Mr Speaker, let me take this opportunity and congratulate our chairperson who has been appointed the Deputy Minister of Police. I must say that the committee will really miss her inputs and how she has steered the committee.
Let me begin with a serious concern. The Department of Water and Environmental Affairs has been underbudgeting then, as it has also happened this year. The department will plead that certain expenses were unforeseen and therefore unavoidable. This argument is used to shift funds from environment to water.
The current poor state of bulk water infrastructure is the outcome of poor budgeting. This House must take note that a staggering 70% of municipalities in South Africa lack the capacity to supply bulk water services in the areas of their operation. Only 30 out of the 262 municipalities can boast water services that are functioning effectively. There certainly are financial constraints, but it is the political mismanagement that has led to the dire situation we have today. Government will state that it has a serious challenge.
We in Cope say that the situation is worse. Bulk water infrastructure is close to collapsing in most parts of our country. When misuse of resources combine with government-generated incompetence, failure is inevitable.
The 2010 Green Drop Report, for instance, states that in many cases extensive refurbishment and expansion of the current plants are required, and the process employed at plants are no longer sufficient to deliver the required final water quality. What is extensive refurbishment? It is another way of saying that band-aid is no longer adequate. Major surgery by specialists at a major cost is what is needed.
Does South Africa have the money and the specialists? More importantly, does South Africa have a transparent procurement process to prevent big amounts being siphoned off into the pockets of tenderpreuneurs and their fellow conspirators? The answer is obvious - we do not.
The Minister of Finance has warned that South African consumers should ready themselves for a substantial increase in water tariffs. Will government's failure mean that, once again, as we have seen with Eskom, people must carry the cost?
The most urgent priority for this government is the updating of the infrastructure database, which would also include information on internal waste water systems and the asset management programme.
The Environment and Conservation Association has stated that in five years almost 80% of the country's fresh water resources would be badly polluted. As a result, no process of purification available in the country would be able to clean it sufficiently to make it fit for human or animal consumption.
The Chief Executive Officer Mr Davis, of Xstrata has stated that South Africa needs urgent investment of some R100 billion in bulk water infrastructure and reticulation. And it will be up to the state alone to do this.
Underinvestment in water infrastructure risks pitting agriculture, mining and the manufacturing industry against their own communities as water supply dwindles. It is time for the state to manage this valuable asset on which all South Africans depend.
With some things we can wait, but a shortage of water will be too big a crisis to contemplate. Seconds are ticking and the country is watching to see what this government will come up with to maintain and upgrade bulk water supply in this country. I thank you. [Applause.]