The proposed

establishment of a Water Management Agency to oversee all current government agencies tasked with water management has been met with mixed reactions, with some saying that improving existing water catchment agencies would make more sense

Government, through the Presidential Infrastructure Coordination Council (PICC), is forging ahead with the establishment of a Water Management Agency, which will oversee all current government agencies tasked with water management, according to a statement from the Presidency.

The PICC identified poor water-resource management as a major concern for South Africa. The council said this was evident in the prevalence of sewage spillages, potholes, leaks and solid waste on streets, and service delivery interruptions caused by water cuts.

The PICC identified a shortage of technical skills in local government, poor infrastructure management, and inadequate budgeting and expenditure on maintenance as aspects that needed attention to improve water management.

Sputnik Ratau, spokesperson for the Department of Water and Sanitation, said the plan was to create an entity similar to Eskom that would oversee and manage all water infrastructure, operational activities and water infrastructure maintenance in South Africa.

Ratau did not, however, want to commit to a timeline for the creation of the agency.

“We first need a bill to be drafted and then passed through all the different processes of Cabinet, Parliament, and a public participation process.”

Ratau said agriculture used 70% of surface water in South Africa, and as such was an important stakeholder when water management and strategy was shaped. Kevin Winter of the Future

Water Institute at the University of Cape Town, said that while it was still unclear what this proposed Water Management Agency would look like and what its specific mandate would be, it made more sense to focus on the improvement of existing water catchment agencies.

“With the exception of the Olifants Catchment Agency in the north, and the Breede-Gouritz Catchment Agency in the Western Cape, these agencies are not functioning as they should.”

Winter said 98% of available water in South Africa was already allocated, so improvements in usage efficiency was crucial for all sectors of the economy. Further gains were possible through technology, and especially the reuse of treated water. He added that catchment agencies needed to invest more in technical skills, which could focus on increasing the proportion of treated water being reused, as this would also reduce pollution of watercourses.

“In order to improve water usage, catchment agencies should also improve their ability to monitor current water usage and quality,” he added.

FW ARCHIVE It is hoped that the establishment of a new Water Management Agency will address the challenge of poor water-resource management in South Africa.