Government has urged the residents of Hammanskraal in Gauteng to exercise patience while work is underway to install a new water treatment plant at the Klipdrift Water Treatment Works.
The call was made by Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, during a post-Cabinet media briefing held in Cape Town on Wednesday.
“In 2023, the Ministry of Water and Sanitation directed Magalies Water to urgently intervene in terms of the Water Services Act, 1997 (Act 108 of 1997) and to design and install a new water-treatment plant at its Klipdrift Water Treatment Works near Hammanskraal.
“This will help ease the water challenges and provide long-term solutions. This additional water treatment plant will supply water to certain reservoirs in the city’s water distribution system to increase the supply of clean drinking water to Hammanskraal.
“Government urges the people of Hammanskraal and surrounding areas to be patient while this work is underway. The first phase is expected to be completed by 15 November 2024. This will allow the City of Tshwane to deliver potable water to some areas of Hammanskraal,” she said.
Ntshavheni acknowledged that the water challenges facing the community continue to negatively affect the lives of the people, including the provision of healthcare services at local facilities such as the Jubilee Hospital.
She moved to assure residents that Cabinet had received and considered a report from the Water and Sanitation Department on Hammanskraal.
“The City of Tshwane is currently implementing a R278 million project to repair the previously dysfunctional Rooiwal Wastewater Treatment Works (WWTW).
“It is expected that increasing the capacity of the Rooiwal WWTW will cost about R2 billion. Cabinet was informed that the City of Tshwane will have to fund this project through revenue, borrowing or its Urban Settlements Development Grant allocations from the Department of Human Settlements,” she said.
Water restrictions
Meanwhile, the Minister said Cabinet was given an update on the level 1 water restrictions in Johannesburg which are due to begin on Thursday.
The restrictions were announced earlier this week and will see water supply throttled from 9am to 4pm daily.
READ | City of Johannesburg to implement water restrictions
“Cabinet was appraised of the level 1 water restrictions that are in place in Gauteng due to continued water demand as a result of high consumption caused by population growth, illegal connections, leaks and [the] misuse of water.
“The average consumption in Gauteng is 279 litres per capita per day compared to the international average of 173 litres per capita per day. Whilst the metropolitan municipalities in Gauteng have level 1 water restrictions in place, very little enforcement is undertaken by the municipalities.
“The Minister of Water and Sanitation and the Premier of Gauteng have requested the municipalities to impose level 2 water restrictions which will come with fines if consumers do not adhere to the restrictions,” Ntshavheni said.
She added that a National Water Crisis Committee is in the works to bolster water-related work nationally.
“Cabinet supported the decision by the President to augment the work that is currently spearheaded by the Deputy President [Paul Mashatile] by elevating the water matters as a crisis and establish a National Water Crisis committee that will develop a water action plan and bring in water experts in order to intervene to the nation-wide water challenges in the local government space,” she said.
Municipal water debt
Ntshavheni warned that the R23 billion collectively owed by municipalities to water boards was rising and unsustainable
She said Cabinet had been appraised on this debt.
“The debt threatens the financial viability of the water boards and the entire water sector. Water and Sanitation Minister, Pemmy Majodina, recently met with several of the affected municipalities and received commitments to pay from most non-paying municipalities.
“Cabinet had previously approved the establishment of an Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) to address municipal turnaround. The IMC will also prioritise measures to address municipal debt payments to water boards, particularly those facing imminent bankruptcy,” she said. - SAnews.gov.za
