The Water and Sanitation Parliamentary Portfolio committee took a boat cruise on the Vaal Barrage and up the Rietspruit (the source of much of the pollution plaguing the Vaal River) last week, to see the Vaal River situation for themselves.
This followed a press conference on 21 January, where the Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation, Lindiwe Sisulu, appealed to the community, including Save the Vaal, to trust her, saying she is determined to resolve the Vaal sewage pollution crisis as quickly as possible.
The Vaal has had a flurry of government visits over the past weeks. The interest and discussions that ensued reinforced Save’s decision to suspend the litigation against various government entities until a progress review in April.
But the question now is – will the bureaucrats ensure the efficient processing of funds and payments to contractors, so Erwat (Ekhuruleni Water Care Company) can meet its commitments and deal with all its challenges? The issues include theft, community protests and the lack of educa-tion in some communities. The above result in people using utility (man)holes to dispose of incompatible objects into the waste water system and causing severe blockages.
Save has been working to prevent ongoing pollution of the Vaal River for over 20 years.
In response to its caution that the minister should not make promises she cannot keep, as her predecessors have done, she invited Save to take its problems to her directly so they can be dealt with.
In an earlier press statement, Sisulu said she intends seeking cabinet per- mission and approval for the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) to intervene and assist the Emfuleni Municipality to manage water services infrastructure.
This means that because of the chal- lenges of capacity within the municipality, the DWS will be responsible for managing the water within the Emfuleni Municipality and assisting in providing the necessary capacity.
The press statement says that Rand Water and Erwat, as the two implementing agents of the project, would report directly to Minister Sisulu on their continued intervention in the Vaal.
This week, Save said it fully supports Minister Sisulu in this move and trusts that cabinet would also see the urgency and necessity of the proposal in resolving a major crisis.
