Mayors conduct oversight visit at Standerton Water Treatment Works refurbishment project
The project is currently 93% complete and is expected to be finalised by the end of March.
The Executive Mayor of the Gert Sibande District Municipality (GSDM), Walter Mngomezulu, together with the Mayor of Lekwa Local Municipality, Sifiso Mngomezulu, conducted another oversight visit to the Standerton Water Treatment Works refurbishment project on March 11 to assess progress and receive updates from the technical team.
The visit formed part of ongoing monitoring of the project, which is a ministerial intervention following the Minister of Water and Sanitation’s visit in July 2022. The visit led to the approval of funding through the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) by National Treasury.
During the oversight visit, the executive mayors were taken through various work areas on site and received a detailed briefing from the technical team on the progress of the refurbishment project.
According to the technical team, the project is currently 93% complete and is expected to be finalised by the end of March. Once completed, the current need for periodic water shutdowns will fall away, significantly improving the reliability and stability of water supply to residents.
The technical team reported that several key milestones have been achieved since the last oversight visit. These include the completion of the bulk pipeline that transports raw water, with only two filters remaining out of a total of 16. Mechanical and electrical works have already been completed, while training for Lekwa Municipality electricians to operate the system has also been finalised.
Councillors who accompanied the mayors during the oversight visit confirmed that some wards have already begun experiencing improvements in water supply, except during planned shutdown periods required for contractors to integrate the new infrastructure with the existing live system.
The technical team also confirmed that the quality of treated water continues to meet the required standards following regular testing.
However, they explained that when pipelines remain temporarily dry during shutdown periods, accumulated sediment inside the system may become dislodged once water supply resumes. This can sometimes cause temporary discolouration until the system stabilises and normal water flow flushes the pipelines.
Lekwa Municipality has assured residents that this issue is being addressed.
To strengthen oversight and accelerate progress, the district executive mayor has instituted twice-weekly progress meetings with the technical team and contractors to ensure that challenges are addressed promptly in order to meet the project’s completion deadline.
Residents have been urged to remain patient as the project faces various challenges, including working within a live operational water system, which requires periodic shutdowns to safely connect the new infrastructure.
Additional challenges include conducting controlled blasting activities in the absence of as-built drawings for existing water and electrical infrastructure, which has occasionally slowed progress.
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The refurbishment project focuses on increasing the capacity of the clear water storage tank to ensure sufficient storage for high-lift pumps to deliver adequate volumes of treated water into the district network and meet the growing demand.
The Gert Sibande District Municipality is implementing the project on behalf of Lekwa Local Municipality, as appointed by the Department of Water and Sanitation.
Municipal leadership expressed confidence that once the refurbishment is completed, it will significantly improve the reliability of bulk water supply and strengthen the overall water distribution system serving the people of Standerton.
They also committed to continuing regular oversight visits to monitor progress until the project reaches full completion and the system is fully stabilised.
Residents of Lekwa Municipality have been experiencing water supply disruptions due to the refurbishment of the Standerton Water Treatment Works. The project resumed last month and has resulted in partial water shutdowns to allow contractors to carry out activities such as excavation and blasting.
Municipal leaders emphasised that these temporary inconveniences are necessary to connect the upgraded infrastructure and ultimately provide a long-term solution to the water supply challenges in Lekwa.
