Green Drop report exposes widespread wastewater system failures - WaterCAN
The report revealed that many of the country's wastewater systems are collapsing.
Advocacy group WaterCAN has issued a stark warning about South Africa’s water crisis.
It has been reacting to the latest release of the Green Drop report.
The report revealed that many of the country's wastewater systems are collapsing.
It said only 16 systems in the country meet requirements and nearly half of municipal systems are in a critical state.
The Green Drop scores measure how well wastewater is treated before it enters rivers.
KZN municipalities among worst performers
KwaZulu-Natal is no exception.
uMzinyathi District scored just 10.6%, and uThukela District 11.6%, the worst in the province.
King Cetshwayo dropped to 24.8%, with some plants at 100% risk of failure.
Even cities are struggling, with eThekwini dropping below 40%, raising pollution concerns along the coast.
Msunduzi and Newcastle municipalities are also declining sharply.
Some districts show signs of recovery, with uMkhanyakude rising to over 60% and uMgungundlovu keeping steady improvement above 50%.
Drinking water safety concerns grow
WaterCAN's Jonathan Erasmus says urgent action is needed, including more investment, stronger oversight, and accountability.
"I think the numbers speak volume and it validates what people have been saying. People that live in Durban will tell you specifically people that live along Umgeni River about the smell of that river. You'll often hear people talking about being sick from swimming by areas such as Blue Lagoon.
"The crisis is real, and I think the fact that the president mentioned it in his State of the Nation address earlier this year shows how important an issue it is. Whether they're going to act on it, of course, is an entirely different matter."
Erasmus says the Blue Drop report shows problems with drinking water too.
It found that nearly 200 drinking water systems in the country are in high or critical risk.
Only 62% of systems are low risk.
Erasmus says South Africans should be worried about the safety of their tap water.
" What we always say to people is, if it fails the sensor test, then you know there's a problem. So if it smells, is it hazy? Is it brown? What does the water look like? That should give you enough indication of whether that water is safe or not. And if any of those things happen when it comes out of your tap, you've obviously got to alert the authorities immediately. You've just got to treat every tap as suspicious until it's past the smell and visual test."
Find us on social media
Follow the ECR Newswatch WhatsApp channel here
We are also on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter)
MORE ON ECR:
