Question NW3162 to the Minister of Water and Sanitation
07 October 2015 - NW3162
Balindlela, Ms ZB to ask the Minister of Water and Sanitation
(1)On what date was the most recent biomonitoring report compiled for (a) Mvoti River, (b) Slang River, (c) Tugela River, (d) Mooi River, (e) Mhlatuze River, (f) Hluhluwe River and (g) Nkomati River; (2) what was the water quality of each specified river as reflected in the report; (3) on what date was the sample for each specified river taken; (4) what was the geographical location where each of the samples were taken?
Reply:
(1) The bio-monitoring reports are compiled on a quarterly basis and are adapted to coincide with the different seasons. The latest available reports are therefore, for the period between April – June 2015.With regards to the Nkomati River, the August 2015 report was finalised.
(2) Refer to the table below for the response on the water quality of each river:
|
Name of the River |
South African Scoring System (SASS) Scores |
Average Score Per Taxa (ASPT) |
Class |
|
99 |
5.5 |
Fair |
|
25 |
3.13 |
Poor |
|
|
170 |
6.54 |
Good/Natural |
|
69 |
6.23 |
Good |
|
Too deep to sample- in flood |
N/A |
||
|
120 |
6.32 |
Good |
|
118 |
6.21 |
Good |
|
No sampling done – the river had stopped flowing, broken to several pools of water. |
N/A |
|
|
The river is largely fair with 3 monitoring sites showing poor quality and 5 monitoring sites out of 31 monitoring sites showing pristine to good quality water and it is moderately impacted |
Please note that in some cases low flows (due to drought) have affected the water quality or ecological state of the rivers.
(3) Refer to the table below for the response on the date of sampling for each river:
|
Name of the River |
Date of Sampling |
|
3-Jun-2015 |
|
15-Jun-2015 |
|
|
30-May-2015 |
|
1-Jun-2015 |
|
15-Jun-2015 |
|
|
10-Jun-2015 |
|
25-May-2015 |
|
28-May-2015 (No sampling possible) |
|
July/August 2014 (dry season) and February/March 2015 (wet season) |
(4) Refer to the table below for the response on the geographical location of the rivers:
|
Name of the River |
Coordinates |
|
|
Latitude (S) |
Longitude (E) |
|
|
-29.159860 |
30.628690 |
|
-29.370004 |
31.304341 |
|
|
-27.420670 |
30.296810 |
|
-28.756331 |
30.150376 |
|
-29.172622 |
31.391921 |
|
|
-29.380814 |
39.660522 |
|
-28.746950 |
31.747450 |
|
-28.138560 |
32.019950 |
The geographical location where samples were taken for Nkomati River are as follows:
Vlakfontein 418 JT, Waterval 424 JT, Ndubazi Ranch 413 JT, Winkelhaak 723 JT, Tjakadstad 730 JT, Hooggenoeg 162 IT, Laaggenoeg 158IT, Nooitgezien 3 IU, Fig Tree 503 JU, Lebombo 186 JU.
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