Durban — The chairperson of the South African Local Government Association (Salga) and mayor of King Cetshwayo District, Thamsanqa Ntuli, advised councillors responsible for water infrastructure, mayors and deputy mayors to pay special attention to burst water pipes and fix leaking pipes no matter how small they were to prevent huge damage.
Speaking on Wednesday at Coastlands Umhlanga Hotel during the Salga sessions, Ntuli said the outsourcing of services to maintenance companies could be one of the problems behind water loss.
“You know when you pass by the maintenance companies, those people drive expensive cars and you ask yourself where do they get the money?
“These people are able to burst pipes… when there is a burst pipe they fix it and after a short while the pipe bursts again,” he said.
He urged the councillors to pay special attention to this. Furthermore, Ntuli said he ensured that in his municipality they paid attention to this.
“I said I would rather employ more plumbers instead of outsourcing, and the water pipes no longer burst like before. Let us get closer to the water issues and pay attention to this problem,” said Ntuli.
He said solving water issues required sober-minded leaders who put people first.
He further acknowledged that some factors contributing to the water issue in local government included old infrastructure that was due for replacement but lacked funding.
He said self-reliance in Africa must start with local production.
“We must make our own products instead of importing things. We must produce our own chicken and produce our own solar panels.
“We must produce our own water pumps. From such products we will have a crop of local skills,” Ntuli said.
Ntuli added that over 40% of revenue is lost through leaking pipes, and illegal connections were a cause for concern.
He said the estimated costs for such is in order of R9 billion a year. He said water facilities were a cause for concern as they polluted watercourses.
“It is also observed that water usage in some areas in the province, particularly in urban areas exceeds supply. This puts pressure on municipalities to deliver water beyond their allocated water licences,” said Ntuli.
The director of the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), Bongiwe Msane, said they understood that the infrastructure was ancient.
However, there was a grant given to municipalities to either fix pipes or infrastructure.
“Municipalities submit what we call business plans and we assist them in identifying areas and make a plan to fix or replace.
“DWS and the Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs offer grants to municipalities to fix or replace infrastructure,” said Msane.
Daily News