Civil Engineering June 2022 | Vol 30 No 5

Civil Engineering June 2022 7 Le t ter from the ed i tor M inisters of Parliament highlighted the potential water crisis recently when debating the Department of Water and Sanitation’s (DWS) budget. The budget has al- located R111 billion over the next three financial years to address the country’s water challenges. DROP REPORTS The recently released 2022 Blue and Green Drop reports serve to highlight the state of the country’s water and sanitation infrastruc- ture. Despite the Blue and Green Drop certification programmes being hailed as an excellent way to incentivise good performance, the last time the DWS published the Green Drop and Blue Drop reports was in 2013 and 2014 respectively. And although Green and Blue Drop audits were done in 2016/17, they were not released to the public. Unsurprisingly, the state of infrastructure has declined sig- nificantly in the intervening years. According to the 2022 Blue Drop Report, only 40% of water supply systems achieved microbiological water quality compli- ance and 23% achieved chemical water quality compliance. The report states that the poor water quality compliance results are of serious concern to DWS as the majority of supply systems present a potential health risk to consumers. The National Blue Drop Risk Rating profile for the country is summarised as follows: Q Q 48% of water supply systems are low risk Q Q 18% are medium risk Q Q 11% are high risk Q Q 23% are critical risk. Of great concern is the acknowledgement in the report that technical skills are poor throughout the country with only 28% of systems having full maintenance teams in place i.e. civil, mechanical and electrical personnel. Similarly, the 2022 Green Drop Report showed that 334 (39%) of municipal wastewater systems were in a critical state in 2021, compared to 248 (29%) in 2013. A total of 102 (89%) of Department of Public Works (DPW) systems were in critical state, compared to 84% in 2013. One private plant was identified as being in critical state. Only 23 wastewater systems qualified for Green Drop Certification, compared to 60 systems awarded Green Drop Status in 2013. The National Risk Ratio results show an overall risk deteriora- tion from 2013 to 2021. Municipal plants regressed from 65.4% (medium risk) to 70.1% (high risk), and DPW plants regressed from 80% to 88% (critical risk). All private- and state-owned works are in low or medium risk positions. DRASTIC ACTION NEEDED It is encouraging to see government meeting its commitment to resume the release of the Blue and Green Drop reports, with the DWS having committed to conduct the assessments regularly in order to identify, prioritise and implement targeted and specific interventions to improve water services performance in a struc- tured manner based on risk management principles. However, the results of both reports bring into question the country’s ability to provide safe and reliable water and sanitation. There is no doubt that communities and the environment are already paying the price for non-compliance and underper- formance, but the consequences could be dire if the situation continues to deteriorate. The DWS has acknowledged having insufficient skilled process controllers to manage water treatment plants and process drinking water, as well as having an issue with monitoring, namely inconsistencies and non-adherence to monitoring programmes. It is clear that municipalities need to be recapacitated with the skills necessary to manage water and wastewater systems as well as adequately plan, budget for and implement upgrades and new infrastructure where necessary. These skills are undoubtedly available in South Africa, but it will require a concerted effort from government’s side to turn the situation around. In his foreword for the 2022 Green Drop Report, Minister of Water and Sanitation Senzo Mchunu noted, “I need to make it clear that action will be taken against those municipalities that flagrantly put the lives of our people and environment at risk. As Minister of Water and Sanitation, I am engaging the Minister of Cooperative Governance to ensure that as national government we take drastic intervention measures towards the improvement of water services.” Let us hope that this drastic action is taken, and taken fast, for the benefit of public and environ- mental health. Danielle Petterson Editor Civil Engineering danielle@saice.org.za Getting ahead of a water crisis When headlines emerged recently that South Africa could face a water crisis worse than the current electricity crisis, it was an acknowledgement of something that has been well known to the sector’s experts for many years: the dire state of South Africa’s water infrastructure.