Filthy rivers threaten food quality
Farmers are worried that contaminated rivers will affect food security.
“The findings of the Water Research Commission (WRC) on water quality and food safety that were recently released are of great concern,” said Agri SA president Johannes Möller. “The report confirms the organisation’s suspicions that river water used for irrigation purposes does not in all instances meet the standards set by the World Health Organisation for food safety. Bacterial and viral pollution derived from untreated sewerage, in particular, poses a health risk for consumers of vegetables and deciduous fruit irrigated with polluted water.
Möller said Agri SA had already in 2009 brought its concerns regarding the water quality to the attention of the then minister of Water Affairs. Furthermore, the NEDLAC report on water quality was made available to Minister Edna Molewa in 2011. This indicated that the bacterial and viral pathogens present in water resources were top of the list of pollution elements and posed an enormous threat to human and animal health, the economy as well as society.
The Department of Water Affairs, in the National Water Resource Strategy of June 2013, recognises water quality as one of the biggest challenges. “Communities are at high risk of being affected by waterborne diseases when drinking water directly from the river without any treatment and using the water for recreation, washing and irrigation purposes”.
The source of contamination of the agricultural products was identified as irrigation water that had been contaminated before irrigation took place and the main objective of the research project was to establish a link between irrigation water quality and food safety. Based on the results from this research project, the microbial pollution levels of rivers and fresh produce monitored at selected sites in different provinces of South Africa over a period of 3-4 years were of an unacceptable microbiological standard and did not meet either the international or national faecal guidelines for safe irrigation or human consumption.
Agri SA joined the Strategic Water Partners Network Forum (SWPN), which aims to bridge the water gap by 2030. The Minister of Water Affairs supports the SWPN’s activities, as does the NEPAD Business Foundation and the World Economic Forum. Stakeholders in the private sector have made their capacity and expertise available with a view to improving water quality.
Besides these actions, Agri SA also forms part of the Water Research Commission’s follow-up study to seek methods whereby water for irrigation can be purified to meet the prescribed health requirements.
According to Möller, the organisation was compelled to evaluate the legal position of its members in relation to water quality. “This evaluation will include a legal opinion on liability for costs in cases where water must also be purified for irrigation purposes.”
The concern of Agri SA about contaminated rivers is shared by Mr Theo Dormehl, chairperson of the Crocodile River Forum. Dormehl said that the continuing contamination of rivers by sewage impacts on agricultural irrigation. He cited the extensive green algae growth on certain holding dams in the White River as a sign that this kind of pollution has already progressed in this area. “If we have a dry season, the current green algae can multiply to such a degree that so-called blue algae forms, which is deadly for animals and humans,” Dormehl explained.
Mpumalanga has 135 475 hectares equipped for irrigation.
