Deal to fight Crocodile River pollution signed
The goal of the Blue Deal internationally is to assist 20 million people in 40 catchment areas around the world to gain access to a sufficient supply of clean and safe water.
As a way to improve the performance of waste water treatment plants and to combat the pollution of the Crocodile River, a Blue Deal memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed at the Emnotweni Arena last week.
The Department of Water and Sanitation signed this MoU with the Dutch Water Authorities, the Inkomati-Usuthu Catchment Management Agency, the Mpumalanga Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, the City of Mbombela (CoM), the Emakhazeni Local Municipality, the Nkomazi Local Municipality, the South African Local Government Association, the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency and the Mpumalanga Treasury.
This regional MoU sets out how the regional, local and provincial parties will co-operate with one another for the successful implementation of the combating of pollution in the Crocodile River in the Inkomati-Usuthu water management area.
The starting point has been identified as rehabilitation and performance optimisation of two waste water treatments works each in CoM, Nkomazi Local Municipality and Emakhazeni Local Municipality.
This regional MoU commences on the date of signing and shall terminate when the project is successfully implemented, unless extended by mutual agreement between the parties.
The deputy minister of human settlements, water and sanitation, David Mahlobo, said he did not only come just to oversee the signing of the MoU, but expects the parties to compile an action plan and implement it.
“We do not have a national water crisis at present. People in South Africa will not run out of water. The problem is that water will not be usable because of pollution. Too much water in the country is polluted, and polluters must pay. As a department, we have relaunched the Blue Drop/Green Drop certification to monitor water quality.”
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According to him, the municipalities should be aware that if water is bad, it has an impact on health and can lead to waterborne diseases. “If your water is of poor quality, it influences the environment and the economy.”
The chairperson of the Dutch Water Authorities, Hans Schepman, said, “Climate change affects all the people of the world.
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“The unique aspect of the Blue Deal is that it runs for 12 years, and we are now left with eight. The ultimate goal of the programme is to create a healthy and drinkable Crocodile River. It is about capacity building to address the lack of capacity in waste water treatment works. The recent Green Drop results show that South Africa has a long way to go and the signing of the MoU is proof of the required co-operation and support.”
The Dutch Blue Deal Programme (2018-2030) supports national and regional governments worldwide and strengthens integrated water resource management by improving knowledge and expertise, enhancing organisational functionality, and increasing co-operation with national and regional key stakeholders.
