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Water crisis: Increased usage due to heatwave and vandalised infrastructure
Minister Senzo Mchunu held an emergency meeting on Monday to engage with Rand Water.
‘As a country, we are experiencing the scarcity of water, yet we allow for up to 40% of our water to be lost to leakage’, Minister Senzo Mchunu said. Photo: iStock
As the water crisis continues, Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu has committed to increase the bulk water allocation to the Rand Water system.
This is part of emergency measures to address water shortages in Gauteng metros, district and local municipalities.
Gauteng water crisis
Relief for some metros
Mchunu said the department noted an “increase in water usage”, following the restrictions imposed by Rand Water in response to deteriorating water levels in their reservoirs.
“Therefore, we will temporarily increase the allocation for the abstraction of bulk water to Rand Water’s system in order to meet the demand,” Mchunu said.
He said this should bring relief to some metros, including Johannesburg, Tshwane and Mogale City municipalities.
Permanent solutions needed
Mchunu said the measure is for a period of nine months, while the department seeks more permanent solutions to water usage and management.
Mchunu held an emergency meeting on Monday to engage with Rand Water, representatives of all three metros, district and local municipalities of Gauteng affected by water restrictions.
According to Rand Water, the utility currently abstracts 4 400 mega litres of water, and has already exceeded this allocation by over 1 600 megalitres since the beginning of spring.
The Minister said while the increased allocation will bring some relief, municipalities need to come up with measures to deal with water wastage, including imposing penalties and addressing the challenge of water leaks in municipal reticulation systems.
Committee to deal with water crisis
“As a country, we are experiencing the scarcity of water, yet we allow for up to 40% of our water to be lost to leakage. This undermines our efforts to address water challenges,” the Minister said.
A Water Room committee, including the department, Rand Water and all Gauteng municipalities, as well as the business sector, will be set up to provide a holistic coordination, provision and management of the water system in the province.
The Minister noted that water use has risen in recent weeks due to the heatwave, which has been happening in this period over the last two to three years
Heatwave impacts water crisis
The heatwave was compounded by delayed summer rains in the inland provinces, leading to people using potable water for uses that would have normally been taken care of by rains.
These include watering gardens and car wash enterprises, as well as water losses due to leaks in the reticulation part of the system.
“There continues to be overuse in the province, which puts a strain on the system. This does not imply that there is a crisis of water availability but is rather a means to manage the system through reduction, bringing balance to the system,” Mchunu said.
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Water infrastructures vandalised
Meanwhile, Water and Sanitation Deputy Minister David Mahlobo urged Kgabo Park residents in Limpopo to play their part in safeguarding water infrastructure, which is meant to benefit them.
“As a department, we are worried about the vandalism occurring currently to the water and sanitation infrastructure, and we appeal to you as a community to look after it as it belongs to you,” Mahlobo said.
The deputy minister made this call during the recent official launch and handover ceremony of three solar-powered boreholes in the area.
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Innovative new systems
The handing over of the boreholes came through a private-public partnership between Coca-Cola Beverages of South Africa (CCBSA) and the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), dubbed Cokeville Project.
The project was initiated by Coca-Cola, as a direct response to the water shortages in the country, particularly distressed rural communities.
This innovative, solar-powered groundwater harvesting system, is aimed at addressing water shortages in the country and seeks to provide water access to distressed rural communities.
The newly launched project has a total capacity to pump, treat, store, and distribute 30 mega litres of clean water per year and will benefit over 200 000 households in both Ga-Ramoshwane and Kgabo Park villages.
A matter of ‘life and death’
Mahlobo thanked Coca-Cola for their partnership, noting that water is a matter of life and death.
“We are aware that this intervention is not going to resolve all our water related challenges, but it will assist a big deal. South Africa is a water-scarce country with water shortages being experienced in many parts of the country and more so in Limpopo.
“Both DWS and CCBSA consider reliable access to good, safe water as essential to life, nature, and the health of our communities, hence it is important to support local water access projects that help bring safe, clean drinking water to communities in need,” Mahlobo said..
A total of 100 water wheelers were also donated to 100 identified households, to help them when fetching water from the boreholes to their homes.
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