Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu says his department is exploring alternatives to surface water sources, to improve the country’s water security.
He says these alternatives, which include groundwater, desalination of sea water, return flows from treated waste-water systems and the reuse of other poor-quality water such as acid mine drainage must be explored.
In a written question from the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), Mchunu says his department is continuously identifying delivery hotspots at provincial level through ministerial visits and consultations with local municipalities.
Whereas some parts of the country have experienced unprecedented amounts of rainfall leading to floods, the country in general still remains without adequate water resources.
The minister says the department has implemented over 70 projects that have been identified as Ministerial Priority Actions to address hotspot areas across the country.
He added that they are currently implementing a national programme to develop five-year water and sanitation services reliability implementation plans with water services authorities.
These plans will look at the demographics of all areas, water and sanitation needs assessments, infrastructure functionality status, infrastructure refurbishment requirements, water security and governance issues.
This process, he says, will result in a comprehensive situational assessment of all water and sanitation services at community level.
Discussion on how to overcome SA’s water scarcity challenges
