South Africa's festive season water supply challenges call for urgent action

The festive season in South Africa is a time of joy, celebration, and increased economic activity as holiday towns transform into bustling hubs. However, this period also brings significant challenges for water supply systems, which struggle to cope with the dramatic surge in demand. Recognising these pressing concerns, the CEO of the Water Institute of Southern Africa (WISA), Dr Lester Goldman, highlights the urgent need for skilled oversight and community vigilance to ensure a reliable water supply over the holiday period.

As thousands flock to beaches and holiday homes for the summer sun, municipalities face the daunting task of maintaining water service levels with often stretched resources. Dr Goldman warns that the combination of heightened water demand, reduced operational staffing, and aging infrastructure could lead to severe service disruptions. “The increased demand results in overloaded pump stations, faster filling of sewer sumps, and an increased risk of overflows and contamination,” he explains. “These problems are amplified where systems are old, poorly maintained or under-capacitated.”

The festive season exacerbates the existing infrastructure strain with many municipalities operating on skeleton staff and fewer technicians available to tackle urgent repairs. Dr Goldman says that depleted teams lead to slower emergency responses, heightened risks of service failures, and insufficient routine monitoring. In light of these challenges, he advocates for the urgent implementation of municipal plans that include temporary staffing, additional contractors, and well-defined festive-season budgets dedicated to maintenance and emergency water provision.

“Skilled oversight is critical during this peak period,” he notes, emphasising that experienced process controllers and managers can prevent minor faults from escalating into major outages. “Proactive, not reactive planning is what’s needed,” Dr Goldman stresses, advocating for maintenance plans to ensure that pump stations operate optimally and that supplies remain uninterrupted.

Proactive maintenance and forward-thinking strategies are essential to mitigating the risks of water outages and reducing repair times. “To reduce outage risk and shorten repair times during the holiday season, a long-term approach is needed,” a perspective underscored by Dr Goldman. He highlights the effective measures being undertaken in cities like Cape Town and Durban, where municipal authorities are increasing maintenance efforts ahead of the holiday season. For example, Cape Town has intensified its sewer-pump station inspections, while Durban's eThekwini Municipality has launched a R10 million festive-season readiness plan, focusing on monitoring and rapid-response initiatives aimed at protecting public health.

However, it’s not just the physical infrastructure that needs safeguarding. Vandalism and theft further complicate efforts to maintain a stable water supply. Incidents of stolen meters, copper cables, and vandalised pump station equipment have become alarmingly common. Dr Goldman stresses the importance of adapting security protocols to combat these threats and calls for vigilant community reporting, urging that, “Communities play a critical role in reporting vandalism and theft.” He encourages residents to use municipal emergency lines or online reporting portals to ensure swift action against such disruptions.

In a collaborative spirit, Dr Goldman suggests that residents can protect their water infrastructure over the holidays by securing gates, improving lighting, participating in community watches, and reducing non-essential water use during peak times. “Taking all of this into account, it is clear that festive spikes can be managed, and that steps can be taken to mitigate outages,” he concludes, emphasising the importance of a united effort in anticipating and overcoming these seasonal challenges.

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