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Port Elizabeth has Less Than 6 Months of Water Left

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Unattended water leaks are sitting at around 7000

During a Democratic Alliance Press Conference held today it was revealed that the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality will run dry if there is no intervention in less than 6 months – negatively compounded by the concern that no major rain is forecast for the forseeable future.

Overall, the Metro’s supply dams are currently at just 22.16% of their capacity. Kouga dam is at 12.29% of capacity, Impofu dam at 16.45%, Churchill dam at 68.93%, the Groendal dam at 37.20% and the Loerie dam at 29.44%.

The last 10% of water in any dam is unusable, which means that, technically, the Metro’s dam levels are at a shocking 12.16%.

Nqaba blamed the political structure saying; “The municipality has failed to provide direction as a result of the poor management and fractured ANC led council.”

The Impofu dam is below the water tower intake level and no water is forthcoming from this dam. To augment this, 90 megalitres of water is currently being rerouted from the Churchill dam, which is at 68.93%. The water from the Churchill dam is being pumped to the coastal western suburbs and areas such as Newton Park, Mill Park and Central.

The Impofu dam is three times the size of the Churchill dam and, therefore, the Churchill has shown a dramatic drop in its water level, which stood at 86.19% in November 2019. The extended drought will eventually lead to NMB not being able to extract water from the Churchill dam.

The Metro also receives water from the Nooitgedagt Water Scheme (140 megalitres) and from the Loerie dam (45-50 megalitres).

Since August 2018 the Municipality has been aware that a barge is needed to extract water from the Impofu Dam. This barge could have helped us to ectract water. The barge will take 5 weeks to order and build.

The COEGAKOP WELLFIELD project, planned to augment the water supply to the Metro, is limping along. Not a cent of the Metro’s R200-million Drought Mitigation Funding has been spent as a result of appeals in respect of the BAC award. The NMB Interim Executive Mayor has indicated that the entire R200-million is “committed”. What this means is that it was earmarked to be utilised in the Wellfield project as no municipal funding can be committed and paid before actual work has been done. The City is likely to forfeit at least R100-million of this grant due to the fact that this would be the second application for roll over of the funding.

PHASE 3 of the NOOITGEDAGT WATER SCHEME, which would provide an additional 70 megalitres, has not been commissioned since June 2019.

Upgrades to the CHANNEL being constructed to relay water between the Gariep dam and Nooitgedagt is still not complete.

The metro administration, through its political head of Infrastructure and Engineering, Andile Lungisa, has on numerous instances indicated that a DESALINATION PLANT could resolve our problems.

A desalinisation plant will take 3 to 8 years to plan and commission therefore it is not an immediate intervention possibility.

In May 2017, during the DA-led coalition’s tenure in government, then Executive Mayor Athol Trollip made an application for disaster relief and the region was declared a disaster area. The Metro was allocated R233-million in drought disaster relief. After the ANC-led coalition of corruption took over government the state of disaster was never extended as per the regulations of the Disaster Management Act and allowed to lapse.

Due to pressure from the DA the coalition of corruption government eventually extended the local state of disaster in December 2019, but this has yet again been allowed to lapse.

The Disaster Management Act of 2002 stipulates that a Disaster Declaration lapses after three months, after which the municipality must extend the declaration on a month to month basis.

We need a Water Infrastructure Engineer to direct our water planning needs. The DA has requested the Water Affairs Department to second an engineer to assist the Metro.

There appears to be a lack of will to spend the budget allocated to solve the water crisis.

Council must make funds immediately available to purchase the Impofu Dam barge. A barge is required in order to access water below an extraction tower ingress point.

The Kouga Municipality has properly utilised their R151 Million grant spending 70% of the allocation up until the lockdown.

Kouga’s challenges include not being able to recommence water saving and extraction measures as the contractors are prevented to be on site due to the lockdown and no accommodation.

With weeks of water left, the contractors in Kouga on the Impofu Dam need 6 weeks to complete the work commissioned which includes:

  • Completion of electrical connection to boreholes in Jeffreys Bay
  • Equipping of boreholes and completion of pipeline in Humansdorp
  • Final 10% of Installation of pipeline; Complete Pipe bridge crossing over Gamtoos River between Weston and Hankey; ESKOM supply from electrical connection to borehole; Equipping of boreholes (Pumps);
  • Completion of raw water storage reservoir at waterworks
  • Completion of pipeline and Equipping of boreholes in Patensie
  • Equipping of 2 x boreholes in Oyster Bay.

The most important issue to solve and restart the work above is to confirm that these projects are essential services and that the municipality can carry-out the work legally under the current legislation. Kouga will write to DWS to obtain guidance in this regard.

Jonathan Lawack said that the Metro does not communicate with residents with regards to the looming water crisis and also that the COVID-19 Lockdown has been a small blessing in disguise as the high water users – business – have been closed.

According to the DA:

  • Unattended water leaks are sitting at 7000
  • Residents say they are reporting leaks but they are not attended to.
  • Fix the leaks first and then augment the water supply
  • Citizens are not being encouraged to save water

Retief OdendaaL said that there is very little assistance forthcoming from Provincial Government.

The DA says their immediate plan to save NMB from total water collapse includes:

  • Urging the Speaker to request an urgent council meeting via a digital platform to discuss plans to mitigate the water crisis.
  • Requestng the DWA to second a water infrastructure engineer to Nelson Mandela Bay to assist the local infrastructure and engineering staff and share skills and best practice.
  • Council must request that the DWA immediately provide additional water tankers and Jojo tanks to Nelson Mandela Bay.
  • Council must request urgent advice from national treasury on measures to prevent the forfeiture of the R200-million Drought Mitigation Funding.
  • Council must immediately make emergency changes to the municipal budget in order to have funds available to mitigate the crisis.
  • Immediately appoint additional plumbers and/or contractors to attend to the 7000 water leaks in the Metro.
  • Council must immediately make funds available to have the barge on the Impofu dam functional within 5 weeks.
  • Writing to the MEC for CoGTA and requested that the Eastern Cape portfolio committee of Cooperative Governance convene an urgent meeting to focus attention on the drought disaster and to discuss possible measures to assist NMBM and Kouga Municipality in this regard.
  • Embarking on an extensive communications drive to update residents on a daily basis regarding dam levels, water consumption and steps they can take to save water.

As a real measure of failing infrastructure we need to know much of our water is lost:

  1. Dam to Reservoir?
  2. Reservoir to Tap?
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Alan Straton

Chief Cook, Bottle Washer and Broom Mechanic at MyPE
Passionate about Port Elizabeth and definitely NOT packing for Perth. Alan's ethos is epitomised in the words of Nelson Mandela; "I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the idea of a democratic and free society. If need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." See more articles by Alan.