Wastewater treatment plants are ‘Gauteng’s main polluters’

Gauteng’s wastewater treatment plants are the main polluters of the province’s water courses, water and sanitation deputy minister Sello Seitlholo said on Monday.

The department is investigating 88 criminal cases against municipalities.

According to the department, the department of forestry, fisheries and the environment is also investigating cases of river pollution.

Seitlholo was addressing representatives of the Ekurhuleni, Tshwane and Johannesburg metros and Mogale City at Centurion Lake Hotel.

He assessed all municipal wastewater systems in 2021, and the publication of the Green Drop Report in 2022 and the progress report in December 2023 revealed the poor state of wastewater treatment systems, which have resulted in the presence of sewage in streets, rivers and dams. 

He urged municipalities to prioritise improving the state of their wastewater treatment infrastructure, ensure they produce the required standard of effluent, and obtain the necessary skills and capacity to improve the operation and maintenance of infrastructure.

“We have to make the necessary changes to turn this situation around and ensure municipalities, as the water services authorities, have appropriate town planning and land use management in place, to ensure adequate investment of revenue from the sale of water back into the operation and maintenance, and refurbishment and upgrades of water and wastewater treatment systems, including the distribution and collection components,” he said.

Seitlholo said the Vaal and Crocodile rivers in Gauteng were the key systems that supported economic activity in SA as they provided raw water for users across all sectors.

He said dams such as Barrage, Vaal, Hartbeespoort and Roodeplaat provided recreational and tourism opportunities that boosted the development of the municipalities where they were situated and in the province. 

However, he said pollution from wastewater systems, overloaded systems, pump station failures and sewer leaks from municipalities threatened the dams.

Seitlholo said the department had provided financial and technical support to municipalities even though the drop reports had indicated water services and quality continued to decline.

He appealed to municipalities to address the challenges of pollution by responding to the department’s directives, and to improve on the poor maintenance and operation of wastewater treatment infrastructures. 

Seitlholo said the department, through its water use compliance, monitoring and enforcement directorate, would continue to strengthen its regulatory function and make regulatory actions more consistent to ensure municipalities addressed the problem of pollution in water courses. 

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