R84m upgrade, rationing, to address Komani water crisis

Chris Hani District Municipality (CHDM) is set to spend R84m on refurbishing the Komani Water Treatment Works plant and infrastructure.

The decrepit system, which supplies all areas in Komani, has created severe problems for residents. And the plant is only capable of producing half the area’s water needs.

Ezibeleni’s ageing water supply system is earmarked for repairs and replacement.

CHDM spokesperson Bulelwa Ganyaza said: “Ezibeleni is one of the areas with an aged and dilapidated infrastructure, estimated to be between 68 to 32 years old.

“The water demand in the area has been exacerbated over the years with the increase in population, additional residential housing development, the Komani Industrial Park, and higher learning institutions.”

She said Ezibeleni’s daily demand was 20ML and Komani Industrial Park’s was 7ML.

Ganyaza said the district municipality had been in “constant” talks with the Ezibeleni community.

“Any acts of violence and disruption of services are condemned as our water carts were denied access in the Ezibeleni area this morning.”

Ganyaza said the Komani treatment works distributed water to several reservoirs, including the Town High and Low, Mlungisi, Fincham’s Neck and Ezibeleni reservoirs.

The Town High and Low reservoir feed the CBD, Top Town, Kings Park, Madeira Park, New Horizon, PRD Camp, Westbourne, New Rest, a portion of Sandringham, Factory Road, the army base and

Komani Park. The Mlungisi reservoir serves Mlungisi Township and the surrounding areas.

Fincham’s Neck reservoir supplies Victoria Park, Aloe Vale, New Vale, Sabata, a portion of Komani Park and of Sandringham, and Komani Office Park.

The Ezibeleni reservoir supplies Queen Industria, Seating, Ezibeleni township and surrounding areas.

She said a number of programmes had been undertaken to improve water provision and sanitation services, which included planned infrastructure maintenance, refurbishment, and upgrades.

Komani’s total water consumption was 68ML per day, but the Komani Water Treatment plant only had the capacity to produce 35ML, she said.

“This demonstrates that the water consumption in Komani far exceeds the water supply.

“To address these issues, CHDM has embarked on several activities implementing plans for improved provision of services.

“These include water rationing, which is being implemented to control demand by augmenting with water carting to close the gap in affected areas.”

Ganyaza added that an investigation was undertaken to assess natural springs and sink boreholes, in collaboration with community members.

It was discovered it was not feasible for any of the springs to supply drinking water for communities due to a low yield. She noted that three identified boreholes were red-flagged: two were contaminated with fuel due to their proximity to a fuel station, while the other was near the solid waste site.

Further, yield and water quality analysis tests were expected by the end of next month, Ganyaza added.

However, work was taking place on a reticulation booster pipeline being constructed from OR Tambo to Unathi Mkefa.

“This is a short-term solution to ensure water supply issues are managed while there is a planned construction of a bulk water supply from XonxaMachibini-Ezibeleni as a longterm solution. The project is at the feasibility study stage.”

CHDM is also installing smart meters in Komani to enhance water conservation, demand management, revenue collection and billing.

This demonstrates that the water consumption in Komani far exceeds the water supply. To address these, CHDM has embarked on several activities implementing plans for improved provision of services. These include water rationing, which is being implemented to control demand by augmenting with water carting to close the gap in affected areas