Hammanskraal residents can expect drinkable water from their taps by at least March next year. The Department of Water and Sanitation and the City of Tshwane made the announcement at a joint briefing in Pretoria.
While plans to fix the heavily contaminated Rooiwaal Water Treatment plant will take three years at a price tag of R4 billion, water entity Magalies Water will in the interim install a water treatment plant at its Klipdrift Water Treatment Works near Hammanskraal.
The plant will produce 30-40 mega litres of treated drinking water which will be fed into the Hammanskraal piped water distribution system.
Work on the portable plant which is an interim solution will commence in July this year with completion expected in March 2024.
“By the time it is complete, it will provide sufficient drinking water to supply the residents of Hammanskraal with drinking water from their taps. When the package plant is complete, the City will be able to stop supplying residents with water from the Temba Water Treatment Works and rather supply them with water from the package plant, until the quality of water from the Temba Treatment Works meets drinkable standards again. The supply of drinking water from the Magalies Water package plant will also enable the City to stop supplying water using water tankers. However, in the meantime, the City will continue to provide the residents with drinking water through water tankers services at designated water filling points,” says Water and Sanitation Director-General, Sean Phillips.
Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu says the provision of water is a service to the people and not a political issue:
