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Rand Water station in Roodepoort.
Water expert and former Director – General of Water and Sanitation Prof. Mike Muller has welcomed Rand Water’s maintenance programme, saying routine upkeep is essential to ensure long-term water supply reliability.
Phase one of its maintenance programme began on Friday and is expected to continue until 2nd June, with phase two set for 17th July.
Rand Water acknowledges that some areas will experience little to no water supply during the maintenance period.
Muller warned that ageing and leaking infrastructure continues to place pressure on the province’s water system.
“This kind of maintenance for 12 or 24 hours actually doesn’t need to even interrupt water supply if we have enough reservoirs in the cities and towns which are supplied by Rand Water to maintain the services while the tap is switched off. But I think what we found is that the population has grown very fast.”
Meanwhile, Joburg Water says it has deployed both roving and stationary water tankers to areas affected by the ongoing water infrastructure maintenance programme across greater Johannesburg.
Affected areas include Roodepoort, Soweto and Sandton.
Joburg Water spokesperson Nombuso Shabalala says priority is given to schools, hospitals and informal settlements.
She urged residents to report any water-related challenges to the utility.
“Community members can either contact their councillors; they can also call Johannesburg Water or reach us through our social media platforms. We take complaints very seriously and are against any misconduct. We will investigate that,” says Shabalala.
