Parliamentary reply reveals lack of control over South Africa's sewage treatment works

The Democratic Alliance (DA) is most concerned that the Department of Water and Environmental Affairs is not exercising the control that it should over South Africa's sewage treatment works.

A reply to parliamentary questions raised by the DA has revealed that not all waste water treatment works have been granted the necessary permits to operate. The reasons the Minister gives for this are, inter alia, that the permit application itself does not meet departmental requirements, that there is insufficient capacity within the municipality concerned to compile the required submission, and, most alarmingly, "[f]ailing infrastructure and inadequate capacity of the Waste Water Treatment Works to deal with the volume and load of the waste water therefore not meeting the requirements for authorisation". (see questions and reply below)

Discharges of treated sewage (largely by municipalities) into our water courses can only take place with a permit or licence, issued in terms of the National Water Act of 1998. Such a permit will generally stipulate the required quality of the discharged effluent, and will require regular testing of that effluent with submission of the results to the Department.

Also concerning is the statement in the Department's response that monitoring of compliance with required standards is carried out only at authorised treatment plants.

This raises the following questions:

• Will a municipality that is or has been discharging effluent, but which cannot properly control the discharge due to failing infrastructure, desist from doing so because a permit has not been issued?
• How will municipalities that do not have the capacity to properly complete an application form demonstrate the capacity to run an effective sewage treatment service?
• Who is monitoring the unauthorised sewage treatment works in our country?

In light of the recent reports of deaths related to drinking polluted water from rivers, and of the ever-increasing incidence of diarrhoea in our country, all possible efforts must be made to regulate discharges into our water courses.

The Democratic Alliance will pose further parliamentary questions aimed at quantifying the scenario outlined above, and at pursuing solutions to a potentially fatal circumstance.

PARLIAMENTARY REPLY:
QUESTION NO 323

323. Mrs A T Lovemore (DA) to ask the Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs:

(1)  Whether all waste water treatment plants in South Africa have been issued with permits to allow the discharge of effluent into the environment; if not, why not;

(2)  whether relaxation of permitted discharge standards are reviewed regularly; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(3)  whether compliance with permitted discharge standards is monitored; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

(4)  what (a) are the details of noncompliance with discharge standards recorded during the period 1 January 2009 to 30 June 2009 and (b) action has been taken against noncompliance with discharge standards?        

NW380E

REPLY:

(1)  No. Not all the Waste Water Treatment Works have authorisations, usually due to the following reasons:

• Application not meeting the requirements (inadequate information supplied, etc ) for My Department to grant authorization;
• Organisations and owners of Waste Water Treatment Works not having applied for the renewal of the authorisations to My Department in spite of regular follow-ups resulting in the issuing of pre-directives and directives in terms of Section 19 of the National Water Act 36 of 1998.
• Insufficient capacities in municipalities comply with the requirement in respect of compilation of the Water Quality Management Report which is a requirement in considering an application for authorisation of a Waste Water Treatment Works.
• Failing infrastructure and inadequate capacity of the Waste Water Treatment Works to deal with the volume and load of the waste water therefore not meeting the requirements for authorisation.

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(2) Yes. My Department periodically reviews the National effluent discharge standards. In addition, the General and Special Standards contained in the General Authorisations are reviewed every five years and are currently under review.

(3) Yes, Compliance Monitoring is done at discharge points of authorized Waste Discharge activities. Each water use authorisation contains conditions with regard to monitoring, e.g. parameters to be monitored and frequency of monitoring.

(4)(a) Non-compliance with discharge standards ranges from non-compliance with variables not complying with effluent discharge standards, such as:

• E-coli, Phosphate, Ammonia and Nitrate balance as a result of for example ineffective disinfection procedures and process management ineffectiveness.

(4)(b) My Department has taken actions by issuing notices, pre-directives and directives in respect of the non compliances in terms of Section 19 of the National Water Act No.36 of 1998.

Statement issued by Annette Lovemore, MP, Democratic Alliance deputy shadow minister of water and environmental affairs, September 28 2009

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