Government and the district municipality have long neglected environmental protection. This has led to many environmental disasters in the past, which could have been avoided if environmental policies had been in place and enforced.
Lack of clean and unpolluted water is a major environmental problem in Tsolwana, particularly the Thornhill area. Limited access to clean water affects mainly Emalahleni, Intsika Yethu, Sakhisizwe, Engcobo and Lukhanji. Inkwanca and Inxuba Yethemba suffer from lack of a guaranteed water supply, which should be rectified in the near future. Limited access to water impacts on people’s ability to practice good personal and food hygiene. The elderly and people with disabilities are particularly affected as they have difficulty in gaining access to water. The growing of crops is limited as there is no water to spare for the crops, which creates many nutritional problems. Stock farming may also be limited due to insufficient water being available, which has a notable impact on people’s livelihoods.
43
Chapter 2: The Situational Analysis Overview
Limited and poor sanitation creates numerous environmental problems, such as water pollution due to the waste being washed into the rivers by rain. Such water pollution is often directly attributable to a variety of diseases which children playing in these contaminated areas pick up. The smell from improper sanitation also affects quality of life for residents.
The greatest challenge facing government, and local government in particular, is how to minimise harmful environmental practises that contribute to global warming and ultimately to climate change.
A summit was recently held on this topic in the district to promote awareness of the problems created by global warning.
Chris Hani District Municipality has produced an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) which has been adopted by Council in order to point out areas of concern. The plan is reviewed annually so as to address the current situation. The plan highlights areas of the environment which should be conserved and protected. Animal and vegetation species and cover are mapped and identified. In addition, present and future environmental problems as well as all renewable resources are identified per local municipality. It recommends that:
CHDM appoint dedicated environmental staff;
•
CHDM develop an integrated environmental management system;
•
CHDM implement pollution control measures such as air pollution monitoring stations;
•
CHDM assist to develop the capacity of its LM’s to deal with environmental issues; and
•
CHDM undertake environmental impact assessments (EIA’s) for all of its current and future projects
•
However, the district municipality is struggling to finance the implementation of this plan, especially regarding pollution control mechanisms.
CHRIS HANI DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY IDP REVIEW 2011-2012
44
2.4.2 SERVICE DELIVERY & INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT
2.4.2.1 Water Services & Sanitation
The Chris Hani District Municipality is a Water Services Authority (WSA) in all local municipalities within the district, in terms of powers and functions developed by Municipal Structures Act, 117 of 1998. It is therefore tasked with addressing a water services backlog. Water supply in larger towns is treated and subject to operational and compliance monitoring, but there are small and remote rural communities whose supplies are seldom monitored.
CHDM is a legislated WSA for its entire area of jurisdiction, hence it has completed an assessment of alternative water service provision mechanism, as required by Section 78 of the Municipal Systems Act.
All eight its local municipalities are water service providers. Strong and healthy relationships with the local municipalities have resulted in the appointment of 42 critical and technical staff who are deployed to different municipalities. These people have assisted in strengthening the municipalities’
water service provider staff and also ensured that staff inherited from the Department of Water Affairs is managed at municipal level. This has also resulted in the improvement of the operational budget expenditure, with vehicles and trucks amounting to R27 million being purchased. As a result, improved customer care relations and limited downtime has been observed.
2.4.2.2 Water Services Development Plan
With the publication of the Water Services Act (Act 108 of 1997), all South African water services authorities were required to prepare a Water Services Development Plan (WSDP). The WSDP is a business plan setting out the way in which a specific Water Services Authority delivers water services to individuals and businesses in its area of jurisdiction. It also describes the current and future consumer profile, the types of services that are provided, the infrastructure requirements, a water balance, organisational and financial arrangements to be used, an assessment of the viability of the approach and an overview of environmental issues. Following these analyses, important issues that may impact on the provision of effective and sustainable water and sanitation services need to be identified and strategies must be formulated to improve service provision.
Water supplied to communities.
45
Chapter 2: The Situational Analysis Overview
As a WSA, CHDM’s Water Services Development Plan has to be reviewed and was most recently reviewed in 2008. The 2011/2012 Draft WSDP is currently being developed and will submitted to Council and be adopted together with the final IDP of 2011/12. The WSDP addresses:
Service level objectives;
•
Water resources;
•
Water conservation and demand management;
•
Bulk infrastructure;
•
Institutional arrangements;
•
Organisational support;
•
Financial management; and
•
Tariff policy
•