A water pipe replacement project which commenced in February this year is a month away from completion. The R21-million (including Vat) project in Forest Town saw the length of pipes being replaced come to a total of 8 500m. Speaking at the oversight visit of the project, MMC for Environment and Infrastructure Services, councillor Nico de Jager emphasised the importance of saving water.
“We often experience burst pipes with 42 977 having occurred during the 2018/19 financial year. However, we have seen a significant decrease from the reports of burst pipes from 2017. This decrease is mainly attributed to improved pressure management and an accelerated pipe replacement programme which will lead to less water loss,” De Jager said.
He added that the programme will ensure that the number of bursts per kilometre and the number of blockages per kilometre is reduced, resulting in improved levels of service to consumers in the City.
The pipe replacement project which was split into four phases led to the employment of 40 local labourers and four small, medium and micro-enterprises (SMMEs) who were given an opportunity to be a part of making the project a success.
De Jager said, “It is estimated that on average Joburg Water pipe replacement per year should amount to R415 million for water and R435 million for sewer, in order to meet the pipe renewal target of replacing 1.5 per cent of its asset value per year. It is indeed a pleasure for us to actually do what we set out to do and to work more wisely with the limited resources that we have.”
The crew then walked around from Sherwood and Wychwood roads down to Durris Road conducting the inspection under the tour guidance of design engineer from Joburg Water, Rabelani Nevhulaudzi and other team members as well as two residents.
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