POLOKWANE – At this stage of the city’s continuous battle for constant water supply, every drop counts, but according to the DA, the plant operator’s daily report which Polokwane Observer has a copy of, indicates this huge daily loss.
DA councillor and water and sanitation portfolio member Johan Retters confirmed that, based on the report, the actual figure is between one and 1.8 million litres of water that cannot be accounted for per day.
“After an oversight to the Dalmada water purification plant, we have established that the plant is losing on average more than one million liters of drinkable water on a daily basis. Water losses occur from faulty valves and leaking from the sand filters,” Retters said.
The DA will submit questions for written response to the Polokwane Municipality’s acting municipal manager, NR Selepe, on the state of the plant and that of the Dap Naudé water scheme.
The Dalmada water purification plant receives water from the Dap Naudé water scheme which falls under the management of the Polokwane Municipality.
“We are concerned that the sluices at Dap Naudé Dam have been malfunctioning for many years. The seals between the dam wall and the sluices are clearly not maintained and causes massive leaks of unmeasurable water losses.”
Retters emphasised that Polokwane Municipality officers know about the maintenance issues.
“The matter has been brought to their attention, and in the current state of water supply this problem deprives many residents living in the municipal area of their right to access drinking water,” Retters commented.
In her audit of municipalities for the 2020/2021 financial year, the Auditor-General expressed her concern over R561.1m in reported water losses incurred by municipalities in the province.
“Residents of Polokwane and surrounding developments have been plagued by a shortage of water and water-shedding for years. An additional 5 000 people can receive drinking water every day if the municipality tends to the faults at the Dalmada water purification plant. It is unacceptable that, considering the pressures on our water security in the province, such a large amount of water never reaches the people who need it the most,” Retters said.
He said the DA requires transparency in the way water resources are managed and will request council to approve a water audit to determine the exact amount of water losses from the municipal distribution system.
Contacted for comment, Polokwane municipal spokesperson Thipa Selala said he would follow up. The municipality’s comment will be published in Polokwane Observer’s next edition.
