Breede-Gouritz Catchment Management Agency & Inkomati-Usuthu Catchment Management Agency 2021/22 APP; with Deputy Minister

Meeting report

Breede Gouritz Catchment Management Agency APP

The Breede Gouritz Catchment Management Agency (BGCMA) operated in the south-eastern part of the Western Cape. There were seven strategic objectives that focused on the management of raw water resources and the creation of awareness of the public and the BGCMA stakeholders.

In water use management, it fell short of its 85% target for finalising water registrations and achieved only 73%, due to the national system that was used to register water users not always being available. 100% of general authorisations were confirmed. The target of 80% of audit reports being completed for water use compliance was exceeded by 8%. These audits were important in creating awareness and ensuring that users complied with water use regulations.

The verification and confirmation of existing lawful water use from 1996 to 1998 remained ongoing and had proved challenging. The BGCMA had appointed a service provider to conduct the assessments.

In institutional and stakeholder relations, the BGCMA had managed to raise awareness to 25 000 learners and stakeholders on water resource management (WRM).

 Six intergovernmental cooperation initiatives were facilitated to enhance WRM, with the target being four. 100% of approved grant projects were funded. The BGCMA had a policy to support projects linked to WRM, such as food gardening and rain harvesting tanks.

Inkomati Usutu Catchment Management Agency APP

The Inkomati Usutu Catchment Management Agency had four outcomes. These were listed as increased stakeholder satisfaction, enhanced human resource capabilities, protected water resources and to maintain of financial stability.

For the 2021/2022 financial year, the Agency highlighted the verification and validation of water use and the expansion of the monitoring network as important projects and highlights. The Agency would also implement disaster management protocols and embark on more river cleaning and alien vegetation removal, as well as water conservation and demand management.

Economic empowerment had been achieved by strategic initiatives that the Agency had undertaken that encouraged broad-based black economic empowerment (BBBEE) participation in all procurement processes.

On the financial front, the targeted total expenditure for 2021/22 constituted R17 224 000 (40%) of the operating budget, exclusive of salaries, wages and related expenditure.

The total budget for the period under review stood at R139 million.

Discussion

Ms R Mohlala (EFF) recalled that both agencies said the validation and verification of water use per catchment area by the Department had assisted greatly in enhancing the capacity and streamlining operations. She wanted these two catchment agencies to explain how they had performed with the required tasks.

She also requested to be briefed on the risks the catchment agencies had envisaged for future sustainable operations.

The BGCMA was asked whether existing legal water users who had large volumes of water on their lands, had provided some of their water resources to small-scale farmers in the region.

Ms Mohlala said the stated goal of the Department was to monitor the devolution of water functions to local government as well as catchment areas. Outside of the untested District Development Model (DDM), what other mechanisms had been considered over the medium term to aid this process?

Ms N Sihlwayi (ANC) spoke out against the continued incidence of pollution, which she characterised as historical. She wanted to know what measures had been put in place to deal with polluters, as pollution also impacted “our people.” Polluters should be criminally prosecuted instead of just fines being imposed.

The Chairperson said the presentations by the two catchment agencies had been detailed, with clear objective to achieve outcomes. However, both had failed to mention the timeframes attached to the implementation of farmers' associations being transformed or integrated into the new Act. She said there had been agreement on the rationality for these associations to operate under the new legislation, and there was a need to stop them "using old laws.”

Responses

Deputy Minister Mahlobo said that the chairpersons of the catchment agencies would respond to the specific questions posed to them, but he wanted to raise a few points. The transformation of irrigation boards to water-use boards remained an important development.

Breede-Gouritz Catchment Management Agency (BGCMA)

Mr Bongani Mnisi, Chairperson, BGCMA, said that it had been discovered that the verification and validation process was much more complicated than initially expected. The process had not yet been concluded in the Breede-Gouritz catchment area. Based on preliminary results, some water users might allocate a certain portion to water-users, whereas others might expand.

The BGCMA continued to explore what came out in the field, and during a recent visit to the Gouritz area, several scary developments had been observed. Once the Agency received the verification and validation report, the matter of releasing water could then also be dealt with. Many farmers found it difficult to release water, especially when affected by drought conditions. Once the process had been completed, the BGCMA would be able to make a determination and report back to the committee.

He added that it continued to grant licences, and the chief executive officer (CEO) would elaborate in detail about the release of water by existing water users.

On the transformation of irrigation boards to water-user boards, he said that it had been discovered that some of these irrigation boards had not been viable enough to function as water-use boards on their own. The best advice he could offer would be for these irrigation boards to form partnerships or conglomerates, in order to be viable and sustainable entities. Work on the transformation remained ongoing.

On the polluter pays principle, he said the BGCMA also did not appreciate pollution, even if those polluters had the financial means to pay a fine. No fine could mitigate the damage to the natural resources and livelihoods of people who lived downstream.

Mr Jan van Staden, Acting CEO, BGCMA, said that prior to 2014, the BGCMA had been called the Breede-Overberg Catchment Area. To date, the validation and verification of Breede had been concluded, and a service provider had been appointed to conduct the Gouritz assessment.

He added that the transformation process had been difficult, in large part due to the mode of communication. Communication with water-users took place via letters sent through the Post Office. As a result of the challenges experienced by the Post Office, the letters had either arrived late or not at all. The Department had since applied for permission to switch to an electronic mode of communication.

On the release of water to emerging farmers by water user associations, he said the area in question received its rainfall mostly in winter, but the best crops grew in summer. In winter, water could be stored in a big dam that could then be released for consumption in summer. The area also had sufficient groundwater available, as well as a big government water scheme through which water could be stored during the winter months.

The Department had also begun work on the construction of a facility at Brandvlei which would allocate the majority of the water to small-scale farmers. He emphasised that farmers had been willing to assist.

Pollution had terrible consequences for affected parties. There were no industries in the region, so the only logical conclusion he could draw was that it had to emanate from the municipal network. Discussions had been held with farmers on the need to prevent pollution, and if pollution persisted, the files would then be handed over to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

On the transformation of irrigation boards to water user associations, he informed the Committee that assessments had already been concluded, and an analysis had been send it to the Department for approval. If everything was done according to the prescripts, the process should be fully completed within 18 months. This goal could be attained only if everyone worked together.

The sustainability of these water user associations depended largely on funding. The pricing strategy had not allowed the BGCMA to generate revenue for operations. This posed a significant risk.

An additional risk pertained to the augmentation received by the Department. If this augmentation was stopped, the BGCMA would not be able to balance its books. Drought was another risk, as the decrease in farmers' revenue meant they might be unable to pay their water charges.

Inkomati-Usuthu Catchment Management Agency

The Chairperson of the IUCMA said that transformation remained a problem, and that the Agency would need a grant to facilitate this process. It had an approved revenue enhancement strategy in place, he added.

The IUCMA still encountered major problems with decaying municipal infrastructure, and in some cases where the problem persisted, criminal cases would ensue and pollution charges imposed.

Adv M Shabangu, Acting CEO, UICMA, said that significant progress on the verification and validation process had been made.

Dr Jennifer Molwantwa, IUCMA’s Executive for Water Resource Management, added that the verification and validation process currently stood at 62%, whereas it had previously been 90%. The IUCMA had established a division for data and information that would update information on farms as they were sold and/or divided.

The viability and sustainability of these yet to be established entities remained a risk to the resource itself, with the impact of climate change, especially since South Africa had just emerged from a five-year drought.

She said the IUCMA had identified that the Crocodile catchment area needed a storage facility. This would ensure compliance with international obligations.

Finances remained a key factor, and that the profile of users in the area indicated poor households, as well as unused restituted land.

The pricing strategy posed a risk in the determination of the actual unit price of water. This called for close consultation with stakeholders on price determination. She explained that currently it cost about R100 to apply for a water use licence, whereas the resources utilised to conduct an assessment amounted to more than R100.

Decayed local government infrastructure posed a great challenge, and in most cases culprits disposed of pollution at night, when no one could see them.

She added that due to the significant risk that pollution posed to operations, a telemetric monitor had been installed that turned out information in real time. This enabled the UICMA to respond to pollution in real time. Unused and old mines continued to be a problem as well

The transformation from irrigation boards to water user associations had already commenced, and the UICMA had assisted the Department to facilitate this process. They were aiming to conclude at the end of this financial year. The principles of agreement for the composition of these new water user associations should include a new voting process, otherwise no real transformation would be effected.

The UICMA had already received complaints from historically disadvantaged individuals, as well as emerging farmers, who charged that the existing irrigation boards had actually mandated themselves to transform. They alleged that this had been an attempt to “window dress” and maintain the current status quo.

Department of Water and Sanitation

Ms Thoko Sigwaza, Acting DDG: Regulations, Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), said the National Water Act facilitated the devolution of water resource management to the local government level. This Act had been promulgated in 1998, and it had been envisaged that the transformation of irrigation boards would take about six months from the time of promulgation. The Department had not been proud of this delay.

As the CMAs were taking off, their transformation efforts would be assisted. Currently, about 200 irrigation boards existed in South Africa. These entities had been created in 1956 and continued to be regarded as important, as they contributed towards food security and the irrigation sector.

 Part of the water resource management team had been working with the South African network of water-user associations, and had developed critical indicators on transformation that were comprised of a new voting process for the election of new management. The one-person-one-vote principle would be applicable, and not the amount of land or hectares someone owned.

The DWS had noted an improvement from these irrigation boards, which had started to approach the Department for guidance. This was an important step, as the main priority had been to bring them under the National Water Act that enabled the Department to regulate them.

She added that these entities had been busy crafting a Transformation Charter that would drive the transformation of these boards. Once they had concluded the Charter, as well as their other planning, they resolved to submit a letter that contained their efforts at transformation.

She conceded that the transformation process would not be finalised within this financial year and that projections indicated a three to five year period until all the irrigation boards had been brought under the National Water Act.

On the devolution of powers to the Minister, she said the Minister had monitored developments through regulations, and the Department had not done that well. It had decided to introduce the “green and blue drop “ initiatives that had been geared towards water conservation and demand management, at the municipal level.

The Department had been invited to workshops by the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) to be familiarised with the DDM. COGTA had pledged to assist with revenue collection management, and had advised that the DDM would enable revenue collection to be enforced at the local level.

A senior DWS official said the Department appreciated the guidance that had been provided by the catchment agencies, which had assisted greatly. She applauded them on their transformation initiatives. The Department looked forward to the expansion and hoped that they would be fully established soon.

She added that the Agencies' APPs showed that they had been hard at work, and had prioritised transformation and the inclusion of youth in their operations. She acknowledged the challenges with the verification and validation process, and looked forward to this process being completed.

She also decried the challenge of pollution, and said the Department did not tolerate this behaviour. This type of action would be curtailed once the catchment management agencies were established all over the country.

Deputy Minister's concluding remarks

Deputy Minister David Mahlobo said that issues around financial stability had to be properly interrogated, and proposed that a follow-up interaction with the Committee be held. He said many water entities had been struggling as a result of non-payment, as many member organisations had not paid their full dues. He was happy that Members had brought up the viability and sustainability question.

He conceded that the DWS had lagged behind in its transformation efforts, as well as the issuance of compulsory licences for transformation. He committed the Department to focus on these issues, as well as the verification and validation process.

Chairperson's concluding remarks

The Chairperson thanked the Deputy Minister and his team at the Department, as well as the two catchment management agencies, for their attendance.

She proposed to the Department that there was a need to strengthen the capacity of the unit that dealt with verification and validation. This unit had not been performing very well for the past three years.

The meeting was adjourned.