Question NW248 to the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
26 March 2021 - NW248
Langa, Mr TM to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
Whether she has been informed of the unstable water supply to the residents of the uMhlathuze Local Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal and, more specifically, that the water has recently been found to be contaminated with diesel; if not, why not; if so, what steps has she taken to stabilise the water supply in the specified municipal area?
Reply:
Yes, accordingly, the incident was discovered on 01 January 2021 and reported to the Department of Water and Sanitation and other stakeholders as per the drinking Water Incident Management Protocol.
The Water Treatment Works (WTW) was immediately stopped and process units were backwashed, and the raw water sump was drained. The intensive monitoring programme to determine the extent of the contamination was instituted. A warning alert was sent to the public immediately to stop consuming water on 2 January 2021.
The WTW was recommissioned and determine suitable for operations as per the SANS 241:2015 on 03 February 2021.