South African water quality of a high standard, says Ramaphosa

President Cyril Ramaphosa says water quality in SA is generally of a high standard which, according to the Water Research Commission, “compares well with the best in the world”.

However, he said outbreaks of cholera in Hammanskraal in Gauteng and Free State have shown the vital importance of safe and effective water and wastewater management.

The president described the deaths of 24 people in Gauteng and Free State as “deeply tragic”. Hundreds more people have been hospitalised after the outbreak.

“Earlier this year the World Health Organisation (WHO) and international relief organisations warned that after years of steady decline, cholera has made ‘a devastating comeback’, putting more than 1-billion people in 43 countries at risk,” said Ramaphosa.

The president said according to the WHO, 24 countries have reported cases since the beginning of the year, including in Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

Ramaphosa said an investigation is under way into the source of the outbreak in Hammanskraal. Technical teams from the City of Tshwane, the department of water & sanitation and the provincial and national departments of health are carrying out water quality tests at distribution points and at water treatment works in the area. 

“They are also tracking and tracing infections. To date, the original source of the cholera infection has not been located. However, this waterborne disease is highly transmissible in conditions where there is inadequate access to clean water and sanitation facilities.”

The president said unreliable and poor-quality drinking water has been a problem in Hammanskraal for many years.

“The Rooiwal wastewater treatment works, which is upstream of Hammanskraal, has not been well maintained and has insufficient capacity to deal with the volume of wastewater entering the works. Over the years, in its role as the regulator of the water sector, the department of water & sanitation has issued many directives to the City of Tshwane to address pollution from the Rooiwal wastewater treatment works,” he said.

Ramaphosa said regrettably these directives were not acted upon.

“Consequently, the department initiated legal action to force the city to use its grant from national government to refurbish and upgrade the wastewater treatment works. While there must be full accountability for the failings that have resulted in the outbreak in Hammanskraal, at this time we must focus on the problem at hand,” he said.

The president emphasised the government’s priority was to stop the spread of cholera and take remedial measures to safeguard human health. 

“After it was abandoned nearly a decade ago, government reinstituted the blue and green drop programmes to help improve national water quality and assist municipalities with compliance.”

Ramaphosa said the most recent green drop report shows there has been a steady decline in the quality of water and sanitation services in municipalities, citing poor governance, ineffective management, increasing debt and underspending on public infrastructure such as wastewater treatment plans as contributors to poor water quality. 

“Under these circumstances, the fact that many councils underspend critical infrastructure grants is unacceptable. Across the country, the department of water & sanitation is working with municipal managers and technical teams to ensure local councils use their water infrastructure grants effectively.”

Support was being provided to water infrastructure projects such as the Nooitgedacht water transfer treatment scheme in Nelson Mandela Bay, the Greater Mbizana regional bulk water scheme in the Alfred Nzo district municipality, and projects in Maluti-a-Phofung in Free State and Emfuleni and Midvaal municipalities, among others, he said.

“National government and Umgeni Water are helping eThekwini metro to improve the management of its wastewater treatment systems. Similarly, the Drakenstein municipality in Western Cape and Lekwa municipality in Mpumalanga are being helped to address wastewater treatment system challenges.”

Ramaphosa said as announced in the state of the nation address in February, the government is proceeding with significant projects to improve national bulk water resource infrastructure.

“As we wait for the results of the investigation into the cholera outbreak in Hammanskraal, it is critical that local government authorities continue to work closely with national government to address and overcome the immediate challenges with water quality in Hammanskraal.”

TimesLIVE