Stormy waters ahead for
2018?
In the wake of a turbulent 2017, South Africa’s water sector
remains tempestuous, with storms brewing on the horizon, as
Good Ship SA navigates through dire straits …
By Helgard Muller, Pr Eng
I
t is common that political analysts
as well as economists provide their
respective scenarios for 2018. So,
let me try and provide an analysis of
what we may expect in 2018 in the
water and sanitation sector.
More pressure on the Minister:
At a national level, the Minister of
Water and Sanitation will be further
tested in Parliament, probably face
increasing pressure from civil rights
organisations like OUTA as well as in
the media. Well known to be close to
President Zuma, the future of Minister
Nomvula Mokonyane will depend
on the outcome of the ANC national
conference. (Ed.’s note: This article
was written before the event.) If a
change in ANC leadership is serious
about stamping out corruption, she
may be removed. The country also
needs a permanently appointed
professional as director general who
has experience in the water sector —
unfortunately, this will also depend on
the national political outcomes.
Will the National Water and
Sanitation Master Plan (NWSMP)
address the real issues? The
Minister of Water and Sanitation has
instructed her department to draft a
NWSMP to be completed in the first
quarter of 2018. A first draft was
made available on the Department of
Water and Sanitation’s website during
November 2017. This plan should
assist in moving in a positive direction
if sufficient public engagement can
be generated. The success will
also depend on the incorporation
of objective inputs from water and
sanitation experts across the board.
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A new water bill — an inappropriate
diversion: The Minister announced
that a new water bill is being drafted
to combine the current National
Water Act and the Water Services
Act. Indications are that this bill will
be introduced in Parliament sometime
in 2018. Critics who have had a peep
at the draft (not out to the public
yet) were highly critical, as it does
not address many aspects covered
in current legislation. My personal
opinion is that while we have two
excellent world-acclaimed Acts, there
is no need to replace these with a
half-baked combination. Most of the
current problems in the water sector
are caused by poor implementation
rather than inadequate legislation. If
others share my viewpoint, we will
see a tough debate in Parliament
once this bill is introduced.
Crunch time for the Cape Town
water crisis: A lot has been written
about the water crisis in Cape Town
and only time will tell if emergency
supplementary water supplies will
be operational in time to save the
DWS, the Mayor of Cape Town, and
officials from a major embarrassment.
An objective independent analysis
should be conducted to evaluate the
sequence of events to enable the
South African water sector to learn
from this. The economical loss to
business and tourism in Cape Town
cannot be underestimated, as well as
the loss in confidence by the public in
those responsible for water services.
Breaking barriers, connecting ideas
— the WISA biennial conference:
How appropriate that this conference
Water Sewage & Effluent January/February 2018
will take place in Cape Town (24–27
June 2018). Time will tell if conference
attendees will be able to shower in
their hotels or queue with locals in
the street to get their daily quota of
water.
Construction to commence
on Lesotho Highlands Water
Project phase 2 (LHWPII): The first
construction on the Polihali Dam site
is planned to start during 2018 with
the construction of the diversion
tunnel. This tunnel will divert water
of the Senqu River away from the site
of the Polihali Dam and so reduce
the risk of flooding when building
work on Polihali itself commences.
The latest estimated time for delivery
of water to Gauteng is 2025. As the
water supply situation for Gauteng
remains critical with demand already
exceeding sustainable yield, our
hopes should be that sufficient rain
will fall in the Vaal and Thukela
catchments to see us through to 2025.
The LHWPII tender process will be
closely watched by several interested
parties, as rumours of corruption
were raised in the media in 2017.
Will municipalities pay their debt
to the DWS and water boards, and
avoid cut-offs? According to public
statements by Minister Mokonyane,
the debt currently stands at R10.7-
billion. She threatened that water
will be cut off to the top 30 defaulting
municipalities if they failed to settle
their water debt older than 60 days.
Speaking at the Water Infrastructure
Investment Summit in Sandton
on 5 December 2017, the Minister
announced that 16 of the 30 defaulting