Almost all water systems/ facilities are out-dated and water is being lost due to daily water pipes leakages. Unauthorised sources claim that 40 per cent of South African water (a scarce resource) is being lost through water pipes leakages. The unfortunate fact is that it is either that municipalities do not have money to repair water pipes or that municipalities do not have human resources that understand water structures/systems that are buried underground. Costs to repair and maintain these water pipes are escalated by the fact that the majority of these water pipes are made of asbestos and asbestos water pipes are no loner available in the market and these water pipes have to be replaced with plastic water pipes. This poses a serious challenge to most municipalities since the budget for water repairs and maintenance is a low as a percentage of the total operating budget. The Committees are of the view that funds should be made available and ring-fenced for the replacement of existing water pipes with plastic water pipes. A form of a conditional grant may be created for this purpose. It is needless to state that this is critical for a water-scarce country like South Africa.