never needed to be drinking quality, and much of what leaves is not treated well when it gets there.

The Department of Water and Sanitation’s 2025 Green Drop report placed about 47% of municipal wastewater systems in a critical state.^[1] Globally, 3.4 billion people still lack safely managed sanitation.^[2] Sending more sewage into overloaded works is a risk, both to the rivers downstream and to developments waiting on bulk capacity.

02 · What reuse means

Every drop, put back to work.

Smart water reuse treats wastewater on site to the standard its next use needs, then returns it for that use: irrigation, toilet flushing, wash-down and cooling. Measured and monitored, it becomes a closed loop rather than a one-way pipe.

• 01

  Supply

  Water from municipal, borehole or rainwater sources, treated for drinking where it is used.

• 02

  Use

  Homes, kitchens, guest rooms and process lines draw what they need, metered as they go.

• 03

  Treat

  Wastewater is treated on site, biologically and, where needed, through membranes or planted wetlands.

• 04

  Reuse

  Treated water returns for irrigation, flushing and wash-down, reducing what the site draws and discharges.

This is LIVReuse: the closed-loop combination of LIVSupply on the way in and LIVWaste on the way out, measured end to end by LIVSmart.

03 · The technology

Engineered to adapt. Designed to endure.

There is no single right plant. The technology follows the flow, the space, the energy available and the quality the reuse needs. LIVWaste draws on three.

ModMBR™ membrane bioreactor

A complete membrane bioreactor plant in one module, treating 10 kL of sewage a day, about what ten 3-bedroom homes produce. Modules are added as the site grows. Suited to sites that need high-quality water from a small footprint.

AUGUST treatment plants

Compact biological treatment plants, from a single home to a small town. Suited to sites that need dependable treatment at scale, including off-grid locations.

Constructed wetlands

Planted treatment wetlands that polish wastewater with low energy and little upkeep. Suited to sites with space, where the landscape can do part of the work.

04 · Fit for purpose

Treat to the use, not beyond it.

Not every use needs the same water. Treating everything to drinking quality wastes energy and money; treating too little puts people and soil at risk. Good reuse design starts with the end use and works back to the treatment.

The exact limits come from the site’s water use authorisation and the specification of the equipment the water serves. We design to those limits, then monitor against them.

05 · Where it pays

Where a closed loop earns its place.

• Residential estates. Treated water for common-area irrigation and flushing, and less load on a municipal connection that may be limiting the next phase. Residential solutions.
• Hospitality and tourism. Lodges and resorts in water-stressed or remote areas, where guests expect green grounds and full showers.
• Agriculture and agri-processing. A stable irrigation source in drought, and treatment of process water before it leaves the site.
• Mining and industrial. Wash-down and dust suppression from treated water rather than drinking water, at camps and plants far from bulk supply.

06 · Compliance

Approved, monitored, accounted for.

Treating and reusing wastewater is a water use under the National Water Act (Act 36 of 1998), and it must be authorised and monitored. Done properly, that is a strength: a reuse system with clear authorisation, regular testing and a named operator is easier to defend to residents, auditors and regulators than an informal one.

LIVWater handles the water use authorisation, the testing regime and the operating records, so the system stays compliant through its life, not only on handover day.

07 · What to do next

Five steps towards a closed loop.

1. Measure, or estimate, your daily wastewater flow in kL/day.
2. List the uses that do not need drinking-quality water: irrigation, flushing, wash-down, cooling.
3. Check what you pay to discharge, and whether bulk sewer capacity is holding up new phases.
4. Note the space and power you have available for treatment.
5. Ask for a tailored proposal that sizes the loop and compares the financing models.

Wastewater reuse on estates and industrial sites is one of the clearest ways to turn a liability into a resource. The flow is already there. The question is whether it leaves the site or goes back to work.