subscribe Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Subscribe now
Water is poured from a water tanker into a bucket in this file photo. Picture: LEFTY SHIVAMBU/GALLO IMAGES
Water is poured from a water tanker into a bucket in this file photo. Picture: LEFTY SHIVAMBU/GALLO IMAGES

Tshwane’s political head for utilities, regional operations and co-ordination, Themba Fosi, has bemoaned the “water tanker mafia” operating in the capital city, saying its effects are being felt across the metro, which spends an estimated R98m on water tankers a year. 

The water supply crisis buffeting Gauteng’s three metros due to increased demand and crumbling infrastructure has seen a surge in the use of water tankers to supply residents.

Other parts of the country,  including KwaZulu-Natal, are also under water stress. 

The business sector has said the crisis is another example of the breakdown in service delivery as the government struggles to maintain infrastructure crucial to economic growth.

Moreover, agriculture accounts for about 60% of water consumption in the country, most of it for irrigating crops.

“The water tanker mafia [is being] felt across the city [especially in] Bronkhorstspruit where, in several instances, we found our valves being tampered with ... huge amounts of vandalism, where you see this is something that is self-imposed. Eventually, this leads to water tankers being the order of the day,” Fosi said, adding the R98m figure excluded “emergencies”. 

“We have instances where invoices from water tankers are questionable. [This] tends to be a challenge for us [because] in some instances documents are not collaborating.” 

Fosi said there were a number of areas across the city where water pipes and valves had been “tampered with and broken”. “These are the things we have found out as the city and the Tshwane metro police department. Obviously [we also receive] tip-offs from the community that they have seen some water tanker guys doing some shady work at our reservoirs or fire hydrants,” he said. 

“That’s information that is coming through. However, we don’t have capacity to be able to do an intense investigation. We rely heavily on the [police] when cases are being lodged through them so that they can be able to do investigations for us.” 

In his state of the city address in April, Tshwane executive mayor Cilliers Brink said the municipality had allocated R450m for upgrading the Rooiwal waste treatment plant over three years. The plant was the epicentre of a deadly cholera outbreak in Hammanskraal in May 2023.

The metro has also set aside R92m for the replacement, upgrade and construction of wastewater treatment facilities; R66m for the replacement of worn-out water network pipes; and R65m for the expansion of reservoirs. 

SA is a water-scarce country and farmers and communities across the country are up in arms about little or no access to potable water.

The cabinet announced plans in June 2023 to spend almost R80bn in a bid to deal with water infrastructure challenges, which opposition parties said had resulted in “water-shedding”. 

Former water & sanitation minister Senzo Mchunu has said water infrastructure backlogs will cost SA R89.9bn a year over the next 10 years, “with 3,698,074 kilolitres of water lost every single day due to infrastructure failure and leakages”. 

WaterCAN, an initiative of the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), has taken a dim view of the fact that “over the past year, Gauteng has witnessed a disturbing increase in water challenges, marked by frequent shutdowns, water-shedding and now ‘water- shifting’. This crisis has left numerous communities without water for days, highlighting the urgent need for comprehensive solutions”. 

“The situation has reached a critical point, with cities such as Johannesburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni routinely losing 30% to 34% of their water to leaks and losses, while Emfuleni experiences an alarming 71% loss,” WaterCAN said in a statement recently. 

In June, the City of Tshwane and the national department of water & sanitation signed an agreement aimed at addressing the metro’s water challenges. 

The parties signed will collaborate on various issues, using the department’s technical and financial resources to jointly address the metro’s other challenges, “including the Hennops River pollution, Rooiwal Wastewater Treatment Works and inadequate human resources”. 

They will also work together on infrastructure planning and development, water resource planning and infrastructure, and strengthening the skills of municipal officials. 

Other areas of focus include education and awareness campaigns, bulk infrastructure and benchmarking of programmes such as Green Drop, Blue Drop and No Drop. 

mkentanel@businesslive.co.za 

subscribe Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Subscribe now

Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.