News

South Africa’s sewage pollution crisis is impacting our food safety


The 2022 theme for World Toilet Day on 19 November is “making the invisible visible” as the focus is on sewage spills into groundwater. In South Africa, sewage pollution is anything but invisible and in the past year, much has been said and written about it. 
Since 2013, the United Nations obser...

17.11.2022 19:47:05
Water situation will not improve until water boards maintain infrastructure


The Auditor-General (AG) report to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation on the water board finances for 2020/21 once again highlights what we already know – our water and sanitation is in a dire state. 
Since the last report there has been minimal change and not enough culpri...

10.11.2022 19:07:18
National water pricing strategy adds new charges rather than improve debt collection


Water entities should focus on strategies for collecting outstanding debt and improving efficiencies – such as linking executive pay to successful collections – before introducing new costs and charges, says the Water Community Action Network (WaterCAN). WaterCAN, an initiative of OUTA, submitted it...

04.11.2022 01:15:54
This is why we need the No Drop reports: to watch over aging water systems


All levels of government can no longer ignore the water infrastructure crisis that leaves communities across the country, and now in Gauteng, with unreliable water supply. Rand Water’s briefing on the Gauteng water crisis on 21 October 2022 must be welcomed and the CEO must be applauded for an open ...

22.10.2022 01:37:13
Tap water may pass water testing, but concerns about quality of raw water sources


Tap water may be safe to drink in some urban areas, but raw water sources such as streams, rivers and dams have high levels of E. Coli and coliform bacteria. This is the finding from a recent water testing week by Water Community Action Network (WaterCAN), an initiative of the Organisation Undoing T...

11.10.2022 23:23:21
This week 100 citizen scientists will test water across South Africa


More than 100 volunteer citizen scientists will test the quality of drinking water across South Africa from 14 to 18 September. 

This national water-testing week initiative is led by WaterCAN, an initiative of OUTA, which is a network of citizen science activists and community organisations who ...


14.09.2022 00:33:27
Jagersfontein mine owner must be held to account


WaterCAN an initiative of OUTA (Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse), demands that the company which owns the Jagersfontein mine be held responsible for the loss of lives, the injuries and damage resulting from the horrifying collapse of the mine dam wall on Sunday. 
The collapse of the dam wall is a...

13.09.2022 00:04:31

Why we, the citizens, need to test our water resources

The state of SA’s water should be raising alarm bells, but the lack of transparency and reliable data drowns out the facts.

Image: Ground Up

“The amount of sewage and effluent spillages into canals and waterways across the country should be raisin...
06.09.2022 23:30:54
Where are the No Drop reports?


South Africa is a water scarce country, but we could be losing up to 50% of clean drinking water due to failing infrastructure and leaking pipes. Add to that the pollution of clean water and the problem of over abstraction,  and it is clear that our water resources are under severe strain. ...

30.08.2022 20:34:46


By Dr Ferrial Adam 
 
Those in distress are no longer the rural communities out of public view, but also increasingly in cities. The quantity and quality of our water affects women and girls disproportionately in terms of domestic use, safety, building livelihoods and opportunities. South Af...

08.08.2022 23:36:30