Hammanskraal water fit for consumption
20 March 2019
By: Rapula Moatshe
Independent tests conducted into the quality of water in Hammanskraal have quashed claims that it was not healthy for human consumption, MMC for utility services Abel Tau said.
The tests were done by Magalies Water in the wake of the visit by the provincial Human Rights Commission team a week ago.
Tau said: “As the City, we feel vindicated by the result that the water is safe for human consumption.”
He dismissed claims of unsafe water as unfounded, saying the City had a constitutional obligation to supply clean water to residents.
He said other outstanding issues related to the smell and bad taste of the water would have been addressed by June.
On Monday, the City had a meeting with the Department of Water and Sanitation, which was still not convinced about the quality of the water, according to Tau.
The municipality committed a further R225million to the R250m that had already been pumped into the upgrading of the Rooiwal wastewater treatment plant.
The facility was identified as a source of dirty water because of its ageing infrastructure and limited capacity.
Executive mayor Stevens Mokgalapa said the tests were conducted after the City had received a highly suspicious complaint from the department and the Human Rights Commission regarding the quality of water in Hammanskraal.
“It was Premier David Makhura’s visit to Hammanskraal that resulted in this spurious complaint of a nonexistent problem about the quality of water supply to the community.
“As the City of Tshwane, we have always maintained our confidence in the quality of water supply in the said community.
“We however take seriously any reported concerns or alerts that threaten the health of our residents.”
Mokgalapa said the external body had collected water samples in the presence of the City’s laboratory team.
“The overall compliance as determined by Magalies Water is at 94.79%. We can therefore declare that, contrary to the reckless and irresponsible assertion made by Premier Makhura, the above analysis shows that the water supplied by the City of Tshwane in the Hammanskraal area is fit for human consumption.”
Mokgalapa urged both the department and the commission to resist the temptation to surrender their autonomy to dubious political point-scoring.
“I extend an olive branch to these important institutions and invite them to a joint press briefing intended to disarm the alarm created in the Hammanskraal community by their unjustifiable complaints,” he said.