PIET MARAIS
The Kenton-on-Sea Ratepayers Association (KOSRA) have threatened legal action following ongoing water shortages in wards 3 and 4. And at a political level, the DA has vowed to escalate the matter. Both have accused the municipality of failing to provide an adequate water supply during peak tourist seasons, leading to widespread frustration among residents and ratepayers. Frustrating the municipality, meanwhile, are delays in the process of transferring to it ownership of the Bushman’s River Mouth reverse osmosis (RO) plant.
Wards 3 and 4 are served by the Albany Coast reverse osmosis plant. The plant’s supply area includes Bushman’s River Mouth, Kenton-on-Sea, Marselle and Ekhuphumleni.
Both KOSRA and the DA say a lack of response from the municipality to the ratepayers’ concerns has made the situation worse.
Ward 4 based PR councillor Phil Kani said his party, the DA, would escalate the issue to higher authorities. Kani said, “The ratepayers serve as a link between the community and the municipality, and clear communication is essential to address the water issues.”
Ward 3 Councillor, Zandisile Myali, said the situation was worse in the area’s townships.
“The towns have water, but the locations do not,” Myali said.
Members of the Bushman’s River Mouth Ratepayers Association (BRRAG) said all necessary information for ratepayers was available on their website, and they have chosen not to comment on KOSRA’s letter.
Kani plans to invite DA constituency leader, Jane Cowley, along with other stakeholders, to a public meeting to attempt to find a solution. Cowley serves as the DA Shadow MEC for Health and is a member of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA). She is also the spokesperson for the Economic Development, Environmental Affairs, and Tourism portfolio committee.
“We must stop hiding behind excuses like cable theft, load shedding, and vandalism. The real issue is poor management,” Kani said.
Kani criticised Amatola Water which manages the Albany Coast plant. “They have failed us dismally,” he said. This thing has been happening for ages.”
KOSRA’s letter to Ndlambe Municipality, dated February 13, states, “Whilst the community has been so very patient with Ndlambe for so many years regarding the inadequate water supply, the situation has simply continued to deteriorate. So how can we be expected to continue to be patient? What is the point?”
The letter listed deadlines that they said the municipality had missed, including feedback from a ministerial meeting, the appointment of a specialist underground water service provider (UWSP), and the submission of a report from the UWSP to augment the water supply. KOSRA warned that if the municipality did not comply with the agreed-upon timetable by February 28, 2025, they would start legal proceedings to compel them to comply with their constitutional obligations.
Kani echoed the sentiments, stating, “The community has been patient for far too long. We cannot allow this situation to continue. The municipality must take immediate action to address the crisis. We must work together to find a solution and ensure that our communities have access to a reliable water supply.”
Ndlambe on the record
Ndlambe Municipality’s Festive Season contingency plan, approved in a special council meeting on November 26, 2024, described the water supply sources for wards 3 and 4 as follows: Six boreholes at Diaz Cross yielding 800 kilolitres a day and treated with chlorination; the Bushmans reverse osmosis (RO) plant yielding 1 800 kl/day.
In her report, the director said wards 3 and 4 were receiving water for 8 hours a day (4am to midday) with an average supply of 2050kl a day. This was short of the combined treatment capacity of 4000kl/day.
“The Bushmans RO plant suffers constant breakdowns and raw water supply uissues, resulting in production at roughy half the potential output,” Dr Noluthando Vithi’s report noted. The yield from the Diaz Cross boreholes had reduced due to drought conditions and sand dune encroachment.
“In addition to this problem, the Diaz pipeline can only augment 50% of its output due to an unknown leak in the sand dunes.”
To mitigate these problems, the plan had been to collaborate with Amatola Water to establish a robust maintenance plan for the Bushmans RO plant, “including rapid repair protocols for breakdowns”. Other measures were: “To implement optimised water scheduling and communicate clearly with residents on anticipated water availability times.”
Two water tankers would be available to service areas when there were supply disruptions; and communal water tanks would be installed.
The transfer
A report from the municipal manager to council dated September 4, 2023, discusses the planned handover of the RO plant from Amatola Water to Ndlambe Municipality or an independent operator. The report forms part of the agenda of a special council meeting on September 7, 2023. As background information, MM Rolly Dumezweni says the water demand in wards 3 and 4 is 2.5 to 3 megalitres a day, increasing significant during holiday periods. Potable water is supplied from two sources: the sea water reverse osmosis (SWRO) plant and the Diaz wellfield, both at Bushman’s River Mouth. Amatola Water started an upgrade of the SWRO in 2019 to increase the supply to 3.5ML. The upgraded plant, officially opened by the Minister of Water Affairs in 2020, had to date not met that target.
“The Bushman’s RO plant run by Amatola Water as the water service provider is therefore unable to supply the communities of wards 3 and 4…. With sufficient potable water.”
At a May 2023 meeting between the Department of Water and Sanitation, Amatola Water, members of a technical task team and the municipality, it was agreed that the Bushmans RO plant should be handed over to the municipality or an independent operator.
Because the process to transfer the asset would be lengthy, it was clarified that Ndlambe and Amatola could agree on a right of use agreement while waiting for the minister to complete he full transfer to Ndlambe.
Amatola Water agreed on a 10-year right-of-use contract. The recommendations at that special council meeting included that the MM should proceed with appointing a service provider to operate the plant. Upgrading the plant would cost R35 million (capital) and R2m (operational) and a request to refurbish the plant should be submitted to DWS.
According to information shared by the MM during various open council meetings in the latter half of 2024, the process of transferring the asset (the RO plant) was complex because of the entities involved; however, it had been initiated.
- Additional reporting (council documents and meetings) by Sue Maclennan.
- This article was first published in Talk of the Town, February 20, 2025. The newspaper serving the communities of Ndlambe and the Sunshine Coast, with a weekly wrap of Makhanda news, is available at stores from early on Thursdays.
