Dear Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation,
I recently posted an incomplete version of this e-mail – please substitute by this e-mail.

In this email
DWA will be used to indicate The Minster responsible for Water Affairs , the responsible authority
– CMA if the duty is assigned by notice in the Gazette or the delegated rank or person by written
delegation.
MUN – Local Government.
NWA – National Water Act 1998 (as amended)
WSA – Water Services Act 1997 (as amended)
WA56 – Water Act 1956 (as amended)
NEMA – National Environmental Management Act.
NEMWA – National Environmental Management Waste Act.
The MAY in WSA , NWA and other law is interpreted as a must or shall (power or duty) where the
may was used to have the similar meaning as provided for by Sections 10 and 14 of the |
Interpretation Act (Act 33 of 1959)
S10. (I) When a law confers a power or imposes a duty then, unless the contrary intention appears,
the power may be exercised and the duty shall be performed from time to time as occasion requires
etc.
Regulations – Regulations made in terms of the procedure provided for by the Act where something
may be needed to set a standard , be regulated or prescribed.
Regulations are part of the Act (law) – No policy , guidelines , best practice , strategy or any
internal document can be considered part of the Act (law).

RIGHTS TO WATER SERVICES
The Constitution assigned right to sufficient water subject to available resources and the right of an
environment not to be harmful to all persons in the republic.

Part B of Schedule 4 to the Constitution -
The following is local government matters to the extent set out in section 155(6)(a) and (7)
• Water and sanitation services limited to potable water supply systems and domestic wastewater and
sewage disposal systems

Effectively water services and water services infrastructure for domestic users..
The Water Service Act was enacted in 1997 under Sections 155(6)(a) and (7) of the Constitution to
regulate water services and provide for other related matters available to National Government and
repealed Sections 26A to 26H (dealing with water services management) of WA56.

WSA modified the Constitutional right applicable to local government and its consumers to :
S2. The main objects (purpose) of this Act are to provide for—
(a) the right of access to basic water supply and the right to basic sanitation necessary to secure sufficient water
and an environment not harmful to human health or well-being;
S3. (1) Everyone has a right of access to basic water supply and basic sanitation.
and defined it as:
S1(iii) “basic water supply” means the prescribed minimum standard of water supply services necessary for the
reliable supply of a sufficient quantity and quality of water to households, including informal households, to support life
and personal hygiene:
S1(ii) “basic sanitation” means the prescribed minimum standard of services necessary for the safe, hygienic and
adequate collection. removal, disposal or purification of human excreta. domestic waste-water and sewage from
households, including informal households; -
WSA also extended water services by local government to include commercial, recreational and
industrial consumers but this email only deals with domestic , commercial and recreational
consumers.
WSA did not prescribe any particular technology but it must comply with the basic or prescribed
requirements.
WSA require water services to all and that include informal settlements and water services to those
without it is a priority.
The powers and duties of the National Minister of Water Affairs are provided for under different
Sections. of WSA and NWA.
WATER BOARDS
Water Boards is the responsibility of the National Minister and the minister should have acted with
a directive (S41) when a board did not produce a policy statement (S39) , busyness plan (S40) and
annual reporting (S44) when and how required.
Rand Water may claim that the were established under other law but most of the law was repealed
and they are now deemed to have been established under WSA.
WATER SERVICE DELIVERY.
With communities not having access to reliable water services after 24 years is a serious reflection
on poor governance.
WSA indicated in Section 2 (objects/purpose of the Act) that planning is the schema to ensure
proper service delivery.
S2. The main objects of this Act are to provide for— (c) the preparation and adoption of water
services development plans by water services authorities.
S16. A water services authority must prepare and adopt a new development plan at intervals
determined by the ,Minister in consultation with the Minister for Provincial affairs and
Constitutional Development, in accordance with the procedure set out in sections 12 to 15.
It is now legislated that a newly elected Municipal Council must include water services planning in
the IDP and as specified by the the the Municipal Systems Act it must be done as required by WSA.
Sections 12 to 18 define the steps and contents of the water services development plan.
• S13 define the contents of the plan
Note that different areas may require separate plans.
• S12(1)(b)(i) prepare a draft water services development plan and (ii) a summary.
• S14(1)(b) Invite public comments.
• S14(1)(c) Send copies to the Minister , Province and all neighbouring water services
institutions. (facilities to inspect and evaluate the plans should exist)
• S14(2) a copy of plan and comments must be available for inspection or purchase.
• S15(1|) Must consider all comments before adoption.
• S15(2) must report (on request) how a specific comment was taken into account or
reasons why it was rejected.
• S15(3) Must supply copies of the adopted plan to the Minister , Province …..
• S17 No substantial deviation from a development plan is valid unless it is embodied in a
new development plan adopted in accordance with the procedure set out in sections I2 to
16.
• S18( 1 ) A water services authority must report on the implementation of its development
plan during each financial year . . to Minister , Province …....
None of the IDP's I inspected contained the required water services detail.
Not producing a proper plan and not insisting on receiving copies of the by DWA , Province … will
not be consistent with the Act and could be seen as an offence.

WATER SERVICES COMMETTEE
The correct procedure is long and slow and cannot deliver water services to communities without
water services in a short time.
S63. (1) If a water services authority has not effectively performed any function imposed on it by or under this Act, the
Minister may, in consultation with the Minister for Provincial Affairs and Constitutional Development, request the
relevant Province to intervene in terms of section 139 of the Constitution.
S63(2) If, within a reasonable time after the request, the Province—
(a) has unjustifiably failed to intervene;
(b) has intervened but has failed to do so effectively,
the Minister may assume responsibility for that function to the extent necessary—
(i) to maintain essential national standards;
(ii) to meet established minimum standards for providing services; or
(iii) to prevent that Province from taking unreasonable action that is prejudicial to the interests of another
province or the country as a whole.
One of the options when intervening is to appoint a water services institution to fulfil that function.
A Water Services Committee is such an institution but the Minister must first frame regulations
under Section 61 to establish such a committee.
A local committee is also the preferred option of the Municipal Systems Act
When established the committee can be tasked to gather information that could be used by
themselves or local government to produce a water services development plan.
This should reduce the time to deliver water services by months.

APPLICATIONS FOR GRANTS , SUBSIDIES AND LOANS FROM NATIONAL
GOVERNMENT
rson n for financial assistance must be made.
To facilitate grants, loans or subsidies
S64. ( 1 ) The Minister may after consultation with any relevant Province make grants and loans and give subsidies to a
water services institution from funds—
(a) appropriated by Parliament;
(b) contributed by individuals or non-governmental organisations; or
(c) contributed by other governments and governmental institutions.
Parliament should at least be able to debate the issue.
My interpretation of S64(1)(c) is - contributed by other governments and governmental institutions
of other governments – and parliament should also be allowed to debate it because the conditions of
the contribution might not be in the best interest of the country as a whole.

BASIC WATER SUPPLY
The regulations under WSA define a minimum of 25 l per person per day or 6 Kl per household per
month (almost 8 persons per household).
Community taps must be 200 m or less from any household and must be metered from 1999 .
The Municipality may offer more in its by-laws.
WSA S11(2)(d) the duty of consumers to pay reasonable charges, which must be in
accordance with any prescribed norms and standards for tariffs for water services;
The cost of the water is essentially free or negligible but the cost of abstracting , purifying ,
pumping to high ground or buying from a bulk supplier , storing in reservoirs and distributing is real and high.

BASIC SANITATION
The Constitution and the definition in WSA require a discharge not harmful to public.
Section 78 of WSA require local government to comply with law when discharging effluent.
NWA when discharging into water resources and Coastal Waters Management Act when
discharging into coastal waters.
There are no resent standards and practises for discharge of effluent prescribed under any law.
The standards prescribed under WA56 no longer seems to be sufficient.
The available infrastructure seem to be insufficient for the population it serves.
Section 1(f) of Schedule 1 of the NWA relieves consumers of the duty to apply for a licence
WSA S11(2)(d) the duty of consumers to pay reasonable charges, which must be in
accordance with any prescribed norms and standards for tariffs for water services;

REIMBURSING MUNICIPALITIES.
Water services are costly.
Relying on paying consumers to pay for non payers would render the tariff unreasonable.
When National or Provincial governments or Courts instruct municipalities to deliver free water
services the municipality must be funded from someware else.
THE WAY FORWARD.
Water services are not at the required level and getting to that level will require a super effort.
The Minister should start by framing the needed regulations and enforcing the present law should
be qa priority.
If the Acts (NWA and WSA) need amending it should be done soon.

STORMWATER– RUN-OFF WATER
Part B of Schedule 4 to the Constitution -
The following is local government matters to the extent set out in section 155(6)(a) and (7)
• Stormwater management systems in built-up areas
Stormwater management in build-up areas should have been included in the Water Services Act but
it was not.
The regulations made relating to storm water systems in WSA is therefore invalid and cannot be
enforced.
Built-up is not defined but cannot include water courses even if they are within the boundaries of a
municipality. (Similar to an aquifer – ground water in that area).
I will deal with Stormwater separately