Notes for the Minister at the Green drop report release and awards ceremony on 1 April 2022
Thank you, Programme Director, Mr William Moraka from SALGA, Good morning to:
MEC for Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning – Mr Anton Bredell, MEC Local Government Western Cape, Mr Anton Bredell
Executive Mayor: Witzenberg Local Municipality (Host City Mayor) Cllr Hendrik Smit Executive Mayor: Mgungundlovu District Municipality, Cllr Mzi Zuma
Executive Mayor: Ilembe District Municipality, Cllr Philani Shandu
Executive Mayor: The City of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality, Cllr Tania Campbell Executive Mayor: Lesedi Local Municipality, Cllr Mluleki Nkosi
Deputy Executive Mayor of the City of Cape Town, Alderman Ian Neilson
Executive Mayor of Bitou Municipality, ( Rep: Act Director Engineering Services, Michael Rhode) Executive Mayor of Mosselbay, Cllr Dirk Kotze
Executive Mayor: Saldhana Local Municipality, Cllr Andre Truter Executive Mayor: Drakenstein Local Municipality, (Rep MMC Infrastructre Theunis Bester)
Director-General of the Department of Water and Sanitation, Dr Sean Western Cape Local Government HOD, Mr Graham Paulse BreedeGouritz Catchment Management Chair, Mr Bongani Mnisi BreedeGouritz Catchment Managemeent CE, Mr Jan Van Staden SASOL Representatives
Stakeholders from various sectors, Members of the community,
All media present, Ladies and Gentlemen, All protocol observed.
We are gathered here today to, not only release the Green Drop report but recognise and award those who have heeded the call and subscribed to ensuring that both citizens and the environment are protected – with the hopes of amplifying the call for all municipalities to join in.
In 2008, the Department of Water and Sanitation (the then Department of Water Affairs) introduced the Blue Drop and Green Drop certification programmes. The Blue Drop Certification Programme seeks to protect citizens from the hazards associated with contaminated drinking water and the Green Drop Certification programme seeks to protect the environment from the hazards associated with polluted wastewater/sewage. It sets standards higher than minimum requirements and challenges Water Services Authorities to go the extra mile in a quest for excellence. Whilst there is primary legislation which deals with these aspects, it needs to be understood is that these programmes are intended to augment and compliment the normal legislative and regulatory provisions.
What these two programmes also seek to do is get municipalities to measure themselves against international risk standards for drinking water quality management and wastewater quality respectively.
The first Blue Drop and Green Drop reports were released in 2009 and each year thereafter until 2014. It is unfortunate that there was a break in our undertaking but we have since resuscitated the programmes.
To this end, the Department has revitalised the Green Drop Certification programme to ensure the overall improvement of municipal wastewater management and today, the 1st report since 2014 will be released after which the audit of drinking water quality will be prioritised to inform the Blue Drop Report which is due in March 2023.
As we prepare for the release of the Blue Drop Report, there is also the National Water Quality Monitoring programmes to inform on the status of river water quality. All of this information is being used to inform a National Water Quality improvement plan which includes a Waste Discharge Charge system, to apply appropriate penalties in parallel to enforcement activities to stop all non-compliant discharges into the water courses.
The Department is focused on ensuring that compliance to legislation takes cause and remains dedicated to ensuring that risks revealed through these programmes are managed and abated in order to enhance the work of the Department as a water sector regulator.
Ladies and gentlemen, today we award 23 awards – 22 to municipal systems and 1 to a private system. Now I must say, the competition was quite tight with 30 municipalities scoring between 88-89%, making them serious contenders! This then means that those of you who will be accepting awards today need to stay ahead!
It was quite alarming however, that 334 systems out of 850 are classified as critical.
We had our National Water and Sanitation Summit in February this year, and one of the Commissions focused on ‘Water Shortages – Delivery Mechanisms by Municipalities and Water Boards’.
One of the key challenges we observed during our working sessions in the country, and which was further cited by Mayors, was ageing / aged infrastructure and this Commission sought to provide solutions as to how municipalities should be capacitated to ensure that they carry out their constitutional mandate.
The President spoke of a social compact. Private sector partners expressed their commitment to partnering with the Department through their support to launch the Green Drop Report. Mining Houses such as Lebalelo Water User Association (with whom we are partnering on the Olifants project in Limpopo), Samancor Mining and SASOL – thank you for your commitment - we look forward to working with you!
Ladies and gentlemen, members of the media, we as the Department of Water and Sanitation are committed to ensuring that all the citizens of the country are granted access to water – CLEAN water at that, but that also, the environment is not harmed in our operations as we do so!
As I step down, I would like to thank and congratulate all of the today’s award recipients – thank you for truly being in service of the people. To those who are still left behind, we call upon you to step -up!
Thank you!
