In a very candid interview with Weslander, Premier Helen Zille said if a solution can’t be found to withdraw water from the Elandsfontein aquifer, then it is a real possibility that Saldanha Bay could close down, a disaster scenario that she will not allow to happen.
The Western Cape premier, with MEC’s Alan Winde and Anton Bredell, was in Vredenburg Friday morning 3 November to discuss possible solutions for the current water crisis with key local industry role players, Saldanha Bay Municipality and representatives from various government departments.
In Saldanha Bay area industry are the biggest water users (60%). The area’s alternatives for water supply are mainly groundwater resources, the biggest of which is the Elandsfontein aquifer which is also the location of the phosphate mine belonging to mining company Kropz. The local civic environmentalist group West Coast Environmental Protection Association (WCEPA) this year instituted legal proceedings against Kropz and the Department of Water Affairs and Sanitation (DWS) regarding the granting of a Water Use Licence (WUL) to the mine in April. Although the mine closed temporarily in September, they are still dewatering the aquifer and recharging water back into the waterbody through a series of 36 boreholes.
Without water from this aquifer, should the Western Cape Water Supply System fail by March, as currently predicted, the Saldanha Bay Municipality only has enough water to supply around 38 litres of water per person per day and none for industry.
“If we can’t arrive at a solution for Elandsfontein, then the possibility exist that Saldanha Bay will close down. Then we will have water refugees,” Zille confirmed during an interview with Weslander.
A scenario she said she as premier can’t allow to happen and she is willing to make difficult decisions ‘to save life and limb’. Zille said she is confident a solution can be found to withdraw water responsibly from the aquifer in a manner that is measurable and verifiable, without putting the aquifer at risk. She emphasized that this would only be for a year during which all spheres of government would work hard to find alternative sustainable water supply solutions so that there will not be a repeat of the current crisis.
Zille has set up a meeting with WCEPA for the coming week. Saldanha Bay Mayor Marius Koen said afterwards, although they are very concerned about the situation, he has full confidence in the premier that she will mitigate the situation.
