The objectives and the legal framework within which they are to be pursued, as described in the previous section, must direct the activities of water management. To do this, there must first be an understanding of what water management entails.
Historically, the major management activity has been the development of systems to store and transport water. The construction and operation of great dams, tunnels and pipelines, the local construction of systems of weirs, pump stations and irrigation canals, has symbolised what for many was the business of water management. As activities which use water have become more varied, and as the use of water has become more intense, the nature of the water management business has changed.
Today, there is as much concern to minimise the impact of other activities on water resources as there is to develop new water sources, for there is no benefit to gaining access to more water if its quality is so poor that it cannot be used. Greater attention is also being given to the efficient use of water since, with so much demand, there is little incentive to transport water long distances to one set of users if that means depriving others. There remains a concern with the administration, monitoring and enforcement of water use allocations.
To achieve the new goals, systematic monitoring and evaluation of information have become critical. With this, the tools used for achieving efficient water use and protection of the resource are no longer simple engineering methods. The application of law, economics, natural resource management approaches and the science of organisations, reinforced with the skills of communication are increasingly important.
The activities which together comprise water management have thus expanded greatly. But the scope within which they are practised has also changed and expanded beyond the rivers and lakes. This calls for a fundamental reassessment of the whole activity.
This section addresses the specific activities which together comprise water management and outlines the new policy which will guide them in the future. Section 7 addresses the organisational approaches that will be required to implement these new policy approaches.
6.2.1. Background
The legal framework within which water allocation will be made has been outlined above. The approach to the implementation of this framework will have to take account of the specific circumstances in different areas of the country.
In many areas, most of the readily available and reliable water resources are already being used under the old riparian system. This places limits on the new uses to which water can be put and constraints on other potential users. The new approach will have to enable and encourage a move towards a more optimum use of the nation’s limited water and ensure greater flexibility of allocation in the future.
The process itself will be guided by considerations of public interest including corrective action, existing infrastructural investment (where sustainable), the dependence of the rural economy on water allocations and the recognition of the indirect social and environmental costs that result from the use of water. These considerations will make sure that the introduction of the new system of water allocation does not inflict avoidable or unnecessary damage on regional economies or on particular groups such as farmers and farm workers.
The way in which the new approach is introduced will be central to the success of future water management and the new arrangements must therefore be put in place in an orderly, efficient manner. These new arrangements will have to focus first on the areas where competing demands on the resource are greatest, requiring a phased introduction. The manner in which they are introduced must not cause uncertainty and thereby hamper economic activity. Transitional provisions will therefore have to be included to ensure that, at all stages in the process, water users are clear about what they can and cannot do.
The system will have to be administratively feasible and able to deal with the estimated:
6.2.2. Allocation Licensing Policy
Under the new system, existing water users will have to apply for registration of their water use within a set time period. These applications will be examined and, where justified and possible, converted into a licence under the new law. (Once this period is over, all applications will be treated as new applications).
After providing for the Reserve and international obligations, the basis for granting a licence to use water available in the area will be to achieve beneficial use in the public interest which will include consideration of the need for programmes of corrective action. Any allocation of water for transfers to other basins will be subject to conditions which ensure that reasonable needs in the donor catchment are met.
Between the application for registration and the granting of a licence (if any) there will be a transitional period during which existing use of water which was legal under the Water Act 54 of 1956 will be allowed to continue. If no application is made for the registration of an existing water-use, it will be assumed that that use has been abandoned and the water will be considered to be available for allocation.
Licences to use water will be granted for a period of time appropriate to the particular use. Long term crops or industrial uses that involve substantial infrastructure investments with long time horizons will be given longer term licences. To facilitate the process of allocation and review, licenses will be granted on a five year cycle with a maximum length of forty years.
Holders of licences will be able to apply for a licence renewal during the period that the licence is valid. New applications will be considered at the same time as applications for renewal. Where new applications compete with existing uses, the criteria which will guide the granting of renewals or new allocations will include the Reserve, equity and the optimum use of water.
The proposed system could function on a purely administrative basis but water pricing could also be used to assist in the allocation process. The system would also be compatible with provisions for creating a market in water use allocations should that become desirable in the future (See Section 6.5.3).
Licensed users (including those who have applied for licences for existing uses) will have both privileges of use and responsibilities and will be subject to various charges, including a catchment management charge which will assist in funding the allocation system (see Section 6.5.2).
6.2.3. Allocation Licensing Procedures
Applications for registration will be assessed in a sequence of priority areas. Areas under water stress, in which competition between users, damage to the environment or prejudice to neighbouring states is noted will generally be considered first.
In an area designated for licensing, consideration will be given to the requirements of the Reserve, international obligations, long term planning requirements for inter-basin transfers as well as existing uses. In this process, Principle 20, which takes account of investment in existing infrastructure, will guide decisions and will inform the period for which an initial allocation will be licensed.
Before any allocation of available surface or groundwater can be made, the resources will have to be assessed. In some areas, there is already enough information, in others, preliminary estimates based on limited information will have to be used. In these cases, provision may be made for future adjustments when further information has been collected.
In general, allocations should be specific in terms of the location of water use, the volume of water to be used, the time at which it is to be abstracted, its quality and reliability. Since it may not always be possible to specify direct measures of volume, duration and quality of water to be used, indirect methods of allocation such as the authorisation of areas and/or methods of cultivation, size of storage dams, and pump capacity may be used as well as general standards of quality for a particular area.
There may be circumstances in which users are unwilling or unable to pay for their water use. Unless eligible for a specific programme of corrective action (see Section 6.5.3) these users will not be registered under the new allocation system and will be regarded as occasional. Water use under these conditions may be terminated or allocated without prior notice to any other user or potential user who applies. In those areas in which the supply of water is still greater than the demand, water users will be given the opportunity to register, which will oblige them to pay the catchment management charge, but which would also secure their use of that water for the time period of the license.
In areas which are not initially subject to registration, existing uses in terms of the Water Act and other law will not immediately be affected but will be deemed to be use authorised in terms of the new system and will continue until such time as the area is designated for allocation.
Appropriate mechanisms will be created to make sure that there is procedural fairness in all allocation decisions and the development of appropriate dispute resolution mechanisms will make sure that the new system meets all the requirements of administrative justice (see Section 7.2.7).
6.2.4. Application to Groundwater and Indirect Land Uses
All allocation procedures will apply to groundwater which is, particularly in the more arid provinces such as Northern Cape and North West Province, a critically important resource. However, since groundwater is also a relatively poorly understood source of water whose management is a complex matter, special provisions may be necessary (See Section 6.6.3). The general approach will initially be to refrain from making formal allocations except where there is clear evidence that groundwater abstraction is impacting negatively on other water users and on the environment.
Similarly, in terms of the policy, provision will be made to licence land uses which substantially impact on the availability of water in an area. This is already being done for forestry and consideration will be made to the extension of the approach to other land uses where it can be shown that these significantly impact upon other water users. The existing afforestation permit system will be integrated into the new allocation system and existing permits will be honoured.
6.3.1 Background
We rely on water resources not only to give us water for domestic purposes, agriculture or industry but also to provide certain silent services. These include the removal and purification of wastes, the commercial and subsistence supply of food and plants, the retention and storage of water and the transport of floods as well as opportunities for recreation and ecotourism and the conservation of biodiversity through the maintenance of habitats.
All of these services are benefits of water resource utilisation. If water resources are over-utilised for short term benefit, or if water resources are degraded due to the impacts of waste discharges and land use, they can lose their ability to sustain utilisation in the long term. Hence it is essential to protect water resources in order to ensure their sustainable utilisation.
The Constitution entitles South Africans to expect that their environment, including their water resources, will be protected from unsustainable use and harmful impacts. The establishment of the Environmental Reserve is an important step in this direction since, under previous legislation, there was only limited provision to reserve a quantity of water for environmental protection purposes. The challenge now is to translate the concept of the Reserve into practical policy and to make provision to ensure that the environmental objectives of water resource management are attained.
6.3.2. Resource Quality and Protection
The water and water-related services which people use are not dependent only on the physical and chemical characteristics of the water itself, but on the healthy functioning of whole ecosystems, such as rivers, lakes, dams, wetlands, estuaries or the coastal marine environment. The term resource quality is used to include the health of all of the parts of a water resource which together make up an ecosystem, including plant and animal communities and their habitats. It is the healthy functioning of the whole ecosystem which gives a water resource its ability to recover from droughts, floods and the impacts of human use. Therefore the most effective approach is to use receiving water quality objectives as the basis for water environmental quality management.
In setting the Environmental Reserve, we must therefore seek to identify and provide for all the factors needed for a water resource to function: the quality, quantity and reliability of water; the physical and vegetation aspects of habitat in the water and on the banks; and the numbers and kinds of plant and animal communities - and their interactions - that allow resources to function.
For effective resource protection, two separate sets of measures are required. The first are resource-directed measures which set clear objectives for the desired level of protection for each resource. The second are source-directed controls which aim to control what is done to the water resources so that the resource protection objectives are achieved. These include source reduction measures which aim to reduce or eliminate the production of potential pollutants which could harm our water resources.
6.3.3. Resource Protection
A national resource protection classification system will be introduced. Through a process of consensus-seeking among water users and other stakeholders, the level of protection for a resource will be decided by setting objectives for each aspect of the Reserve (water quality, quantity and assurance, habitat structure, and living organisms). The objectives for each aspect of the Reserve will show what degree of change or impact is considered acceptable, and unlikely to damage a water resource beyond repair.
Resources will be grouped into a number of protection classes, with each class representing a certain level of protection. Where a high level of protection is required, the objectives will be strict, demanding a low risk of damage and the use of great caution. In other cases, the need for short to medium term use may be more pressing and the need for protection lower. Some resources may already need action to restore them to a healthy state, and, in future, no resources should be allowed to become irreversibly degraded.
At the same time efforts to introduce source control will be strengthened, through permits and standards, and through changes in technologies and land-use, with the final aim of getting as close as possible to a situation in which there is no discharge of pollutants into our water.
While the approach proposed emphasises the involvement of water users and other stakeholders in establishing the resource protection objectives, the public trust places the responsibility on Government to make sure that environmental interests are represented and that the resource is effectively protected.
As with the new allocation system, the classification system will have to be phased in over a reasonable time and may begin with pilot projects in selected rivers and important catchments. These may be selected to coincide with those chosen to start the new allocation system.
6.3.4. Source Directed Controls and their Enforcement
Almost every activity which takes place on land affects our water resources in some way. To control these impacts on the resource, planning must be based on water catchment rather than political borders. Actions that cause or contribute to decreasing resource quality can only be controlled if water- and land-users change their behaviour. They will therefore be encouraged to choose and develop technologies that meet the standards set by Government and to develop appropriate codes of practice.
Procedures for consultation in this regard will be put in place to allow Government to protect human and environmental health in relation to water quality and quantity.
Since serious impacts such as hazardous waste spills (see Section 6.7) may be beyond the capacity of local or provincial government, the system of co-operative governance must allow the national Department to provide assistance so that local and provincial authorities are able to deal effectively with emergency situations. The Minister will establish procedures in order to encourage and coordinate the response to serious incidents that threaten the nation’s water resources.
Offenders must be prosecuted speedily, avoiding the delays which occur under the existing system. Consideration will be given to the possibility of giving the national Department, which manages the resource protection function, the power to carry out its own prosecution of people or organisations who break the water law. Penalties for serious offences will reflect the extent and nature of the damage, and must include provision for the recovery of the costs of repairing the damage.
On a wider scale, the Government agency responsible for water resource protection must be able to influence or prevent land use planning decisions which could lead to unacceptable impacts on water resources. Consideration will also be given to the control of other activities which can have serious impacts on water resources but over which water managers currently have no direct control, such as radioactive pollution, and the disposal and importation of hazardous wastes.
Protection of water resources will be enforced through a system of source-directed measures, including the registration of sources of impact, standards for waste discharges, best management practices, permits and impact assessments. The use of directives and fines, and the ability to suspend or revoke permits and licenses, are effective options for dealing quickly and effectively with cases of pollution. The use of regulatory measures to control damage to resources other than pollution, such as habitat destruction, will be introduced where appropriate.
To encourage a reduction in pollution, a system of economic incentives will be put in place, in which charges will be introduced for the discharge of waste into water bodies (see Section 6.5). This will encourage the development of low-waste and non-waste technologies (Principle 16). Funds raised in this way should be used for resource quality management and protection activities.
6.4.1. Background
The historic function of the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry, and its predecessor, the Department of Irrigation was to meet the needs of those water users which the Government wanted to assist. Attention was focused primarily on the development of water sources, and, more recently, on the maintenance of water quality to meet the requirements of water users.
The task of water managers in the future will be more complex since it will no longer be possible simply to meet the demands of users or to ignore the demands of any particular group. Water management will focus instead on promoting the optimum use of water. As pressure on the resource grows, this will require that we give as much attention to limiting water use as to supplying it. Often we will be able to make water available for new users without harming the interests of existing users as is demonstrated by the Working for Water campaign which generates jobs and social development while removing water-hungry invasive plants and trees.
New approaches to water management will be needed. These will have to focus on the way in which water is used (efficiency, effectiveness and demand management) in each user sector rather than simply on predicting, planning and supplying its water needs. It will also require a systematic approach to resource conservation, linked to the resource protection policy described in Section 6.3.
This focus on individual sectors requires a framework for intervention which, without trespassing on the underlying autonomy of the user sector, guides its water related activities towards an optimum and sustainable path and promotes a spirit of resource conservation.
The key sectors include:
For programmes of intervention aimed at promoting optimal use within these user sectors to be effective, there are certain requirements.
6.4.2. Promoting Conservation and Better Utilisation
Many of these concerns are dealt with in Section 7 but there are some basic issues which need to be highlighted.
The first is the importance of achieving the right balance between promotion and enforcement by, for example, developing subsidy and incentive systems rather than focusing on penalties such as legal action for permit contraventions and the denial of permits. The exact combination of incentives and penalties may be situation-specific. Flexibility to address different situations is a key requirement for successful management. However, the limits of self-regulation should be recognised. Water is too valuable a commodity for its management to be handed over to its users and there remains a vital role for external monitoring and enforcement.
The second is the need to decide how to promote better water utilisation. Promotion through research, pilot projects, education and general communication activities will work best within a supportive framework which includes regulatory incentives and penalties.
A third, related, issue is that of providing information on a comparative basis about how different users are behaving and what they are achieving can be very effective in identifying problem areas and encouraging action.
A final and important overall consideration is the structuring of management programmes for the individual user sectors. The promotion of conservation and better use is an important function in its own right and the organisation of the national Department, its agencies and the user sectors themselves should reflect this.
A policy framework has already been introduced for water supply and sanitation services. In the draft Water Services Bill, the supportive elements needed to encourage conservation and efficient use have been combined in a framework which makes it possible to penalise a failure to use water efficiently. Frameworks are also under development for irrigation farming and forestry.
The Water Research Commission has supported a great deal of work to improve water use in, and particularly the quality of waste water from, manufacturing industry, but much remains to be done. A formal framework for promoting water efficiency in industry still needs to be developed. Similarly, the framework for water use in mining requires further development and specific attention.
Work must still be done to provide a framework for the use of water for recreational and ecotourism purposes. This must focus not only on the technical mechanisms for defining and achieving specific goals in a catchment area but also on how to align broad resource protection goals with specific recreational and ecotourism uses.
Tools and methodologies
The development of appropriate tools and methodologies (such as demand management, water use audits, fitting of water-efficient domestic fittings, pre-payment metering, the promotion of best available industrial technology in industry, strategic environmental assessments, and environmental impact assessments) will be vital to the success of water conservation.
The collection and analysis of data and the circulation of information will also be very important. The aim should be for all users to know how well (or badly) they are performing in comparison with their neighbours and other users, and to measure this against the environmental objectives they have jointly set for the resource which supplies them (see Section 6.3).
Finally, to improve water use and promote conservation, communication and educational activities are very important. The National Water Conservation Campaign has already been established for this purpose and its research and pilot project activities need to be further strengthened and integrated into the work of the Department.
6.4.3. Conservation and Utilisation Policy
A formal policy will be developed for water conservation and use in each of the main user sectors, such as agriculture, industry and mining. These will include regulations for water conservation in each use sector to ensure their long-term water security.
Specific institutional arrangements will be made to promote more efficient water use . The conservation and water demand management function of the national Department will be strengthened and greater priority will be given to this area. In addition, the National Water Advisory Council will be requested to establish sub-committees to study sectoral water use and to make proposals for its improvement.
6.5.1. Background
The policies for water resource protection, conservation and allocation have all identified that there is a possible role for economic measures such as water charges to support the policies proposed. It has also been noted that the historic financial arrangements for water resource development in South Africa have not been adequate. An estimated twenty billion rands worth of water resource infrastructure has been built by the State, for the benefit of users many of whom do not even pay the operational management costs incurred, let alone any contribution to capital. In addition, the new Government has also inherited a number of grossly under-used water schemes paid for by the public.
At the same time, current budgetary constraints mean that a number of sound water resource projects cannot be implemented despite the fact that some are clearly financially viable while many others are economically and socially justifiable.
What is at issue is the way water is valued as an economic resource, the costs incurred to make the resource available to users and the methods used to cover those costs. In pursuit of the objectives of water management, it is widely agreed that the setting of the appropriate price for a natural resource such as water can be an effective mechanism to achieve its efficient and productive use.
This issue is separate from the financing arrangements for the water purification and distribution services provided by Water Boards and Local Authorities. These services are affected only insofar as their costs include a component to cover the cost of the resource they use. Policy with respect to water services has been established in the Water Supply and Sanitation White Paper and the draft Water Services Bill. The financing and operational costs incurred by Irrigation Boards in the distribution of water to farmers are also being dealt with separately .
The Cabinet decided in February 1996 that the price paid for water by major users should progressively be raised to meet the full financial costs of making it available and to reflect its value to society. At present however, the Water Act only allows for the charging of tariffs for water supplied from Government Water Schemes, which account for only about a third of the water used in South Africa. One priority of the new legislation will therefore be to ensure that all water use is covered by the new policy.
6.5.2. Future Trends
South Africa is not the only country re-examining the approach to the price of water and its role in water management. Under the pressure of development and population growth, many countries have begun to experiment with approaches that can sustain their water use into the future. South Africa’s particular circumstances, however, demand that the issues be reviewed in the context of achieving Principle 7’s optimum, long term, environmentally sustainable, social and economic benefit for society from their use.
Many of the financial constraints faced in water resource development will be removed if the responsibility for paying the costs of such development is accepted by the users.
The costs incurred in making water available at source include some or all of the following elements:
Payment for less direct water uses also needs to be addressed. There are two important examples of water use for which no charge is currently levied but which impose significant costs on other users and on society more generally.
The first is afforestation and other water intensive dryland agriculture which intercept rain in high rainfall areas and reduce river flow for other users. The second is the disposal of waste into rivers or other water bodies to remove wastes and render them acceptable. Water bodies can absorb only a certain quantity of wastes without ill effect. So if one discharger disposes of waste, another will be prevented from using the river for the same purpose. This highlights the fact that receiving water capacity is a valuable property in its own right and should perhaps be managed from an economic as well as from an environmental protection perspective (see Section 6.3.4).
A final issue relates to the approach to water as a scarce resource and the need for water conservation and management of demand. Resource economics suggests that one way of achieving these goals is to set a price that reflects this scarcity. This could involve imposing an additional resource conservation charge. Consideration must be given to how this can practically be applied in South Africa.
There are many problems that water pricing will not necessarily solve. It is important to make sure that approaches to water pricing do not hamper, but actively promote, the move towards equity of access and the ability to address the claim for access to water by those South Africans who were historically denied this. It must also be recognised that there may be environmental and social costs of water use and resource development which are not reflected in the water price.
If it is decided to use water pricing as one tool to promote more efficient and equitable water use, the approach used to set the price for water and recover the payment will be as important as the principle of charging a price.
Direct financial costs, including catchment management costs, can easily be calculated. In circumstances where a resource conservation charge is to be levied, an approach is required to set this charge at an appropriate level.
In areas where there is competition for water, charging a price for water will not in itself achieve the objectives of efficient use unless the price is appropriate. Too high a price will discourage water use that might otherwise have brought benefit to society and water will flow, unused for direct human benefit, to the sea. Too low a price will result in overuse in some areas and shortages in others which will deny potential users access to water which they could have used productively.
While the administrative approach to price setting has some limitations in the current South African situation, the trading in water-use allocations as a price setting mechanism also has its limitations and is by no means free from administrative burdens. Even with a limited market, there are many difficulties inherent in creating a system of allocations which can freely be traded, not least the practical difficulty of taking water from one location and making it available in another.
Given these problems, the prices generated by trading in water-use allocations will not necessarily reflect the real value of the resource. Also, if a market system were to be introduced, it would be unacceptable for landowners who received water-use allocation under an unjust system of land acquisition to exploit their historical privilege and to gain windfall profits from its new cash value.
An alternative way to set an appropriate price for water use (or waste discharge) would be by pooling available allocations and selling them by tender or through an auction, managed by the water administration. Water allocations could be offered within a given area and all potential users offered the opportunity to bid for them. However, such an approach also has limitations in a country where wealth is concentrated in the hands of a small, privileged, minority.
The application of a resource conservation charge set by one of these mechanisms would be consistent with the public trust as expressed in Principle 13 which requires Government to ensure that the development, apportionment, management and use of those resources is carried out using the criteria of public interest, sustainability, equity and efficiency of use in a manner which reflects ... the value of water to society.
Policy evolution on this issue is still at an early stage and further consideration will be necessary. Since the general introduction of resource conservation charges will not be possible until the allocation system is in place, only pilot scale implementation can be considered at this stage. Resource conservation charges may thus be applied, in specific cases and subject to the Minister’s approval. In the first places where these charges are introduced, the effects of such charges will be carefully monitored, to make sure that they achieve their goals.
Equity
It is important that the introduction of realistic pricing for water does not further penalise disadvantaged communities who were already penalised during the apartheid era. White communities were given a strong economic advantage under apartheid through access to cheap water, while economic development in black communities was restricted by a variety of factors, one of which was lack of access to affordable water. In the interests of equity and social justice, this aspect will have to be considered in the question of water pricing. The price to be levied for water reserved to meet basic needs must merit particular attention.
6.5.3. Water Pricing Policy
To achieve the objectives of water management identified in Section 4, all significant water resource use will be charged for, regardless of where it occurs, and including the use of water for effluent disposal or the interception of water to the detriment of other users.
Government will move systematically to achieve realistic water pricing within a reasonable time frame.
The only exception will be in respect of the Reserve for basic human needs. This will be provided free of charge in support of the current policy of Government which is to encourage the adoption of lifeline tariffs for water services to ensure that all South Africans can achieve access to basic services. Government budgetary expenditure on the capital costs of water resource development will increasingly be limited to projects that provide basic needs, assure the environmental reserve or assist in meeting South Africa’s commitments to its neighbours.
The water prices to be charged by the Government from its own water schemes will be adjusted over a reasonable period to cover the full operation, maintenance costs and financial costs of existing Government Water Schemes including (where applicable) interest and redemption of loans, depreciation of assets and water resource management costs. A resource conservation charge will be introduced as and when appropriate.
Outside of Government Water Schemes, the price of water will reflect water resource management costs as well as an appropriate resource conservation charge.
The price of water will vary according to location and will be calculated on a system, catchment or sub-catchment basis. It will include operating, maintenance and capital costs where appropriate as well as a water resource management levy and a resource conservation charge. The levy may include charges for effluent disposal and significant interception as a result of land uses such as afforestation or agriculture.
Disadvantaged individuals and communities will be supported through specific measures for beneficiaries of land restitution, land reform or other programmes of corrective action. These may include periods during which the full cost of water will not be charged. This would be a form of establishment support in the case of newly established enterprises.
Where the imposition of the full water price discourages the use of available water, provision may be made for some elements of the tariff, including capital and depreciation costs in existing Government water schemes, or the resource conservation charge, to be suspended for a limited period of time.
Provision may be made to allow trading in water-use allocations in limited areas. If introduced, this will be subject to varying degrees of control depending on whether it is within a single user sector or between such sectors and whether it is within or between water management areas. Particular attention will be paid to evaluating whether equity objectives and fair resource allocations are achieved.
Income from water charges will be divided between operational agencies, water management authorities and national Government in accordance with their contributions and responsibilities.
The present research levy will be maintained and will continue to be administered through the Water Research Act (see Section 7.4).
6.6.1. Background
In the previous sections, it has been highlighted that South Africa’s future water resource needs cannot be met simply by building new water schemes, heavily subsidised by the state, as they were in the past. The impression that this was possible was created, in part, by the fact that many of the country’s previous water projects were built to serve the interests of a minority of water users within what was already a privileged minority of the country’s population. This created an approach to water resource development which would be completely unsustainable if applied to meet the needs and desires of all the people of the country. Already, as noted in the section on water pricing, capital grants to build new schemes are increasingly limited and most users will in future be expected to pay the costs of developing schemes to serve their needs.
A further factor is that many of the more obvious opportunities for resource development have already been used. Dams have been built in the best locations to capture the most obvious water surpluses and water sources which are closest to places where demand is growing have already been tapped. While unconventional sources of water, such as desalination, weather modification, water harvesting, suppression of evaporation, use of icebergs, and importation have been studied, none are yet practical or affordable except on a very small and localised level.
Nevertheless, development of water infrastructure, including the building of more dams, canals and pipelines, pumps and boreholes will still be required. Inter-basin transfer schemes (IBTs) which move water from one part of the country to another have, in particular, served to redistribute water across the country to where it is needed. Current planning predictions suggest that this will have to continue if the economic growth and social development of the country is not to be stunted. This highlights the need to ensure that water resource development is planned in coordination with the broader planning of economic and social development and that delays in water development do not block other activities.
There is thus a need for the existing system for promoting and controlling water development to be reviewed to make sure that development which is in the public interest can continue to occur efficiently and that public safety is maintained. Approaches must be introduced to ensure that development is implemented in a manner which is supportive of and compatible with the new goals of water policy and of development policy more generally. Given growing concern for the environment and the impact of large projects on local communities, ways must be found to ensure that reasonable concerns about such developments are heard and acted upon.
Finally, water resource development may be undertaken by Government or by private bodies to supply their own needs. There have been complaints in the past that the present system for considering private project proposals is inefficient, with developers having to apply separately for a number of permits for different aspects of the proposed development such as water abstraction, dam construction, dam safety and waste discharges.
6.6.2. New Approaches to Water Development
It is clearly necessary to change the way in which the development of water resources takes place. In doing this, greater emphasis will have to be placed on providing services to the unserved and on corrective programmes to meet the other needs of the majority of South Africans who were historically excluded from the benefits of water development. At the same time, we have to ensure that serious efforts are made to manage the demand for water rather than simply attempting to supply it.
Every development of new water infrastructure, as well as making water available for a specific group of users, also offers an opportunity to promote the broader goals of water management. Thus a project to move water from one river catchment to another should only be implemented if proper planning has been done in the source catchment and sound water use policies are in place in the recipient catchment. Permission to build a private dam should not be given unless it is consistent with water management plans and allocations in its catchment. A request by an industry to take water from a river provides an opportunity to review its waste disposal practices as well as its water requirements. Every time a borehole is drilled and equipped, there is an opportunity to gain new information about groundwater and to consider whether there is a need to establish groundwater control arrangements in the area.
This example highlights the fact that the approach to the development of groundwater has to be specifically addressed. Throughout the world, this resource is poorly understood, and development has, as a result, often resulted in unreliable supply, under- and over-use and damage to the resource. In South Africa, large areas are dependent on groundwater although it accounts for a relatively small proportion, perhaps fifteen percent, of total water use.
It is in the public interest to ensure that the development and use of all surface, ground and unconventional water resources is undertaken in a way that is sensitive to the environment. Environmental protection needs a recognition of responsibility and a degree of independence, which can be achieved through the development of a coherent, internal environmental policy by the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF), and through co-operation with the national and provincial Departments of Environment. It is also important that affected communities or people are given the chance to raise their concerns and suggestions about proposed developments. The establishment of Catchment Management Agencies (see Section 7.2.4) will, in the long run, help to make this happen.
It is also in the public interest to make sure that the development of water resources, which is often the key factor in enabling economic development to take place, is carefully planned so as to promote rather than restrict such development. Where water is needed to produce water-intensive products such as food, wood and electric power, it may be a more efficient use of resources to import them, rather than attempt to produce them in a water-stressed area. This use of trade between countries and regions as a measure to achieve best use of water has not been properly studied in Southern Africa. The application of management tools such as pricing (see Section 6.5) will support this approach.
6.6.3. Water Resource Development Policy
In accordance with GEAR, and the policy of payment for water, new Government water resource development projects will, where possible, be funded by a mix of finance from commercial and concessional sources, underpinned by user payments.
Developments (of both surface or groundwater) will have to be compatible with national water policy and the relevant catchment management plan (see Section 7.2.5) whether they are implemented by Government or by private bodies.
Where an application by a private body for a project is consistent with an approved catchment management plan, a one-stop-shop approach will be provided so that all necessary permits may be obtained through one application to the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry. (Where authorisations from other Departments are also necessary, efforts will be made to include them in the system.)
Where no catchment management plan has been produced, procedures will be put in place to make sure that development proposals meet the objectives for water management in that catchment.
There will always be a need for an environmental impact evaluation of any water scheme. The development and use of all water resources will be undertaken in accordance with the principles of Integrated Environmental Management (IEM), published by the Department of Environmental Affairs in 1992. These principles require an assessment of the possible impacts of a proposed project, and the design of measures to reduce negative impacts and enhance positive impacts.
Public local enquiries under the guidance of an independent inspector or facilitator may be held for large scale developments. This will ensure that there is objectivity in the evaluation of Government’s own projects.
Inter-basin transfers will have to meet special planning requirements and implementation procedures, which must involve agencies from both the donor and recipient catchments. Catchments to which water will be transferred will have to show that the water currently available in that catchment is being optimally used and that reasonable measures to conserve water are in force.
Groundwater
The general framework for development will be flexible enough to provide guidance for the different needs of surface or groundwater development. The following additional provisions will be made for groundwater development:
6.7.1. Background
The unpredictable nature of the South African climate results in floods and droughts of varying degrees of severity. These can cause wide-scale suffering and disruption of human activities if they are not provided for in the planning, development and management of water resources (Principles 6 and 21). Disaster management, however, has generally been uncoordinated, and has focused on remedial action after the event rather than on preventative mechanisms. An inter-ministerial committee has recently been established to examine the question of co-ordination, and a Green Paper on disaster management will be produced by the Department of Provincial Affairs and Constitutional Development by the end of 1997.
6.7.2. Discussion
For the purposes of water policy, the hazards that must be addressed are those which arise from extreme natural events and those deriving from human activities, including developments for which permits are given by water management agencies and the development activities of water management agencies themselves.
Extreme events
Water resource management must take into account the risks of floods, droughts, cyclones and other extreme events.
Floods: Flood management requires both proactive and reactive measures including monitoring and warning systems, and managed dam releases. However, extreme flooding events are simply not manageable.
Droughts: Water resource management practices should cope with regular periods of low rainfall. Drought management has traditionally been associated with measures to compensate for the effects of reduced rainfall, particularly through the payment of drought relief to farmers. The risks associated with agricultural activity should be recognised and more appropriate agricultural practices encouraged.
Supply systems for other purposes should be designed to maintain desired levels of service in exceptionally dry years with priority given to the supply of basic human needs. A high assurance of supply must also be given to strategic activities such as power generation. Back-up provisions for interventions such as emergency supply schemes, tankering, etc, for vulnerable domestic consumers will continue to be required for the most extreme cases.
Hazards associated with human activity and development practice
Development patterns and practices can pose threats to public safety, through, for example, the building of a dam upstream of an urban development on a flood plain, or the presence of a tanker filled with hazardous waste on the highway. Provision must be made to avoid these hazards and to reduce exposure and vulnerability to risk.
Developments subject to DWAF permits
Current dam safety legislation is considered to be adequate but certain regulations, such as those controlling the disposal of solid wastes and effluents, are weak and must be improved. The safety of mine tailings (slimes) dams is excluded from the Department’s competency and this matter is being reviewed. The control of industrial tailings must also be reviewed.
DWAF Developments
Where DWAF undertakes, or controls, the planning and execution of a development project, public safety must be protected through wise development practices and proper norms and standards informed by existing Dam Safety legislation and tested operational practices. Care must be taken to make sure that there is no confusion between development decisions and regulatory responsibility.
6.7.3. Policy on Safety and Disaster Prevention
As custodian of the nation’s water resources, DWAF will participate in Government initiatives to develop a new approach to disaster management, and will focus more strongly on developing proactive and pre-emptive approaches in the field of water related disaster prevention.
Government will continue to promote effective planning and development control in flood plains and similar situations. Community involvement and local government participation will be emphasised.
Potentially hazardous water resource developments governed by permits from DWAF must be directly controlled by water legislation.
6.8.1. Background and discussion
The provisions for monitoring and assessment in the existing Water Act are weak. Ongoing monitoring and assessment of the patterns of resource use, and the response of the resource to use, are critical to our ability to manage and protect those resources on the basis of sound scientific and technical information and understanding. Adequate information is essential for effective resource management and protection.
The following should be undertaken as part of an overall programme of resource monitoring:
The information contained in allocation licence registers and obtained through the development and groundwater permit systems should be organised to contribute to resource development, monitoring and assessment and efficient catchment management.
6.8.2. Policy on Monitoring, Assessment and Auditing
Monitoring and Information Management Functions
Delegation: The Minister will be empowered to delegate all or any monitoring and assessment, information management and reporting functions to any other Government department, provincial administration, local authority or competent body, where capacity exists. The national Government will undertake monitoring as necessary, especially where no local capability yet exists. Technical support and guidance will be provided to those organisations, agencies or authorities which participate in national monitoring programmes.
Reporting: DWAF will report to Parliament regularly on the status of the country’s water resources.
Data Accessibility and Ownership: Guided by the constitutional requirement for information availability, and in keeping with any legislation which may be developed on this matter, the Minister will be empowered to require that information regarding water matters which is considered to be in the national interest should be made available to DWAF officers. Procedures will be established to ensure that legitimate confidentiality needs are respected.
All information gathered, and official reports prepared by DWAF, will be available to the public. All information and reports related to auditing of permit conditions, or information submitted by permit holders, will be available and accessible except where confidentiality is required. A charge may be imposed to cover the costs of providing this information.
Funding: To ensure effective monitoring, assessment and auditing, adequate funding, human resources and technical support will be required. In addition to budgetary funds, funds raised through the use of economic measures such as the catchment management charge will be dedicated to the resource protection, management and monitoring functions.
International, Inter-Department and Inter-Agency Liaison: Co-operation and links with international authorities, other Government departments, national, regional, catchment and local authorities will be established, to promote effective monitoring networks and information transfer related to water resources. Where these are part of international treaties, agreements and accords, DWAF will be responsible for ensuring that monitoring and information requirements are met. When more than one agency has interests in collecting particular information or data, there will be joint responsibility and funding for monitoring. In the spirit of co-operative governance, a national inter-departmental committee will be established to co-ordinate monitoring of water resources.
6.9.1. Background and Discussion
The most important consideration in South Africa’s relations with those of its neighbours with which it shares rivers is that there must be respect for each country’s equitable right to water from the shared resource (Principle 11). Because water does not recognise political boundaries, whether national or international, its management will be carried out in catchment areas although care must be taken that the policy of subsidiarity does not interfere with the need for a national and international perspective on water use.
The framework for the management of international shared water resources remains the Helsinki Rules. These state that each country which shares any river (basin state) has the right to a reasonable and equitable share of the water in the basin, and that the greatest benefit should be achieved with the least disadvantage to other states. In many situations however, the individual interpretation of the Helsinki rules by different basin states may lead to conflict. There is, therefore, a need to find ways of co-operation and joint inter-state catchment management. Work on this is currently being promoted for the United Nations by the International Law Commission.
In Southern Africa, the SADC Protocol on Shared Water Course Systems, to which South Africa is a signatory, is an important initiative predating South Africa’s membership of SADC. The protocol has to date only been ratified by South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana and Mauritius.
In the absence of a generally agreed framework for international relations in shared river basins, South Africa, in common with many other countries, has established bi-lateral commissions which have the power to conduct joint studies and to make recommendations to their governments.
There are also multi-lateral commissions, committees and bodies which have been established to meet specific co-operation requirements. Arrangements such as the Tripartite Technical Committee between Mozambique, Swaziland and South Africa, and the Limpopo Basin Technical Committee which involves all four basin states (South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique) have been established to provide for general planning and liaison in common basins. The Lesotho Highlands Development and the Komati Basin Development are two important examples of institutional arrangements which have been specially created to promote specific development projects.
6.9.2. Policy statement
South Africa will actively support the development of a system of International Law to guide the management of shared river systems on an equitable basis. Until such a system exists, South Africa will continue to promote regional and bilateral co-operation in shared river systems and DWAF will be empowered to conduct these relations.
To make sure that Government is able to give effect to agreements in this sphere, the water allocated to enable South Africa to comply with its agreements will be given a special status as a water allocation priority.