Newcastle drowns in water troubles
At the conclusion of the presentation, Exco councillors and heads of department expressed the need for better communication to the public in the face of continued criticism from ratepayers.
Newcastle’s water situation is reaching crisis proportions. As reported previously, drought conditions have caused the Buffalo River to mostly dry up, leaving the town with only two other available water sources to draw from, namely the Chelmsford/ Ntshingwayo Dam and the Ngagane River.
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The dam level is around 72 per cent full at present. Given the seriousness of the situation, representatives of uThukela Water have called on the Water Service Authorities – which includes Newcastle Municipality – to consider water austerity measures, with rationing being one way to avert a total disaster.
During a meeting of the Executive Committee (Exco) recently, uThukela Water officials were frank about the situation during a presentation on bulk water supply volumes.
“We are clearly experiencing prolonged drought conditions and very hot days which is resulting in excessive [water] usage,” read one of the slides.
At the conclusion of the presentation, Exco councillors and heads of department expressed the need for better communication to the public in the face of continued criticism from ratepayers.
The point was then driven home with a report by Technical Services Strategic Executive Director Sydney Chauke, who explained the report was intended to ‘sensitise council to ever-growing water interruptions’.
“The community is doubting our credibility to run water supply efficiently,” Chauke stated.
Noting some of the salient points of his report, the SED spoke on how the geographics of the town had resulted in extreme high pressure in pipe systems in the low-lying areas of Newcastle West, up to a massive 18 bar in some instances.
This placed considerable strain on the already weakened water pipe infrastructure. Newcastle East faces the opposite problem, with continued low levels of the Braakfontein Reservoir resulting in low pressure and slow gravitation of water to residents.
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Chauke admitted there had been no tangible result from interventions thus far.
“We acknowledge the situation but what can be done? We must prioritise and approach the situation sequentially because [pipe replacement] is a long-term programme.
“If this is not done, we may not be able to supply sustainable water without interruptions.”
Following these serious reports, Exco resolved to recommend the following:
– The water infrastructural programme be given priority in terms of budget allocation.
– The content of the report be noted and once approved, progress is reported to council.
– That Legal Services plays a role in development of service level agreements and enforces contractual accountability on the service providers of the municipality.
– That Exco and Chauke ensures the master plan including all water sector plans is budgeted for.
– That a report with cost analysis and a process plan be submitted to Exco.
– That Chauke submits a report of all consultants appointed by his department.
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