Question NW2527 to the Minister of Water and Sanitation
10 October 2023 - NW2527
Marawu, Ms TL to ask the Minister of Water and Sanitation
Whether his department (a) intends building clean, safe and usable toilets and (b) provide clean and running water for the community at Smith’s Mine in Barkley West (details furnished); if not, in each case, why not; if so, what are the (i) relevant details and (ii) time frames in each case?
Reply:
Dikgatlong Local Municipality is a Water Service Authority and therefore is responsible for the provision of water and sanitation services to all communities within its area of jurisdiction, including Smith Mine which is a Communal Property Association (CPA). There is currently is no Service Level Agreement (SLA) between the CPA and Dikgatlong Municipality.
The municipality reported that the councilor is mediating for an SLA to be put in place to allow Dikgatlong to formally service these residents. Once the SLA is in finalised, formal arrangements will be made in terms of resources required from the Dikgatlong Local Municipality to provide water and sanitation services.
a) The Department supports the water services authority with construction, upgarde and refurbishment of infrastructure through conditional Water Services Iinfrastructure Grant (WSIG) and Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) funding for project prioritised by Municpalities their water services development plans.
The Municipality and the Smith Mine community require a process of formalisation of the settlement into the township in order for the municipality to access the grant funding available for sanitation services.
b) The existing water infrastructure in the community was built by the mining company and is now under the custodianship of The Dikgatlong Local Municipality. The water supply system consists of boreholes and a reservoir in which chemical dosing was being done using a specialized purification system that is container based. The size of the reservoir is approximately 0.05ml/day, however, the municipality has reported that the purification plant was vandalised and is currently not functional. A case of vandalism and theft was opened by the Dikgatlong Local Municipality with SAPS. The Municipality has reported that procurement processess are currently underway for the repairs of the plant in order to restore water supply.
As an interim measure, the municipality is providing water to the residents of Smith Mine through water tankering from Barkley West Water Treatment Works. Two 10 000 litres water tanks are placed at strategic points and are filled by two 10 000 litre water trucks. The Municipality reports that water tanks are filled twice a week, and when necessary the ward councillor communicates any additional needs. The water tankering is fully funded by Dikgatlong.
In order for the municipality to access grant funding for water services refurbishment, augmentation or upgrading, the requirement is that the residential area be a formal township.
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