Interim reports show a worrying decline in SA’s water quality

The provision of drinking water and the state of municipal water infrastructure has been thrust back into the spotlight following the outbreak of cholera in Hammanskraal, which has claimed more than 20 lives.

Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu said while it's still not known where the water-borne disease originated, the area’s history of contaminated water and failing services is cause for concern.

He said his department has been working with poor-performing municipalities, including Tshwane, for which non-compliance certificates had been issued, to try and improve the situation.

At the same time, Mchunu admitted more needs to be done, including the review of some legislation that may allow the minister more powers to intervene.

“On this matter of the cholera outbreak, I must express our very deep concern which is whether our water was or is safe enough for human consumption. While the source of cholera has not been determined where it comes from, the fact remains that cholera is a bacterial disease that is usually spread through contaminated water.

“For that fact, we need to compel ourselves with ensuring that municipalities fulfill their obligation to deliver clean, safe water and safe environment through sanitation services.”

Summarising the interim findings, the department’s director general Dr Sean Phillips said there had been a decline in the functionality of wastewater systems across the country.

From when the last Green Drop assessment report was done last year, 248 out of 824 (30%) municipal wastewater systems were in critical condition, indicating a decline between 2013 and 2022.

“Following the release of the 2022 Green Drop report, the department issued non-compliance notices to these 90 municipalities, requesting the municipalities to submit corrective action plans to address the shortcomings identified in the Green Drop report.

“By March 2023, the department had received corrective action plans from municipalities for 168 of the 334 wastewater systems.”

Phillips said 43 of the 90 municipalities asked for support from the department to develop corrective action plans.

“By March 2023, only 34 of the 168 plans submitted to the department were being implemented, with the balance being in the planning phase or no progress reported,” he added. 

The director general said the decline indicates that there are limits to the national government’s high-level interventions and support given to municipalities to deliver water services to required standards.

He said the root cause of the decline is poor maintenance of the infrastructure of municipalities as water service authorities.

“National government is providing more than R60 billion per annum in grants and transfers to municipalities for water and sanitation services…DWS contribution is in the form of grants (R12 billion per annum from Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant and Water Services Infrastructure Grant), and technical advice and management support from DWS and water boards.”

For those municipalities which did not submit corrective action plans, the department has issued directives in terms of the National Water Act compelling them to submit such plans.

Criminal charges have been laid against some of the municipalities which have not submitted corrective action plans.

At the same time, the department also reported a decline in the drinking water quality since 2012 when the last Blue Drop report was released, which indicated that 10% of municipalities had bad or poor microbiological water quality as opposed to 50% in the current sample.

“The 2023 Blue Drop Watch report indicates that the drinking water produced from some municipal water treatment systems during the 2021/2022 municipal financial year did not meet the SANS 241 standard and could on occasion have posed a potential health risk. The report does not provide an indication of the current status of water quality in municipalities.”

The final Blue Drop report will be released in July, while the final No Drop report will be published in September. The interim Green Drop report also comes out in July.

The reports that were released on Tuesday are available on the department's website.

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