Expert Warns Gauteng’s Water Crisis Can Be Resolved Through Teamwork

• A water expert believes that Gauteng's water crisis could be a sign of worse times to come because of the imbalance between supply and demand
• Professor Anthony Turton recently said the water crisis is caused by poor infrastructure and municipalities losing waters
• He also discussed possible solutions for the crisis, and South Africans weighed in on the possibility of a significant water shortage

With nine years of experience, Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist, provided insights into infrastructure challenges in South Africa at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

JOHANNESBURG—University of Free State professor Anthony Turnton said Gauteng is on the brink of a major water crisis that must be urgently addressed.

Water crisis in Gauteng

In an interview with eNCA, Turton compared municipalities to leaking buckets to illustrate that municipalities are losing water. He pointed out that there is an imbalance between demand and supply. He said that a total crisis is avoidable and will only happen if the stakeholders do not cooperate.

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"It's important that blame shifting must not be tolerated by the public because we are starting to see elements of blame-shifting happening in the supply chain," he said.

He said the Department of Water and Sanitation created a Platform for Water Safety in Gauteng (PWSG) to prevent the loss of water security in the province. He said the Integrated Vaal system will be under pressure until 2028 due to the demand from various municipalities.

Solutions?

Turton said water shifting will result in a loss of water security. He said the blame game the stakeholders are playing will not solve the problem. Gauteng has to make at least 10% savings in water consumption. He praised the private sector for its willingness to fix the leaking infrastructure, which could take a decade.

Police station water supply cut

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Water cuts plague Johannesburg police station, officers forced to share q toilet

In a related article, Briefly News reported that the Brixton Police Station was hit by water cuts recently.

The officers complained that they had to share one toilet after the water cut affected them last week. The water cut also reportedly affected the nearby court.

Source: Briefly News