NATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES
FOR WRITTEN REPLY
QUESTION NO 224
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 04 JUNE 2010
(INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NO. 15)
224. Mr D D Gamede (ANC-KZN) to ask the Minister of Water and
Environmental Affairs:
(1) (a) What studies had been done to prove that the building of
dams in the rural areas of Gingindlovu, Nkandla and Mkuze will not
be feasible, (b) how sustainable is the supply of water through
water cans in the said rural areas and (c) how effective is that
as opposed to piped water;
(2) whether the grant which is given to district municipalities is
being used optimally; if not, why not; if so, what are the
relevant details;
(3) whether she has been informed that the communities are without
water most of the time as alleged in the Uthungulu report; if so,
what are the relevant details?
CW239E
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REPLY:
(1)(a) The following information regarding the rural areas of
Gingindlovu, Nkandla and Mkuze is available:
⢠Gingindlovu town receives water from the Matigulu River with
constraints on the capacity of the treatment works. The
capacity of the works can be expanded. The rural areas will be
supplied from the Greater Mtojaneni Regional Bulk Scheme
currently under construction which is supplied with water from
the Goedertrouw Dam at Eshowe.
⢠The rural area of Nkandla is supplied with water from the
Mhlatuze River. The current Middledrift bulk scheme can be
expanded. An alternative currently being investigated is to
meet the water requirements of Nkandla by building a dam on one
of the tributaries of the Mhlathuze River. The Uthungulu
District Municipality undertook an assessment of building a dam
on the Nsuze River to supply the rural areas of northern
Vutshini. This appears to be a feasible option with the dam
being sized to be able to also supply rural areas on Nkandla.
⢠The Mkuze area can be supplied from Pongolapoort Dam which
has sufficient water.
(1)(b) Supply of water through road water tankers to static tanks to
fill household containers is not sustainable and is only done
during times of serious drought conditions which affect the local
boreholes and other sources which communities still use as
rudimentary source of water.
(1)(c) Road water tankering is extremely expensive. In terms of
Government policy all households will be served by piped water
systems within an acceptable walking distance from their dwellings
by 2014.
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(2) The Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) funds available to
Water Services Authority (WSA) municipalities for extension of
water services are being monitored by the provincial Department of
Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) and by the
Department of Water Affairs. More than 80% of funds to WSA
municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal is being allocated to water
services infrastructure per annum. In my opinion, the WSAs in
KwaZulu-Natal are using the grant funding optimally in line with
priorities set by the relevant councils.
(3) My Department is aware of the current water shortages in the
north-eastern part of KwaZulu-Natal. This is mainly as a result
of a prolonged drought in the area with well below average
rainfall over the past five to six years which has affected
underground water and caused boreholes and springs feeding the
local streams to dry up. The WSAs are doing their best to cover
these areas with road water tankers as an emergency arrangement.
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