Municipalities ill-prepared for climate change disaster
DESPITE the fact that climate change-induced disasters such as flooding are becoming common occurrences, most municipalities in the country are reportedly not implementing measures to mitigate the challenge.
The situation is said to be worse in district municipalities where they have even employed officers to focus on problem.
Slindile Maphumulo, from the SA Local Government Association (Salga), said this in a webinar organised by the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) and the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.
The webinar was focused on the impact of climate change and changing weather patterns.
Puseletso Mofokeng, disaster risk management officer at the SA Weather Service, said not every weather event was easy to predict, but they had foreseen the recent KwaZulu-Natal floods that left more than 400 dead and 40 000 displaced, with 48 missing.
“This case of KZN was extreme … in fact, it was actually a big disaster. I don’t think a focus for one day or two would help much except the disaster management would put people in very safe areas because that is their job.
“Our job is to provide data to them, our job is to provide a forecast, theirs is to take the forecast and implement it; they know the safe places in each municipality, where it is safe in terms of moving people,” he said.
Later, Mofokeng said the Durban floods had severe impacts because of several issues. Among them was that the city and the province of KwaZulu-Natal were experiencing rapid population growth, which then forced people to settle in places that were not suitable for human occupation.
“Previously, we would have a lower number of people living in KwaZulu-Natal, but we also know from statistics we would hear from time to time, that KwaZulu-Natal is growing faster than anywhere in the country … So, because of the number of people who are living in KwaZulu-Natal, the rate at which they are going, and the spaces they are competing for some of them are not suitable for human settlement. That is why you will have a number of people losing their lives,” he added.
Delivering her presentation, Maphumulo from Salga was very frank in her submission, saying poor planning by the local government sphere had made the situation even worse.
“Another issue being argued is whether it really is climate change that is causing all this impact, or is it poor infrastructure in terms of our drainage systems that we develop as planners or as engineers?
“Is it putting people in places where they are going to be vulnerable that is the main (cause)? Is it our poor sanitation? Is it our river catchment systems that are failing?
“There is quite a lot of impact and climate change is but a percentage of it, but our planning, our poor planning is also causing people to suffer a great deal because climate change is not an issue that is new today. There have been weather forecasts dating 10 years, 20 years ago. But what are we doing to respond to those as local governments?” Maphumulo asked.
Regarding the early warning, Maphumulo said the systems were not fast enough to even allow municipalities to act and shield those who are to be affected.
“As much as the local government ... there is some work being done around early warning systems, but it is not early enough and there are not enough mechanisms to warn the ordinary citizens.”