A report published back in 2023 recommended that R400 billion was required to fix the ageing water infrastructure. The budget given to the water department was R26 billion for 2025/26 and where the real problem lies. Africa in a nutshell does not maintain anything and only when it is broken is it now a full blown crisis. Maybe if it is bad enough some other country from the West will help pay for it.
Over the last 15 - 20 years services has been the main problem for the citizens of South Africa. The never knowing whether you will have electricity tonight or tomorrow has lead many to invest in alternative energy sources like solar. This was at first promoted by the government with tax incentives which were abruptly turned on their head rather looking to exploit those that did by underhanded financial penalties.
Over the course of last week boreholes are now in the spotlight due to the number of households having these installed. Over the last 12 months I can recall 3 properties in our small enclosed secure community having had boreholes installed. I only know this as the mess the drilling companies leave behind and actually need to ask one of these households how much the process costs and how deep the drilling was. We are in a valley so at least we are not on a hill and the ground water should be plentiful.
The problem is not the climate or drought, but the human made factors such as ageing infrastructure that is not maintained with extensive leaks, poor or no municipal management and planning with no accountability. These human factors is what undermines confidence in the system forcing households to fend for themselves. We know there will be a water crisis here in South Africa due to no investment in maintenance and the entire water system is hanging by a thread.
When you here reports that the water board is having to pump double the volumes to maintain the current supply due to losing 60% in the process due to leaky pipes. The dams are full yet we have water warnings blaring across the radio daily pleading for consumers to use the water sparingly. This is not normal and there is a hidden message that you no one is telling us and that water is the next big problem households are about to face through a lack of supply.
This week it was announced by the Department of Water and Sanitation that those with boreholes have to register with the department. As it stands currently businesses with boreholes are registered but households are not. All borehole owners would need to capture their details and borehole information on the National Groundwater Archive.
Anyone planning to drill a borehole would now need to complete a geosite identifier before any drilling can begin. Drilling data needs to be submitted within 60 days of completion. Thereafter once pumps have been installed yield test need to be submitted which will then result in sustainable extraction rates being given. Apparently ground water reserves are under pressure which has to be a joke because the households who have boreholes is very rare.
The Department of Water and Sanitation have stated that they need to protect the groundwater so this is not depleted. Why would they be so worried with their leaky pipes making sure these underwater reserves remain full? I would be more concerned about industries such as mining or manufacturing with how much water thy are extracting.
We know of schools that had to have bore holes installed or otherwise the school would of had no water. The municipalities failings nationwide is what is forcing households looking for alternative supply. We have looked into this and will be a future project once the solar is complete The problem is how much red tape will there be to get a borehole installed as these new additional hoop s to jump through are more about putting people off and delaying them from doing do. The ones that can afford the boreholes are the clients the Department of water wants to keep much like the electricity clients who have left the grid are the households that pay their utility bills.
