The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has undertaken to expedite a strategic intervention to significantly minimise the impact of raw sewerage seeping into the Vaal River and its tributaries in the Southern Gauteng Region.

On Tuesday, 09 March 2021, the Department of Water and Sanitation appeared before the Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation to present a progress report on the Vaal River System intervention. Of the areas in the Southern Gauteng Region, the Emfuleni Local Municipality (LM) is the most affected as a result of the pollution into the Vaal River because of failing infrastructure in the municipality.

However, the problem goes beyond Gauteng to affect municipalities in Mpumalanga, the Free State, the North West and the Northern Cape.

Acting Director-General at the Department, Deborah Mochotlhi told the Committee that the Department’s intervention in Emfuleni LM sought to address concerns about the negative impact on the socio-economic growth of the Vaal Triangle area.

“The intervention seeks to ensure that the Southern Gauteng Region has reliable water supply and to ensure improved effluent quality discharged into the Vaal River resulting in the reduction of cost for the production of potable water,” said Mochotlhi.

She said other challenges that needed to be focussed on were sewer spillages within communities, rolling out of new housing developments and improving investment and tourism within the Vaal.

Mochotlhi added that the Vaal River Intervention Implementation Plan also deals with securing and safeguarding of the water services infrastructure, repairing the bulk water and reticulation network to eliminate the current spillages. She told the Committee that the Department would refurbish the wastewater treatment works and repair reservoirs, pump stations and rising mains.

Speaking during a question and answer session in the National Assembly on Thursday, 11 March 2021, Deputy President David Mabuza, said the situation in Emfuleni LM has necessitated additional intervention, as provided for by Section 63 of the Water Services Act of 1997. “As part of this intervention, the Minister of Human Settlements,

Water and Sanitation will be taking over the functions of the Water Services Authority as stated in Section 63 (2) of the Water Services Act of 1997. This means that the Minister will assume the municipal responsibilities for a specific duration, to fix the sanitation challenges as experienced by the people of Emfuleni LM,” said Deputy President Mabuza.

This process will be in line with the provisions of the Act, which also include in the main a Cabinet Memo that is currently being prepared. The process will also need consultations with COGTA, the Gauteng Province and ELM which are on-going.

The Deputy President informed the National Assembly that the intervention for sanitation and water infrastructure work in Emfuleni LM would be implemented through a R 7,6 billion multipronged approach.

“This will be directed at operations and maintenance to be implemented by Rand Water, refurbishment and upgrade of infrastructure to be implemented by the Department of Water and Sanitation, and sustainability of water and sanitation services through the restructuring of the municipal entity responsible for water and sanitation, as well as the procurement of tools of trade”, said Deputy President Mabuza.

The Ministers of Finance, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, and Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation were in continuous engagements, Deputy President Mabuza said, with the intention to ring-fence financial resources and strengthen government’s response to this sanitation challenge.

Mabuza said an amount of R 1.8 billion has been budgeted in the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework to address the refurbishment and upgrade of infrastructure, adding that the Department of Water and Sanitation was in the process of appointing several contractors to support the efforts to stop further and continued pollution of the Vaal River.

Mabuza stressed that that the Department of Water and Sanitation has initiated a process of engaging with sector stakeholders and the entire community of Vaal and Emfuleni LM to keep the public informed about the progress of the intervention.  ­­­­­­