Electricity upgrade in April for Ugu
PLANS to implement an electricity upgrade by Eskom in the coastal areas of Ugu District Municipality are at an advanced stage after a R14 million payment was allegedly made to Eskom a year ago.
This upgrade of supply electricity to the Umtamvuna Water Treatment Works from the Eastern Cape will bring relief to the coastal villages of Port Edward, Leisure Bay, Glenmore, Munster, Palm Beach, Trafalgar, Marina Beach and Southbroom, as well as a vast area inland of these villages in the Ingonyama Trust.
“Yes indeed, by April progress will have been made in this regard. The municipality has long initiated a process to upgrade our water power stations and there has been constant communication between the leadership of the municipality and Eskom in an effort to expedite the process of power upgrades to water treatment stations across the district,” said Ugu District Municipality spokesperson France Zama.
Barry Smit from the Margate Ratepayers’ and Residents’ Association said residents and businesses of the Ugu District had endured numerous water supply problems, especially over the past 5 years, caused by maladministration and mismanagement.
“And it is indeed unfortunate that the planned electricity upgrades by Eskom cannot be pushed as an urgent matter to be completed sooner than April 2021 as water plays a pivotal part in our livelihoods and tourism, which is the lifeblood of our local economy.
“In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is even more crucial to ensure that residents receive water for good hygiene purposes. It seems the ball has been dropped once again, and hopefully the plight of the people of Ugu will be heard and action be taken immediately.”
Ray Nkonyeni Municipality councillor Stephanie Breedt said Eskom had scheduled the upgrade for mid-december last year, however, nothing had happened.
“Recently, we have been experiencing severe water shortages in the entire area; some residents have been without water for weeks at a time. One of the main reasons is because the Water Treatment Works does not have the power to pump sufficient water to the reservoirs, and then to the taps.
“This is a tourism-reliant area, where many livelihoods are at risk because of water shortages. We also have a large percentage of elderly folk who suffer dreadful hardships trying to carry water for daily use, into their homes. This water often has to come from rivers far from rural homes, which adds to their health risks.”
Leon Kotze from the Munster Ratepayers’ Association echoed Breedt’s sentiments, saying the area was one of the villages Ugu supplied water to.
“For some years all the villages under Ugu have been on a ‘water sharing’ system. Ugu water plant can only supply about 20 ML/D (megalitres per day) in 24 hours. The minimum water requirement is about 30 ML/D in 24 hours.
“Due to the very old infrastructures the villages experience a lot of water leaks that severely influence the shortage of about 10 ML/D.”
Eskom had not commented by the time of publication.
THIS week, we learned that the Covid19 vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and Astrazeneca appears to provide no measurable effect on mild or moderate disease caused by the variant of the virus first identified in South Africa, known as B.1.351.
This is deeply disappointing news. People the world over are understandably frustrated and anxious as the pandemic continues to disrupt their lives. In South Africa, where many of my family members live, and in other countries where variants are spreading, people have been waiting for the promising science to translate into lives saved in their communities.
The whole world is grappling with a complicated and fluid situation. We still don’t know, for example, if this vaccine could protect against the severe or fatal disease caused by the variant, thereby preventing people from being hospitalised or needing supplemental oxygen, which is in short supply in some countries. Additional information will be needed to answer these and other questions.
The World Health Organization and national health authorities will determine the potential public health value of this vaccine in South Africa and other countries and make decisions about where and how it can be used.
While we may all be feeling destabilised now amid this swirl of questions, we must keep the big picture in mind. In science, every outcome is knowledge. Without the researchers in South Africa who were able to quickly identify the variant and incorporate it into this clinical trial, the world would not yet know the effectiveness of the vaccine on this variant.
These world-class scientists have generated valuable new knowledge that will enable more targeted interventions, helping governments make important decisions about vaccine rollouts and better protect their people. For example, a version of this vaccine is being rolled out in India, where B.1.351 hasn’t yet been detected. So while questions are being answered, this vaccine will continue to be a valuable tool in other parts of the world.
We’ve all been spoiled lately by how good the news on vaccine science hthaes bemeeenr.gtenhceewoofrladdweeandltyfrnoemwsienefiencgtious disease to developing several safe and effective vaccines against it within the space of only 10 months — the fastest humans have ever gone from identifying a novel virus to inoculating against it.
We will use our funding commitments of more than $1.75 billion (about R25.77bn) to help accelerate the development and distribution of vaccines that are optimised for lowerand middle-income countries and are effective against the variants. We’ll also make new investments in treatments and diagnostics.the world needs to reach vulnerable communities and health care workers with vaccines as quickly as possible, no matter where they live if we’re going to get ahead of this virus.
Nations that understandably want to shore up their own health networks and vaccine delivery systems should also ramp up funding for Covax and reject the impulse to make bilateral deals that shut out other countries and delay the possibility of a global recovery.
If Covid-19 has taught the world anything over the past year, it is that we’re all in this together.
Variants may continue to emerge that could put everyone at risk. We cannot defeat this pandemic unless everyone, everywhere, has a chance to get vaccinated.