TOWARDS A PLAN TO IMPROVEWATER QUALITY AND WATER

SECURITY IN SOUTH AFRICA SOME POINTS FROM WESSA:WC

Patrick Dowling

Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa:Western Cape

DWAF SAYS

• “The Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry is the custodian of

• South Africa's water resources in South Africa. Is thus responsible also

• for ensuring that our water is safe for drinking, for recreation and a

• range of diverse life and sustainable economic activities.”

WESSA COMMENT

Legally the case and officials who try but overall water picture gloomy :

• The majority of rivers in a highly impacted state (SOE – 80% threatened – 20% critical)

• Demand side management takes second place to supply side solutions (BWP)

• Ecological reserve of rivers is not respected (E.g Velorensvlei)

• Developments permitted even where water is severely limited (West Coast & Garden route)

• Municipalities function independently regarding water supplies and waste water management (Still Bay, Garden route, Stellenbosch)

• No absolute protection for hydrological systems like wetlands (E.g. Dreamworld site)

• Little censure for industry, agriculture and mining re water pollution and riverine degradation (potato farming in the sandveld, KZN sugar cane farming impact on river flow and banks, demands of aluminium smelters, acid pollution of water courses from mine dumps)

• Increasingly the deterioration of natural water systems can be linked with human social and health threats

Recommendation

In order to fulfil its mandate as described DWAF needs to ensure cross sectoral and inter departmental compliance with the range of national and international legislation at its disposal and publicly promote the principle that without water sustainability there can be no sustainable development.

DWAF SAYS

The NWA says the Minister should establish monitoring systems and data to assess:

• Quantity, quality and use of water

• Compliance with quality objectives

• The health of aquatic ecosystems

WESSA Comment:

Nationally, provincially and locally there is a huge amount of data available already – enough to make important policy decisons.

The water-climate change link is possibly one area needing more formal research.

Recommendations

• Before any new expensive research projects are commissioned there needs to be an integration and reconciliation of the current information available.

• A water pollution tax should be used to enable the establishment of a robust inter-provincial monitoring and compliance body.

• A review of current water-related climate change research should be undertaken with a view to gap filling if necessary.

DWAF SAYS

The challenge that faces us as a country is to promote socio-economic development, whilst maintaining a water quality that is at all times fit for use and for proper ecological functioning of aquatic ecosystems.

Comment:

This is a serious challenge for an arid, sometimes water stressed country

Recommendations:

• Proper ecological functioning of aquatic ecosystems should be made the primary concern.

• Socio-economic development drivers, having taken this sine qua non on board should incorporate its principles into the “business plan” so that conservation, water demand management, rehabilItation and good husbandry can be creatively integrated into socio-economic development.

DWAF SAYS

• On a daily basis across the country, organizations and individuals impact on the water quality in our rivers, streams,groundwater and our wetlands. The consumption of untreated water is one of the main sources of disease in South Africa.

WESSA COMMENT

This acknowledgement is heartening. The consumption of water from a pristine source is unlikely to have major health consequences. However in some instances water is being contaminated before it gets into storage dams and then poses a risk. (E.g. Tulbagh and Voelvlei dam)

Recommendations

• Some of the above recommendations are applicable.

• Municipalities are notorious offenders when it comes to water contamination and there must be a concerted effort to ensure their compliance (as seems to be happening in Stellenbosch.)

• IDPs and growth/development plans must accommodate water realities (Paarl, T.View)

DWAF SAYS

• Water is a source of life but can also cause illness and death.

• Safe drinking water is essential to good health. • Our Constitution says that everyone has a right to

access to water - enough to live. • Our government must ensure that there is clean water

for all of us now and for the future. • Hazardous waste sites threaten water quality both in

urban and rural lands. • Pesticides and fertilizers levels in our surface water

and groundwater must be monitored.

WESSA Comment

• This acknowledgement is welcome.• The issue of free basic water supply

continues to be debated • Important to note is the huge and unjustifiable

gap between high end and low end users even in the same sector. (6 Kl - 500 Kl pm)

• Groundwater abstraction at various levels is increasingly being seen as a quick solution to supply-side demand -often with negative or unpredictable consequences.

Recommendations• Prodigality must be acted against robustly and high end

tariffs applied to discourage wasteful water use.• All municipal domestic, hazardous waste and land-fill sites

should reach compliance with national standards by a specific date to be set by DWAF.

• DWAF should support and help resource the State 2020 zero waste programme

• Registering of all bore holes and well points should become mandatory.

• Closer co-operation with the Department of Agriculture regarding farming threats as well as best practice should be initiated as there are many overlapping areas of concern.

DWAF SAYS

• Furthermore, the National Water Act (Act No. 36 of 1998) provides a framework to protect water resources against over exploitation and also ensure that there is water for social and economic development. The Act also recognises that water belongs to the whole nation for the benefit of all people.

WESSA Comment:

• Voice for social and economic development the loudest and tries to silence other concerns

• Despite roll-out of services there are still many citizens limited access to good quality water

• The poorest often pay the most per kilolitre in physical effort if not in cash

• The project to help resource poor farmers is administratively difficult to access.

Recommendations• DWAF should develop a national media strategy

about water demand management along the lines of the ESKOM initiative with similar incentive schemes (low flow shower heads, leak fixing kits and courses, learnerships, water tank subsidies etc)

• DWAF should seek out and deliberately support small existing water resource supply and management initiatives especially in rural areas.

• More catchment to coast approach on the use of rivers should be adopted.

Recommendations contd

• Any inclination to privatise any aspect of water supply or service delivery should be approached with extreme caution and transparency as the tendency is to link such enterprises not only with the disputed notion of full cost recovery, but also with profit making. This puts additional pressure on resources and can lead to the transfer of water allocations that adversely affect both social equity and ecological integrity. (E.g Keurbooms water allocation transfer)

Recommendations contd

• It must be recognised that the building of large dams is not a sustainable activity and that even with mitigation and the observation of WCD principles there are far reaching negative impacts. (E.g. Gariep, BWP and Staalpport) Current impoundment and inter provincial transfer plans should be reviewed.

Recommendations contd

• The programme for the clearance of alien invasive vegetation could be stepped up and create far more jobs.

• The many existing volunteer groups associated with river, wetland, estuary and water system integrity should be formally acknowledged, used as examples for other areas and assisted with job creating funding.

Recommendations contd

• Water needs to find a place in a more detailed and nationally specific way in the formal education curriculum.

• Precautionary approach to desalination initiatives and the licensing of these because of the additional waste water production.

• A credible plan for the reversing the current trend of river degradation needs to be instituted in consultation with the full range of stakeholders.

• Encourage all municipalities to factor a climate change and water conservation/management strategy into their IDPs.