The party had also written to co-operative governance and traditional affairs MEC Xolile Nqatha, asking that the Eastern Cape portfolio committee meet.
“Council must immediately make funds available to get the barge on the Impofu Dam functional within five weeks.”
He said the municipality had been aware since 2018 that a barge was needed to extract what was left of potable water in the Impofu Dam.
“The barge will take five weeks to become operational, but nothing has been done to make this happen.
“At a time when water is of the utmost importance in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, the Nelson Mandela Bay and Kouga municipalities are on the brink of day zero.”
Though the dams are a key component of the Bay’s water supply, 60% comes from the Nooitgedacht works in Addo, which receives its supply from the Orange River via the Gariep Dam, 400km of canals and tunnels and then the Scheepersvlakte Dam.
“Regardless of the lack of rain, the current ANC-led coalition government has failed dismally in all respects to attend to the water crisis,” Bhanga said.
He said the Coegakop Wellfield project was at a standstill.
“The metro administration has repeatedly insisted that a desalination plant is the solution to the water crisis. A desalination plant can take between three to five years to complete and can’t resolve the current problem,” he said.
DA appeals for Sisulu’s help in Nelson Mandela Bay water crisis
Image: EUGENE COETZEE
The DA has asked for the department of water affairs to send a water infrastructure engineer to Nelson Mandela Bay to oversee the city’s drought plans and infrastructure project.
The city’s overall dam levels continue to drop, sitting at 22.36% on Monday.
DA MPL Retief Odendaal made the request to water affairs minister Lindiwe Sisulu on Thursday.
“We approached the minister for her direct intervention,” he said during an online press conference where the party highlighted steps needed to save water.
In the letter, Odendaal wrote: “It has become glaringly obvious that the lack of engineers in the water and sanitation department has resulted in an over-reliance on consulting engineers.”
DA Eastern Cape provincial leader Nqaba Bhanga said the party had come up with a concrete plan to avoid taps running dry.
“We have written to the speaker to request an urgent council meeting via a digital platform to get an update on the water situation,” he said.
The party had also written to co-operative governance and traditional affairs MEC Xolile Nqatha, asking that the Eastern Cape portfolio committee meet.
“Council must immediately make funds available to get the barge on the Impofu Dam functional within five weeks.”
He said the municipality had been aware since 2018 that a barge was needed to extract what was left of potable water in the Impofu Dam.
“The barge will take five weeks to become operational, but nothing has been done to make this happen.
“At a time when water is of the utmost importance in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, the Nelson Mandela Bay and Kouga municipalities are on the brink of day zero.”
Though the dams are a key component of the Bay’s water supply, 60% comes from the Nooitgedacht works in Addo, which receives its supply from the Orange River via the Gariep Dam, 400km of canals and tunnels and then the Scheepersvlakte Dam.
“Regardless of the lack of rain, the current ANC-led coalition government has failed dismally in all respects to attend to the water crisis,” Bhanga said.
He said the Coegakop Wellfield project was at a standstill.
“The metro administration has repeatedly insisted that a desalination plant is the solution to the water crisis. A desalination plant can take between three to five years to complete and can’t resolve the current problem,” he said.
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