Durban — Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu has implored the KwaZulu-Natal provincial and local government, Umgeni Water Board and the private sector to work together to ensure water security.
Mchunu was speaking during the recommissioning of Aqueduct 1 and Reservoir 3 at the Durban Heights’ Umgeni Water Treatment Works in the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality on Friday. A multi-disciplinary team feedback meeting is expected to take place on Friday.
Mchunu said a technical team was also set to conduct assessments on the needs of the city.
Mchunu said the government must start embracing collaborations and partnerships with the private sector as soon as possible as a new way of dealing with service delivery, because depending only on the fiscus alone, it will take years to adequately address these problems.
Mchunu expressed satisfaction towards uMgeni Water for completing the refurbishment of Aqueduct 1 on scheduled timelines, and said the repaired aqueduct and the reservoir will now bring back up to 350 ml/d of potable water supply to the residents of eThekwini’s Durban North and surrounding areas - who have been experiencing intermittent water cuts since the April 2022 floods.
“This means that 90 ml/d of raw water will now flow from the dam through to the reservoir. We are looking forward to the completion of Aqueduct 2 at the end of June,” Mchunu said.
Mchunu appealed to the traditional leaders of KwaNgcolosi Tribal Council along the area where the repair of the pipeline is taking place, urging the leaders to caution residents to refrain from building their houses on servitudes and riverbanks - to prevent future tragedies such as one experienced during the floods.
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube said the province relied on this network of water supply - as these aqueducts supply water to Umgeni’s biggest water treatment, the Durban Heights.
“Let us repair leaks in our homes and report those that need to be attended to by the municipality, conserve and use water sparingly - understanding that water is a critical, scarce resource,” said Dube- Ncube.
The Aqueduct 1 and 2 were severely damaged by rock falls on six sites due to torrential rains that caused flooding and massive landslides.
Aqueduct 1 is made of steel and has a capacity of 105 Ml/d, while Aqueduct 2, a mainly pre-stressed concrete pipe, transfers 155 Ml/d.
Daily News