Water Sector response to ASGISA IMC

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Water Sector response to ASGISA IMC

• Department of Water Affairs and Forestry
• June 2008

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Content

• Background
• Drinking water quality
• Water services infrastructure
• Water resources infrastructure
• Compliance and enforcement of the NWA
• Regulation and compliance in water services
• Raw water quality
• Water conservation and demand management
• Skills crisis
• Conclusion

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Background

• 9th May DWAF presentation to ASGISA IMC
• DWAF to report back on various issues raised by
  the IMC
• Key issues raised by IMC relate to
• Water infrastructure and universal access,
  including water for electricity generation
• Compliance and enforcement
• Water quality (raw water and drinking water)
• Water conservation and demand management and
• Skills and human resources
• A Response to the Immediate Challenges facing
  the Water Sector
• Provides response to issues raised by IMC
• Deals with issues that require immediate
  intervention in water services sector and water
  resources sector
• Request came while DWAF was drafting a Strategic
  Framework on Water for Sustainable Growth and
  Development
• Will follow this Response to the Immediate
  Challenges facing the Water Sector
• Will outline strategic response of sector to
  ensuring water supports growth and development
• Will deal with issues in Immediate Challenges
  document and other longer term issues and
  opportunities
• Will be available for comment in October 2008 and
  presented at Cabinet Lekgotla in January 2009.
• In parallel, work will begin on revising the
  National Water Resources Strategy (NWRS)
• Provides framework for protection, use,
  development, conservation, management and control
  of water resources
• NWRS must be revised and completed by January
  2010.

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Drinking water quality

• Challenge
• Under-budgeted and under-resourced function in
  many municipalities
• Poor water quality impacts on peoples lives,
  particularly those with compromised immune
  systems
• Monitoring and reporting improving but still
  inadequate
• Many rural water schemes and small schemes not
  monitored at all

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Drinking water quality

• Response
• DWAF and DPLG to investigate options and
  processes for placing water services functions
  under administration
• where a Water Services Authority is unable to
  perform these functions effectively
• particularly where human lives are put at risk
  due to non-performance and
• where a quick response is needed.
• Regulation of water services includes regulation
  of drinking water quality
• action will be taken against Water Services
  Authorities where it does not meet standards.
• Where appropriate, Water Boards to
• assist in monitoring drinking water quality
• assist DWAF to audit the results submitted by
  municipalities on drinking water quality, or
• Act as WSP on behalf of a WSA.
• DWAF will put in place an urgent programme to
  build capacity in regional offices to support
  municipalities in drinking water quality
  management.
• DWAF and National Treasury to further investigate
  ways to incentivise good municipal asset
  management and sufficient budgeting for drinking
  water quality management and monitoring.

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Water services infrastructure

• Challenge
• Aging, poorly maintained infrastructure leading
  to increased failures
• Lack of investment in maintenance and
  refurbishment
• Poorly managed waste water and sewage
  infrastructure leading to high pollution levels,
  sewage spills
• Many VIPs now full leaving households without
  functioning toilets
• Bulk infrastructure not sufficient for increased
  demand (sanitation and water)
• FBW not sufficient for AIDS affected and
  vulnerable households

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Water services infrastructure

• Response
• DWAF and NT to investigate funding for bulk water
  services infrastructure and refurbishment of
  water services infrastructure to catch up on
  backlog of OM and refurbishment.
• total additional requirement is estimated at
  around R3.7-billion per year
• DWAF to investigate, with DPLG and NT, measures /
  incentives to ensure that
• OM is planned and budgeted for in all new and
  existing services, and
• WSPs commit a minimum percentage of value of
  infrastructure to annual OM
• DWAF, DPLG and NT to review funding arrangements
  for free basic services through Equitable Share,
  including feasibility of ring-fencing part of
  Equitable Share to support sustainable water
  services.

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Water services infrastructure

• Response cont
• DWAF to establish task team to review current
  approaches to basic sanitation improvement,
  including
• advisability of providing further funding to
  permanent VIP structures
• MIG conditionalities to ensure bulk
  infrastructure is sufficient for new networked
  sanitation services.
• DWAF, with SALGA, to
• develop strategy for dealing with full VIPs and
• review appropriate technology for communities
  previously served with VIPs.
• DWAF to finalise and implement the National
  Infrastructure Asset Management Strategy
• DWAF, with SALGA, to review quantity of water
  allocated under Free Basic Water (FBW) and the
  mechanisms for providing/funding FBW, including
  to HIV and AIDS affected households and other
  vulnerable groups.
• DWAF to finalise Free Basic Sanitation Strategy
  and submit to Cabinet

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Water resources infrastructure

• Challenge
• Asset management systems need upgrading
• Decisions to be made on augmentation options for
  major cities where demand is high relative to
  supply (Cape Town, Gauteng, Port Elizabeth)
• New infrastructure needed urgently to serve Eskom
  and SASOL

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Water resources infrastructure

• Response
• Establishment of National Water Resources
  Infrastructure Agency (NWRIA) to be fast-tracked
  to
• support the provision of sustainable and reliable
  infrastructure to strategic water users eg Eskom
  and Sasol, and
• support economic growth and development across
  the country.
• DWAF to complete National Water Resources
  Infrastructure Action Plan with regard to
  infrastructure that serves Eskom by end June
  2008.
• DWAF to complete and implement the review of
  Government Water Scheme operation and maintenance
  systems and procedures
• Decision on new infrastructure to augment water
  supply to Gauteng to be taken in 2009
• Further feasibility studies to be completed
  before a decision can be made for Cape Towns
  augmentation needs.

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Compliance and enforcement under the National
Water Act

• Challenge
• High levels of unlawful water abstraction in some
  areas, particularly the Vaal
• Unlawful effluent discharge leading to high
  levels of pollution
• Illegal dam construction

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Compliance and enforcement under the National
Water Act

• Response
• DWAF to ensure sufficient funding for development
  of a strong Compliance, Monitoring and
  Enforcement function to
• Prevent and control unlawful raw water use and
  pollution
• Take action against around 300 illegal water
  users in the Vaal
• illegal water use around 290 million m3 per
  annum approx 8.5 million households using 100
  litres per day almost entire yield of Mohale
  dam in Lesotho Highlands Water Project.
• DWAF to discuss with National Treasury and Asset
  Forfeiture Unit possibility of retaining assets
  seized during action against illegal water users.
  
• National Environmental Management Act to be
  amended to give powers to appoint DWAF officials
  as Environmental Management Inspectors so that
  they are empowered to take compliance action
  under both NEMA and the National Water Act.

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Regulation and compliance in water services

• Challenge
• Poor regulation of WSAs and WSPs resulting in
• Drinking water quality problems
• Interruptions in supply
• Low maintenance levels
• Failing waste water treatment infrastructure

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Regulation and compliance in water services

• Response
• DWAF to determine appropriate institutional
  arrangements for water services regulation,
  including
• institutional arrangements for national regulator
  
• revision of Water Services Authority (WSA) and
  Water Services Provider (WSP) functions to take
  into account de facto lack of separation of
  functions between the two.
• DWAF to strengthen drinking water quality
  regulation by end of September 2008 through
  strengthening of current capacity.

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Raw Water Quality

• Challenge
• Poor maintenance and operation of WWTW leading to
  high levels of pollution
• Pollution from industry, mines and agriculture

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Raw Water Quality

• Response
• Phased implementation of Waste Discharge Charge
  System to begin in Upper Olifants, Upper Vaal and
  Crocodile Marico water management areas in 2009.
• Directives to be issued by Minister
• to municipalities to rehabilitate Waste Water
  Treatment Works where severe problems have been
  identified
• during Enforcement Week in October 2008
• action to be taken against municipalities that do
  not comply with directives
• Infrastructure Asset Management plans to be
  developed for all waste water treatment works and
  other municipal water services infrastructure.

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Water conservation and demand management

• Challenge
• High levels of water wastage in water services
  and agriculture in particular
• Results in
• High costs for municipalities
• Early need for augmentation of supply

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Water conservation and demand management

• Response
• DWAF, through MTEF, DBSA, Land Bank and
  Commercial Banks, to establish effective
  mechanisms for funding Water Conservation and
  Water Demand Management (WC/WDM)
• DWAF, with other stakeholders, including SALGA,
  municipalities, and SAAWU to
• develop national programme for WC/WDM in key
  metropolitan and agricultural areas,
• investigate options for funding and resourcing
  this programme including finding sufficient
  technical skills to support the programme.
• Regulations for WC/WDM to be completed by
  December 2008.

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Response to the skills crisis in the water sector

• Challenge
• Shortage of technical skills in water sector
• engineering
• finance
• technical and artisan
• Continuing drain of skills from the sector
• Large number of institutions in the water sector
  requiring skilled staff

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Civil engineering capacity in the municipal sector
DPLG 2008
21
Civil Engineering Staff in Local Government in
2005
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Response to the skills crisis in the water sector

• Response
• Review of designation of municipalities as WSPs
  and potential for creating regional WSPs to be
  conducted, with focus on areas of poor water
  services provision.
• Review of MFMA to be discussed with DPLG and
  National Treasury re bringing in greater private
  sector capacity for management and delivery of
  services.
• DWAF to discuss with DPLG and relevant
  departments on legislative requirements for
  national government to intervene in water
  services functions in municipalities that are
  unable to provide an effective service.
• DWAF to continue to drive development and
  implementation of a comprehensive sector skills
  response strategy (Vision for Capacity Building
  and Training 2025)
• DPSA to speed up review of salaries and
  conditions of service for engineers, technicians
  and scarce occupational classes in water sector.
• DWAF to examine how to bring private sector
  expertise back into the Department and how to
  build capacity in a dedicated fashion.
• DWAF to investigate absorption of people with
  theoretical training as Process Controllers into
  municipalities for internships and hands on
  training
• DWAF, with DBSA and other partners, to build on
  current programme of placing engineers in
  municipalities, and to increase deployment.

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Conclusion

• Government must recognize crucial role of water
  supply and sanitation in achieving ASGISA goals
• Concerted action is needed from all spheres of
  government to avoid potential failure in water
  sector
• Government must invest significantly in water
  sector to avoid potential water crises and to
  ensure water management supports ASGISA growth
  targets
• Current investment in water sector across all
  spheres of government is below what it should be
• Current investment is around 1.2 of GDP
• Benchmark level for water resources and water
  services investment in a country of the economic
  status of South Africa should be around 2-3.
• Some of this investment must be found through
  improved revenue management
• There is need for substantial injection of fund
  from fiscus for next decade at least
• must be carefully targeted and monitored
• conditions attached to ensure that it does not
  create perverse incentives but sets up virtuous
  cycle of good asset management.

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Thank you