Questions and Replies

Reply:

The Moretele Local Municipality (LM) has implemented and completed the upgrade of the Transactie Well Field water supply augmentation project which consists of a 10 km pipeline, chlorination house, equipping 10 boreholes, 10 pump house structures and 2.5 mega litres per day (Ml/day) reservoir. The total cost of the project amounted to R11 million. This project has increased the water storage capacity in the area from 0.35 Ml to 2.85 Ml (an increase of 2.5 Ml). The system is currently operational and people are receiving water, though the water supply source is not sufficient to deal with the current demand. To augment water supply in the area of the Moretele LM is providing tankering until a lasting and sustainable solution is found.

Long Term Plan

On 16 July 2014; my Department, the Moretele LM and Magalies Water signed a tripartite agreement to conduct a study for bulk water supply in Moretele including the Moretele North Portion. The study is at an advance stage, whilst the Moretele South is under Construction in Klipdrift and the Moretele North is under detail design which incorporates the entire Ngobi Village through the supply from Klipvoor.

 

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Reply:

The Umgungundlovu District Municipality (DM) is the Water Services Authority (WSA) responsible for water provision in the uMshwathi, Richmond and Mkhambathini Local Municipalities (LMs). The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) is assisting with water relief to the Umgungundlovu DM by the provisioning of water services through the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) and the Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MWIG).

(a) The Umgeni Water is implementing the uMshwathi Regional Bulk pipeline which is co-funded by Umgeni Water and the DWS’s RBIG programme. The secondary bulk components of the scheme are being implemented by the Umgungundlovu DM with support from the DWS’s MWIG programme. The scheme will supply water from the Mgeni supply system to the uMshwathi LM area.

(b) The Umgeni Water has recently commissioned the Eston bulk pipeline which is supplying water from the Mgeni supply system to the Richmond area. The scheme was co-funded by the Umgeni Water and DWS through the RBIG programme.

(c) There are no projects being supported by the DWS in the Mkhambathini LM. Support for water for commercial and subsistence farmers is the responsibility of the National Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and an Inter-Ministerial Task Team has been established to address the impacts of the current drought in the Province. The Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has provided inputs on the drought interventions in the Province at consultation sessions that are being led by the Disaster Management Unit of the Provincial Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs.

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Reply:

(1)(a) Yes, there were contracts which were awarded without complying with Treasury Regulation 16A8.4 in 2013/2014.

(1)(b) None in 2014/2015.

(1)(b)(i) Four (4) Contracts were awarded.

(1)(b)(ii) Details of each contract awarded listed below:

Name of supplier	Description of Award
Mihle and Ayola General Trading CC	Supply of Material
TD New Look Construction	Supply of Material
Oratile Kgadi Trading CC	Supply of Material
Meondo Trading 392 CC	Repair and Services

(1)(b)(iii) These goods and services were not linked to specific projects but they were normal day to day operational activities.

(1)(b)(iv) The value of each award is indicated below on the amount column:

Name of supplier	Description of Award	Amount
Mihle and Ayola General Trading CC	Supply of Material	R18 724,50
TD New Look Construction	Supply of Material	R 8 669,00
Oratile Kgadi Trading CC	Supply of Material	R15 340,00
Meondo Trading 392 CC	Repair and Services	R 6 508,00

(2)(a) Yes, they were 3 employees who were implicated.

(2)(b) Letters were issued to the employees concerned. Employee Relations is in the process of drawing up the charges, this process will proceed in terms of the Labour Relations Act.

(2)(c) Measures have been put in place to stop the contravention of Treasury Regulations 16A8.4 where employees are disciplined for the transgression and an internal circular was circulated to all employees.

(3) Yes, measures have been put in place by means of an internal circular to all employees to stop the contravention of the specified Treasury Regulation.

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Reply:

(1)(a) My Department has opened a total of Sixty Seven (67) cases with the South African Police Service (SAPS) for contravening the National Water Act (Act no 36 of 1998) (NWA). (i), one (1) case was opened for not complying with water use authorizations and (ii) Fifty Eight (58) were cases opened for engaging in water uses without authorisation.

(1)(b) Below is the region and sector breakdown of criminal cases opened:

Criminal Cases Opened with SAPS
Region	Sectors
	Mining	Agriculture	Industries	Water Services Authorities	Tourism	Total
Eastern Cape	-	-	-	-	-	-
Free State	-	1	-	7	-	8
Gauteng	2	6	-	-	-	8
KwaZulu-Natal	10	-	1	-	-	11
Limpopo	-	1	-	-	-	1
Mpumalanga	9	14	3	1	1	28
North West	1	2	-	1	-	4
Northern Cape	4	-	-	-	-	4
Western Cape	-	-	2	1	-	3
Total	26	24	6	10	1	67

(2) The relevant Department to answer the question is the South African Police Service (SAPS).

 

(3) The relevant Department to answer the question is the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

(4) The relevant Department to answer the question is the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

(5)(a) The highest monetary fine was One Million Rand (R1 000 000.00) in 2013/2014.

(5)(b) No imprisonment was obtained for convictions for the offences of transgressions of the NWA.

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Reply:

(1)(a) According to Census 2011, 11,9% of the population in Bushbuckridge had access to piped water in their dwellings, the remaining was supplied with water at Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) standard (i.e Boreholes/communal taps) and Water Carts.

(1)(b) A total of 24 villages have received water since the appointment of Rand Water.

(2) All projects which were implemented under Phase 1 to reticulate 24 villages in Bushbuckridge were completed.

(3) Initially, the scope of the work was under estimated, upon assessment and finalization of technical designs of the projects, it was discovered that bulk of the work was not included in the initial scope of the work, therefore additional budget was required to complete the projects.

(4) The intervention was initiated in the 2013/14 financial year, 24 villages were completed in the 2014/15 financial year and a further
15 villages are currently being reticulated.

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Reply:

(1) A study conducted in July 2012 suggested that the backlog for buckets in formal areas is estimated at 58 010; a substantial drop from the 88 127. The latter was further clarified in as far as the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro which had 19 444 buckets with an unsubstantiated claim of a further 100 buckets in the informal areas which was to be deducted from the 88 127. A second clarification came from the Free State Province in that the initial backlog was 42 815, however, after clarification reduced to 32 042 (a drop in 10 773), thus arriving at 57 910 in formal areas.

However, the Department has verified the buckets in formal areas which amount to 58 453.

(2) Refer to table below.

Province	Municipality	Project Name	Total
Eastern Cape	Makana	Grahamstown	737
	Makana 2	Grahamstown	288
	Sundays River Valley	Patterson	1245
	Baviaans	Steyterville	14
	Joe Ggabi	Steynburg	985
	Chris Hani	Indwe	89
	Ikhwezi	Jansenville	21
	Blue Crane	Somerset east	4
	Ndlambe	Nemato	2230
TOTAL			5613

Province	Municipality	Project Area	Total
Northern Cape	Dikgatlong	Proteahof	277
		Koopmansfontein	37
	Phokoane	Malelwane	85
	Ga-Segonyana	Bathlaros	498
	Emthanjeni	Britstown	424
	Thembelihle	Hopetown	52
	Tsantsabane	Maranteng	791
		Postdene	450
	KharaHais	Rosedale	2682
		Pabalello	533
		Louisvale	800
		DekotaWeg	306
		Kameelmond	122
		Kalksloot	138
	Renosterburg	PetrusvillePh 2	20
		Phillipstown	107
	Siyacuma	Breipal	282
		Bongani	555
		Bongani - Reservoir	49
		BonganiPhomolong	31
		Griekwastad	527
		Campbell	596
	Siyathemba	Marydale	175
	Sol Plaatjie	Ritchie	1345
		Freedom Park	167
		Promised Land	787
	Ubuntu	Victoria West	890
	Nama-Khoi	Various Sites	192
	Kai Garib	Various Sites	800
TOTAL			13 718

North West	City of Matlosana	Jouberton /Kanana	293
		Kanana	73
	LekwaTeemane	Boitumelong	230
TOTAL			596

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Province	Municipality	Project Area	Total
Free State	Mohokare	Smithfield	148
		Fauresmith	36
		Bethulie	23
		Trompsburg	149
		Zastron	90
		Rouxville	756
	Naledi	Dewetsdorp	191
	Dihlabeng LM	Rosendal	976
	Mantsopa LM	Tweespruit	1266
		Hobhouse	1224
	Phumelela LM	Memel	568
		Vrede	150
	Mafube LM	Cornelia	612
		Villiers	1056
		Frankfort	2105
		Tweeling	304
	Ngwathe LM	Heilbron	1584
		Vredefort	1120
	Nala LM	Wesselsbron	1800
	Masilonyana LM	Theunissen	1438
		Hennenman	2848
		Winburg	180
	Matjhabeng LM	Virginia	2240
	Matjhabeng LM	Odendaalsrus	264
	Tokologo LM	Hertzogville	294
	Setsoto LM	Marquard	1431
		Ficksburg	5396
		Senegal	2913
		Clocolan	3379
	Nketoana	PetrusSteyn	2424
		Lindley	517
		Arlington	210
		Reitz	834
TOTAL			38526

(3)(a) All buckets in the formal areas will be eradicated by end of the financial year.

(3)(b) The programme is estimated to cost R975 339 000,00.

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Reply:

1. According to the assessment of the condition of aquatic animals, there is a negative impact especially on the fish which is used as an indicator for monitoring of river health.

1. Yes, the Department is continuously taking action by conducting Compliance, Monitoring and Enforcement of water users upstream of the Kruger National Park.

1. No, there is no specific or single company that can be attributed to the impact on aquatic ecosystems as they are also impacted by natural disasters such as the recent floods in the lower Olifants, which caused damage to habitats of the aquatic animals.

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Reply:

1. The buckets in informal settlements are located in the provinces appearing in the table below. The Department is in a process to verifying and assessing all buckets in informal settlements by province and municipality. However it should be noted that with the proliferation of informal settlements, households utilizing the bucket toilets as a form of sanitation is a moving target hence backlog is not constant.

PROVINCE	NO OF SETTLEMENTS	NO OF HOUSEHOLDS
Eastern Cape	50	23 958
Western Cape	62	59 932
Gauteng	0	0
KwaZulu-Natal	0	0
Limpopo	0	0
Northern Cape	6	5 350
North West	21	4 150
Free State	75	46 758
Mpumalanga	3	600
TOTAL	217	140 748

(2) A preliminary figure is provided in the table above.

(3) The Department anticipates, subject to additional funding being made available that a further R4,3bn over the next 4 years will be required to address informal settlements.

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Reply:

(1)(a) PART A: WK Construction (company), PART B: Ascul Construction (company) and PART C: Murray and Dickson (company). In addition to these appointments in this project the following companies were appointed: Vuwani/Valdezia pipeline: Internal Department of Water and Sanitation Construction North, Design and construction monitoring: Bigen Africa Services (company), and Specialist Quality Control: QPI/TIS (company).

(1)(b) Refer to the table below for the scope of the work to be completed by the company:

Contract	Pipe Size	Chainages	Pipe Length
Part A WK Construction	800mm Ø	CH 1 326 to 11 460	10 134 m
Part B Ascul Construction	800mm Ø	CH 11 460 to 23 130	11 670 m
Part C Murray & Dickson	800mm Ø	CH 23 130 to 31 617	8 487 m
	900mm Ø	Valdezia Section	2 200 m

The supplying dam is Nandoni Dam. The Luvuvhu River Government Water Scheme will supply water for domestic use to the area between Makhado and Punda Maria in the Limpopo Province, to about 800 000 people (380 communities) with the potential of reaching 1.3 million people.

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(1)(c) The original completion date for Ascul Construction was 5 July 2013, however was further extended to 30 November 2013 with anticipated completion date for Part B being 31 March 2014. The last anticipated delivery date is 31 July 2015 as proposed by the project engineer design and construction monitoring engineer: Bigen Africa Services (company). With the Defect liability expected to start from August 2015 to 31 March 2016.

During the extension of the contract the original cost of the contract was not affected, as the extension was only for the duration of the contract. The project encountered some delays due to a number of reasons, including some financial difficulties by one of the companies; as a result, some sub-contractors withdrawing from site; inclement weather resulted in flooding of trenches and pipes and long delays were experienced to clean the pipes. Rainy conditions also prevented work and humid conditions prevented repair of linings and coatings, some land owners not allowing contractors into their land, strike action by communities, availability of water for hydraulic testing, pipeline deflection defects; delays in the supply of pipes and fittings; etc.

It is confirmed that construction progress is currently standing at 95% overall completion.

(2)(a) W0497-WTE: Levuvhu Rever GWS-Construction of the 800mm diameter Vuwanisteel pipeline was advertised on 01 February 2012 and closed on 01 March 2012.

(2)(b) The contract was awarded in March 2012 and the contract was signed by the representative of the Department on 20 April 2012 and by the Contractor on the 23 April 2012.

(3)(a) Refer to the table below for the value of the contract:

Contract	Pipe Size	Chainages	Pipe Length
Part A WK Construction	800mm Ø	CH 1 326 to 11 460	10 134 m
Part B Ascul Construction	800mm Ø	CH 11 460 to 23 130	11 670 m
Part C Murray & Dickson	800mm Ø	CH 23 130 to 31 617	8 487 m
	900mm Ø	Valdezia Section	2 200 m

(3)(b) Refer to the table below for the amount paid to the contracting company to date:

Contract	Pipe Size	Chainages	Pipe Length
Part A WK Construction	800mm Ø	CH 1 326 to 11 460	10 134 m
Part B Ascul Construction	800mm Ø	CH 11 460 to 23 130	11 670 m
Part C Murray & Dickson	800mm Ø	CH 23 130 to 31 617	8 487 m
	900mm Ø	Valdezia Section	2 200 m

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(4)(a) Refer to the table below for the amount of work that has been completed on the project:

Contract	Pipe Size	Chainages	Pipe Length	Percentage
Part A WK Construction	800mm Ø	CH 1 326 to 11 460	10 134 m	99%
Part B Ascul Construction	800mm Ø	CH 11 460 to 23 130	11 670 m	95%
Part C Murray & Dickson	800mm Ø	CH 23 130 to 31 617	8 487 m	99%
	900mm Ø	Valdezia Section	2 200 m

(4)(b) The construction progress is currently standing at 95% overall completion.

(4)(c) Contractor appointed will complete the project on 31 July 2015 with the Defect liability expected to start from August 2015 to 31 March 2016.

(5) Copies of the contracts as mentioned in (4)(a) are available for inspections.

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Reply:

1. The Sedibeng Regional Sanitation Scheme (SRSS) comprises construction upgrade of the following works:

• The Sebokeng Wastewater Treatment Works (WWTW) upgrade – construction started in August 2013, Progress for these works is at 35% complete on civil works;
• The Meyerton WWTW upgrade – construction started in March 2015 and construction work is progressing very well. Currently, progress for the civil contractor is around 8% complete; and
• The feasibility studies for the proposed 150 mega-litres Regional WWTW has started in April 2015 and expected to be completed by November 2015. The Implementation Readiness Studies and Preliminary designs are expected to be completed by April 2016.

(2)(a) The source of delays in the implementation of the entire SRSS were as a result of the change of the Implementation Agent (IA) from the Municipalities (Emfuleni and Midvaal LMs) to Rand Water and secondly, the legal process to cede the service providers from the LMs to Rand Water. However, some of the professional service providers ceding processes experienced legal changes, this involved the Supervising Engineer for the SRSS, which ended up at High Court and subsequently resolved in an out of court settlement.

 

(2)(b) All the legal processes have been completed and work is currently being undertaken as mentioned in paragraph 1 above.

(3)(a) The implementation of the SRSS will take between 5 to 7 years to complete.

(3)(b) Additional development in both Midvaal and Sebokeng will be connected to both Meyerton WWTW and Sebokeng WWTW, which are being upgraded. Outfall sewer lines are included as part of scope to connect new developments such as Savanna City.

(4) Rand Water is appointed as the IA by the Minister of Water and Sanitation.

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Reply:

(1) The relevant details of outstanding water use licence applications (WULAs) in respect of each Province appear on Table 1 below.

Table 1: WULAs in process at the Department

Provincial Operation	Initial Assessment	Outstanding Information	Finalizing Assessment	Awaiting decision	Total
Eastern Cape	17	50	25	0	92
Free State	39	35	20	1	95
Gauteng	43	38	12	4	97
KwaZulu-Natal	6	33	10	0	49
Limpopo	52	24	125	0	201
Mpumalanga	266	30	31	1	328
Northern Cape	29	17	27	2	75
North West	123	38	40	0	201
Western Cape	121	10	57	0	188
Head Office	24	74	11	95	204
Total	720	349	358	103	1530

(2)(a) The year on which the application was made as depicted in Table 2 below.

Table 2: Year of application of water use licences in the Department

Provincial Operation	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	Total
Eastern Cape	0	11	8	26	30	17	92
Free State	0	16	16	22	41	0	95
Gauteng	3	12	23	15	43	1	97
KwaZulu-Natal	0	16	9	9	15	0	49
Limpopo	1	16	42	67	75	0	201
Mpumalanga	0	74	102	47	77	28	328
Northern Cape	0	2	13	23	28	9	75
North West	20	38	45	49	43	6	201
Western Cape	8	4	25	49	80	22	188
Head Office	96	67	27	13	1	0	204
Total	128	256	310	320	433	83	1530

(2)(b) Reasons for delays in water use licence applications are:

• Outstanding information from applicants, mainly in a form of technical on site studies.
• Complexity of applications and volumes of supporting documents.
• Internal specialist inputs are intensive and hence the turnaround time is protracted.

(2)(c) The expected dates of completion of the water use licence application.

Table 3: Expected dates of completion of the water use licence applications per category

Category	Number of WULAs	Expected date of completion
Initial Assessment	720	30-Mar-16
Outstanding Information	349	30-Dec-15
Finalizing Assessment	358	31-Oct-15
Await decision	103	30-Sep-15
Total	1530

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Reply:

1. The Department does not currently monitor Barberspan or Chrissiesmeer for cyanobacteria, as they do not form part of the National Eutrophication Monitoring Programme (focused on dams). Both Barberspan and Chrissiesmeer are viewed as wetlands and will form part of the National Wetlands Monitoring Programme, which is currently being designed and will be implemented in 2016. For the other dams, the most recently available cyanobacterial counts are listed in the table below:

Dam	Cyanobacterial count (cells/ml) (including Anabeana, Arthrospira, Cylindrospermopsis, Lyngbya, Merismopedia, Microcystis and Oscillatoria
Hartbeespoort	22 342
Vaal	33 524
Spitskop	7 851
Koppies	Not available

2. Results can be provided for all the dams since 2011 as requested, except Barberspan and Chrissiesmeer. The data information can be viewed on the Directorate’s website - https://www.dwa.gov.za/iwqs.

3. Addressing cyanobacteria in dams requires a multidisciplinary approach with its foundation in catchment management.  Nutrient loading resulting from run-off in catchment where the dam is located, is the main reason for cyanobacterial blooms.

This loading takes place as a result of, inter alia, overloaded and / or dysfunctional waste water treatment works and agricultural run-off. DWS addresses this through collaboration with and guidance to local authorities, whom is responsible for operating these waste water treatment works.  The Green Drop project is an example of this, where the efficient operation of wastewater treatment works by municipalities is audited and scored.  Based on the outcome of this evaluation, guidance is provided by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) to municipalities to assist them with adhering to the license conditions of the waste water treatment works. 

The DWS has also recently acquired the services of Cuban engineers to assist local municipalities with the improved operation of their waste water treatment works.

The Department developed a set of guidelines for eutrophication management, including best agricultural practices which, if implemented by farmers, will reduce the nutrient loading resulting from agricultural run-off.

A specific project on the Hartbeespoort Dam to address the water quality remediation, which includes the treatment of cyanobacterial blooms, is the Metsi a Me project.  This is a multidisciplinary project which addresses the remediation of dam specific water quality.

There is currently no similar scale projects on the other dams mentioned in the question, as these dams’ issues are addressed on a catchment base.

(4)    Cyanobacteria, when present in high numbers in the water column, and under conducive environmental conditions, can release a toxin, microcystin, which could pose a health risk if untreated water is consumed by humans and animals.  In addition, when the algal blooms die off and decompose, it can result in unpleasant smells, impacting on recreational users.                                        

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Reply:

Requesting the Honourable Member to refer to the response in NA 1128 published on 26 March 2015.

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Reply:

(1) The Department of Water and Sanitation had no previous engagements with the City of Tshwane regarding health, safety or environmental risk of a dam in Midas.

(2) No complaints about the query have been received by my Department and no health and safety assessment was therefore planned.

(3) Yes, my Department has engaged with the City of Tshwane municipality regarding this issue and met incidentally with a community leader on 18 June 2015 during the site visit. According to the representative of the community, they get their services from the City of Tshwane. Madibeng Municipality will also be approached through my sector support unit to address the matter further.

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Reply:

(1) My Department through the Enforcement Unit among other units ensures that all pollution cases reported are investigated and rectification measures are taken where non-compliance is detected.

In instances whereby pollution of a water resource is precisely detected to be occurring or might be occurring, my Department institutes administrative enforcement action prescript in Sections 19 and 20 of the National Water Act, 1998 (Act No. 36 of 1998) (NWA) with the objective of ensuring prevention and remedying effects of pollution and control of emergency incident.

My Department may lay criminal or civil charges against responsible person for unlawfully and intentionally or negligently committing any act or omission which pollutes or likely to pollute a water resource.

My Department also actively participates in the Inter-Departmental Enforcement Task Team comprising of the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) and Department of Minerals Resources (DMR) to ensure intensified collective approach against polluters.

(2) Further details cannot be furnished as it may prejudice the outcome of some administrative action and criminal prosecution taken by the Department, which is sub judice according to the National Prosecution Authority.

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Reply:

Requesting that the Honorable Member to refer to the response to NA 1305.

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Reply:

Yes. Cabinet has recently approved the Socio Economic Impact Assessment System (SEIAS) which is effective from 1 June 2015. The SEIAS requires that government departments must, before developing any policy, regulations and legislation, ensure that they take steps to minimize the unintended consequences of such policy, regulations and legislation, including unnecessary costs of implementation and compliance. The SEIAS further requires government departments to anticipate implementation risks and develop measures to mitigate such risks.

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Reply:

No generators were installed at any of my Department’s and Entities offices for load shedding purposes.

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Reply:

Yes, my Department is currently involved in a work employment agreement, deriving from a bilateral agreement that was reached between the Cuban and the South African Government. This agreement is part of the portfolio of cooperative agreements between the two countries. The agreement was signed on 9 September 2013 and its objective is to foster a technical development on water issues between the two countries.

(a) A total of 35 Cuban Engineers are (i) currently contracted with my Department for a period of two years, with a possibility of an extension to three years. (ii) Only one agreement has been concluded

(b) The Cuban secondment programme is meant to assist the Department of Water and Sanitation in the following mutually agreed areas:

• Hydraulic, Civil, Mechanical and Electrical Engineering in the functional areas of the National Water Resources Infrastructure (NWRI) Operations Unit of the Department,
• The Geohydrological and Engineering Services in rural and other disadvantaged areas where such services are inadequate in areas of Regional Functions,
• The operations and maintenance of bulk raw water supply infrastructure,
• The capacity building through training and support of local staff,
• Augmenting project management capacity.

 

(c) The majority of the current employed 35 Cuban Specialists are qualified in Hydraulic Engineering, a field which is not offered in South Africa, and it emerged that this qualification is a specialty branch of Civil Engineering which focuses only on water engineering. Their field of specialization is therefore of great value to the Department in the field of Operations and maintenance. The rest of the Specialists are qualified in the fields of Mechanical, Civil, Electrical and hydro geological Engineering, and they are also adding value to the different functions within my Department.

(d) My Department proceeds to recruit local specialist to fill permanent positions as it was the case with the 13 Electrical and Mechanical engineering posts recently advertised. The Learning Academy also proceeds with the facilitation of developing local engineering skills at entry level. The table below indicates the number of posts in the Engineering field that were advertised but not filled during the 2013/2014 financial year:

 

Region/Branch	No of posts advertised per Region/ Branch	Reasons for not filling the posts
NWRI - Northern Operations	29	A very small number of applications were received per post, in some instances no applications were received per post. The applicants did not meet the minimum criteria of the posts. Applicants are only registered as Candidates and not Technicians or Professionals Head-hunting for suitable candidates also did not yield any results, as individuals are requesting higher remuneration packages that cannot be offered by the Public Service.
NWRI - Southern Operations	10
Branch: NWRI - Head Office	18
Branch: Policy and Regulation	17
KZN Region	18
Free State Region	10
Eastern Cape Region	9
Gauteng Region	3
Limpopo Region	12
Mpumalanga Region	12
Northern Cape Region	9
Western Cape Region	1
Total	148

(e)(i) The total cost of contracting is an all-inclusive package of R532 278 per Cuban Specialist per annum.

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Reply:

 

(a) The Department of Water and Sanitation had two employees whose contracts were paid out before the contractually stipulated date of termination amounting to R2 274 513.50 for the 2008-09 financial year.

(a)(ii) Payouts were made to NJ Ngele amounting to R2 251 602.00 and OO Ayaya amounting to R22 911.59.

(a)(iii) The reasons for the early terminations were: NJ Ngele - The employer paid the employee 24 months of the employee's salary as per settlement agreement; OO Ayaya - The employer discharged the employee from the Public Service. An amount of R22 911.59 in terms of leave discounting was paid to the employee.

(b) None of the entities reporting to me has paid out remainder of any employee’s contract for the 2008-09 financial year.

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Reply:

(a) Coal of Africa was not granted a water licence for its operations in the Makhado Local Municipality. Their water use licence (WUL) application is still being processed by the Department of Water and Sanitation.

(b)(i) Coal of Africa was granted a WUL for its operations in the Musina Local Municipality.

(b)(ii) The water use licence for Coal of Africa in respect of its operations in the Musina Local Municipality was granted on 29 March 2011. The water use licence was granted for a period of five years on the terms stipulated in WUL, which are confidential to the applicant. Coal of Africa plans to continue with the mine, consequently they have applied for another water use licence for the same area covered by the licence granted in 2011.

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Reply:

The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of Eskom Ingula Pumped Storage Scheme was the responsibility of Eskom and the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) participated therein. The Department is not aware of any significant impacts on Wilge and Vaal Rivers.

The resettlement of communities was also part of the same process and thus no undue impacts are anticipated.

The Department issued Water Use Licenses for the project and will continue to monitor compliance to the license conditions.

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Reply:

(1) Yes, steps have been taken to implement the recommendations of the Auditor- General with regard to preventing the procurement of goods and services with a transaction value below R500 000, refer below:

• The Accounting officer invites and accepts written price quotations for requirement up to an estimated value of R500 000.00 from as many suppliers as possible, that are registered on the list of prospective suppliers.

• Where no suitable suppliers are available from the list of prospective suppliers, written price quotations may be obtained from other possible suppliers.

• If it is not possible to obtain at least three (3) written price quotations, the reason should be recorded and approved by the accounting officer/ authority or his /her delegate.

• The Supply Chain Management policy which incorporates the above and other quotation process has been approved and is currently utilized within the Water Trading Entity as a guideline for the procurement process which include other related National Treasury practices notes and related circulars issued by other authorities within the Water and Infrastructure Sector e.g. CIDB Regulations.

(2) Yes, steps have been taken to implement the recommendations of the Auditor-General with regard to preventing the procurement of goods and services with a transaction value above R500 000.00, refer below:

• Accounting officer invite competitive bids for all procurement above R500 000.00.

• Competitive bids are advertised in the Government Tender Bulleting and in other appropriate media should an accounting officer deem it necessary to ensure greater exposure to potential bidders. The responsibility for advertisement cost lies with the relevant accounting officer.

• Should it be impractical to invite competitive bids for specific procurement, such as in urgent or emergency cases or in cases of a sole supplier, the accounting officer/ authority may procure the required goods and services by other means, such as price quotations or negotiations in accordance with Treasury Regulation 16A6.4. The reasons for deviating from inviting competitive bids are recorded and approved by the accounting officer or his/ her delegate.

• The Accounting officer reports within ten (10) working days to the relevant Treasury and the Auditor-General regarding all cases where goods and services above the value of R1 Million (VAT inclusive) and providing description of the goods or services, the name/s of the suppliers/s, the amount/s involved and the reasons for deviating from the prescribed competitive bidding process.

• Goods, works or services may not deliberately be split into parts or items of lesser value merely for the sake of procuring the goods, works or service otherwise than through the prescribed procurement process. when determining transaction values, a requirement for goods , works or services consisting of different parts or items must as far as possible be treated and dealing with as a single transaction

• Accounting officers apply the prescripts of the preferential procurement policy Framework Act, 2000 (Act No. 5 of 2000) and its associated Regulations for all procurement equal to or above R30 000.00.00 (VAT included) less than
  that amount if and when appropriate.

• The Supply Chain Management policy which incorporates the above and other bids processes has been approved and is currently utilized within the Water Trading Entity as a guide-line for the procurement process which include together with other related National Treasury practice notes and related circulars issued by other authorities within the Water and Infrastructure Sector e.g. CIDB Regulations.

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Reply:

Yes, there is a plan to cater for the annual shortfall of R35 billion.

1.  As part of the development of the Water Sector Infrastructure Investment Framework in 2012, the Department developed a first order Water Financing Strategy published on 5 June 2012.

2.   In addition, my department has thus far successfully negotiated major increases in the Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) and the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG), the establishment of a new Municipal Water Infrastructure Grant (MWIG), as well as major increases in the Water Board’s infrastructure investment budgets. This was done in collaboration with the National Treasury as well as the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, with the aim of increasing budgeting for especially municipal infrastructure operations and maintenance (O&M), addressing aged infrastructure, rehabilitation, and infrastructure replacement.

3.  Partnerships with Financial Institutions and the broader private sector are also vigorously pursued.

4.  As a result of financial constraints, there will be on-going prioritization of water supply areas to identify and sequence projects that offer the best economic and social returns and are addressing the most critical security of supply challenges.

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Reply:

Yes, a submission has been made to the Director-General on 21 May 2015 for the release of water from the Katse Dam (Lesotho Highlands Water Project).

(a) Falls away

(b) In order to ensure the sustainability of supply within the system, pumping at the Tienfontein Pump Station (Caledon River) should be maintained. This can only be achieved by releasing water from the Lesotho Highlands Water Scheme (Katse Dam) into the Caledon River. The transfer of water from Knellpoort Dam via the Novo transfer scheme to Rustfontein Dam should also be maintained. Fast-track and intensify the implementation of water conservation and water demand management measures in all affected municipalities. Urgent implementation of the gazetted water restrictions and the monitoring of possible unlawful water use along the Modder River, upstream of Maselspoort Dam.

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Reply:

(1)(a) Refer to table below regarding the nine municipalities affected by drought in KZN:

No.	Name of Municipality	Business Plan	Funding agreement	Amount received to date
1	Umzinyathi District Municipality	Approved	Approved	R1 782 836.47
2	Umkhanyakude District Municipality	Approved	Approved	R6 321 734.42
3	Uthukela District Municipality	Received and pending approval	Received and pending approval	None
4	Ugu District Municipality	Approved	Approved	None
6	Zululand District Municipality	Approved	Approved	None
7	UguDistrict Municipality	Approved	Approved	None
8	IlembeDistrict Municipality	Approved	Approved	None
9	Harry Gwala	Approved	Approved	None

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Reply:

(1) The total cost of the Olifants-Doorn River Water Resources Project (Raising of Clanwilliam Dam wall) is estimated to be R2.2 billion. This amount excludes the relocation of the N7, the relocation of the secondary road, cost for land acquisition, construction engineering supervising costs, Project Management costs, heritage expert costs, Environmental Impact Assessment Practitioner, Environmental Control Officer, Hydro-power plant over and above the civil structure, communications, and escalation (inflation).

(2) Bigen Africa Services (Pty) Ltd was appointed for construction supervision and contract management of the project. Two more emerging companies, namely Tlou Integrated Tech cc and Batseta Engineering Services (BES Africa Engineering and Management Consulting (Pty) Ltd), from the panel were appointed for developmental and transformational purposes to work under the stewardship of Bigen Africa. This is intended to ensure that the scope is not entirely allocated to one Professional Services Provider (PSP) and that the technical expertise of a developed PSP (Bigen Africa) is used to develop emerging enterprises that are owned and managed by Historically Disadvantaged Individuals (HDIs).

(3) Bigen Africa Services (Pty) Ltd is part of the panel of PSPs that was created by the Department, (a) in 2013 under Contract WP0485-WTE (b) in Category five (5).

(4) The guideline project value thresholds is as follows:

Category	Projects with a value between
1	R0 up to R10,0 million
2	R10.1 million up to R50 million
3	R50,1 million up to R100 million
4	R100.1 million up to R250 million
5	R250.1 million up to R500 million
6	R500.1 million - unlimited

It should be noted that the above thresholds are only a guideline. The final Category chosen is determined based on the project’s scope and is determined, amongst others, the type of project, its complexity, its timeframes, developmental and transformational outputs to be achieved and the experience of companies in each of the categories.

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Reply:

1. Table 1 below reflects the amount that was spent by the Department on environmental rehabilitation due to sewage spills in each province (a) in the (i) 2013-14 and (ii) 2014-15 financial years and (b) since 1 April 2015:

Table 1

(a)Province	(a)(i) 2013-14	(a)(ii) 2014-15	(b) since 1 April 2015
Eastern Cape	N/A	N/A	N/A
Free State	R15 850 000 (ACIP)	R42 850 000 (ACIP)	R18 968 000 (Planned to be spent under ACIP)
	R5 000 000 (RBIG)	R47 000 000 (RBIG)	R90 474 000 ((Planned to be spent under RBIG)
Gauteng	N/A	N/A	N/A
KwaZulu-Natal	N/A	N/A	N/A
Limpopo	N/A	N/A	N/A
Mpumalanga	R9 000 000 (ACIP)	R13, 7m (ACIP)	R47m (RBIG)
Northern Cape	N/A	N/A	N/A
North West	N/A	N/A	N/A
Western Cape	N/A	N/A	N/A

(2)(a) Refer to the table below for the (a) location, (b) cause and (c) nature of the rehabilitation for each spillage within the Free State and Mpumalanga provinces.

 

FREE STATE PROVINCE

2013/14 (ACIP)

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Clocolan	Non-functional sewer pump stations due to ageing infrastructure	Replaced all pumps, motors & electrical infrastructure	Setsoto LM
Ficksburg	Collapsed old sewer pipes	Unblocked sewer lines and replaced defective ones	Setsoto LM
Kroonstad	Collapsed 1,2 km old asbestos sewer line from Gelukwarts polluting the Vals river	Replaced 1,2km of sewer line.	Moqhaka LM
Wepener	Non-functional sewer pump station & waste water treatment works	Refurbished all pumps, motors & electrical infrastructure.	Naledi LM

2013/14 (RBIG)

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Vredefort	Non-functional sewer pump station & waste water treatment works	Refurbished all pumps, motors & electrical infrastructure.	Ngwathe LM

2014/15 (ACIP)

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Theunissen	Collapsed old asbestos line	Replaced a length of 500 meters	Masilonyana LM
Brandfort	Non-functional two sewer pump stations due to old infrastructure	Refurbished and upgraded the two pump stations.	Masilonyana LM
Winburg	Non-functional one sewer pump station due to old infrastructure	Refurbished and upgraded the one pump station.	Masilonyana LM
Vrede	Non-functional pumps & motors and electrical infrastructure	Replaced pumps and motors and refurbished electrical infrastructure	Phumelela LM
Waden	Non-functional pumps & motors and electrical infrastructure	Replaced pumps and motors and refurbished electrical infrastructure	Phumelela LM
Koffiefontein	Non-functional pumps & motors and electrical infrastructure	Refurbished pumps and motors and refurbished electrical infrastructure	Letsemeng LM

2014/15 (RBIG)

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Wesselsbron	Non-functional electrical and mechanical components at waste water treatment plant.	Replaced all non functional electrical & mechanical components.	Nala LM
Kroonstad	Collapsed asbestos sewer pipe line in Hill street Collapsed Boitumelo Marabastad asbestos sewer pipeline Non-functional sewer treatment plant	Multi-year projects. Replacing and upgrading the Hill Street sewer pipeline. Replacing and upgrading the sewer pipeline. Upgrading of the sewer treatment plant to meet the demands	Moqhaka LM
Vredefort	Non-functional sewer treatment plant and old sewer line	Refurbished and upgraded the waste water treatment plant and replaced the sewer line	Ngwathe LM

2015/16 (ACIP Projects under implementation)

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Koppies	Non-functional electrical and mechanical components at waste water treatment plant.	Replace all non-functional electrical & mechanical components.	Ngwathe LM
Reitz and Lindley	Non-functional of electrical and mechanical components in pump station	Refurbishment of non-functional of electrical and mechanical components	Nketoana LM
Koffiefontein	Non-functional electrical and mechanical components at waste water treatment plant.	Replace all non-functional electrical & mechanical components.	Letsemeng LM
Odendalsrus	Collapsed old sewer lines	Replacement of collapsed old sewer pipeline	Matjhabeng LM
Mamahabane	Oxidation ponds not lined and the sewerage seeps through the nearby environment.	Rehabilitation of oxidation ponds	Matjhabeng LM
Wepenar	Collapsed old asbestos sewer pipeline and non-functional of two sewer pump station.	Replace the collapsed sewer line and refurbish the two sewer pump stations.	Naledi LM

 

2015/16 (RBIG Projects under implementation)

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Kroonstad	Collapsed asbestos sewer pipe line in Hill street   Collapsed Boitumelo Marabastad asbestos sewer pipeline Non-functional sewer treatment plant	Multi-year projects. Replacing and upgrading the Hill Street sewer pipeline. Replacing and upgrading the sewer pipeline. Upgrading of the sewer treatment plant to meet the demands	Moqhaka LM
Vredefort	Non-functional of electrical and mechanical components in pump station	Refurbishment of non-functional of electrical and mechanical components	Nketoana LM

MPUMALANGA PROVINCE

2013-14

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Mhlatikop and Komatipoort	Ageing Infrastructure, operating beyond design capacities, poor operation and maintenance	Refurbishment of the WWTW and pump stations Phase 1	Nkomazi

2014-15

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Mhlatikop and Komatipoort	Ageing Infrastructure, operating beyond design capacities, poor operation and maintenance	Refurbishment of the WWTW and pump stations Phase 2	Nkomazi
Leandra		Refurbishment of the WWTW	Govern Mbeki

2015-16

Location (2) (a)	Cause (2) (b)	Nature of Rehabilitation (2) (c)	Municipality
Balfour	Ageing Infrastructure, operating beyond design capacities, poor operation and maintenance	Upgrade of the WWTW	Dipaleseng
Delmas			Victor Khanye LM
Botleng

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Reply:

Refer to the table below for the current Chief Financial Officers of the Department and the Entities:

Department/ Entity	Full Names	Qualifications
Department: CFO Water Trading Entity	Mr Mpho Mofokeng	B Tech: Cost & Management Accounting Degree
Department: CFO Main Account	Ms Nthabiseng Fundakubi	B Tech: Business Administration
Amatola Water	The CFO post is vacant.	N/A
Bloem Water	Mr OJ Stadler	B Comm Honours; Masters in Business Leadership (MBL)
Lepelle Northern Water	Mr JC Kilan	Honours: Accounting; Masters in Business Administration
Magalies Water	Ms A Raphela	B Comm Honours; Chartered Accountant
Mhlathuze Water	Mr B Ndaba	(b) B Comm (Accounting)
Overberg Water	Ms A Cilliers	B Compt, B Compt Honours; Chartered Accountant
Rand Water	Mrs SM Nyembe	B Comm (Accounting); B Compt Honours
Sedibeng Water	Ms MA Shasha	B Compt Honours
Umgeni Water	Mr TB Hlongwa	B Comm (Accounting); B Comm Honours (Accounting); Chartered Accountant
Inkomati-Usuthu CMA	Ms Thembelihle Mjaji	Qualified Chartered Accountant. Honours in Bachelor of Accounting Science Degree in Bachelor of Accounting Science
Breede Gouritz CMA	Mrs. Judith Ntombizanele Nkomombini	Bachelor of Commerce

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