Angelah Nothando Mlotshwa
Environment and Health Reporter
The water crisis currently bedelving the City of Kings and Queens has left the City Fathers in sixes and sevens and has had to consult the citizenry for possible solutions to this disease threatening predicament.
Yesterday the Local Authority gathered stakeholders at the Small City Hall to get views on the kind of solutions that can be implemented to alleviate this problem that is threatening its Citizens with diseases.
The current water rationing has seen taps being shut for over two weeks. The 72 hour rationing circle is no longer applicable.
Such suburbs in the Western areas as Old Magwegwe and its surroundings have not received water in over a month.
Other areas like Pumula South and the Nearby Nkulumane have not had running water for more than two weeks.
The situation is the same in some Eastern Suburbs who have not received water in over a week.
Acting Director Engineering Services in his presentation attributed the water woes to erratic rainfall patterns that affect the drought prone province of Matabeleland of which Bulawayo is part of.
Of the current haphazard, unscheduled water rationing time frames, Eng. Ncube blamed the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZEDTC).
“There has been sporadic power outages by ZESA.” Said Eng. Ncube.
However, the Engineer said that even if the electricity problem was solved the water in the dams would only sustain the City for about three months and a serious water rationing will ensue.
“… is it enough ukuthi asi sustaine up to the end if the year…? No!! Ngicela sikubambe khonapho…. but in July when Mzingwane Dam is decommissioned we will need definitely to go into (water) shedding… “
The City’s suppressed water supply is 155 – 165 Mega Litres a Day (MLD) at Maximum. Currently it has been difficult to come up with a normal trend of the City’s suppressed demand for the past three months due to ad-hoc power supply.
Another challenge has developed that is affecting water pumps at the dams. Eng. Ncube explained that previously Electricity load shedding was conducted in Bulawayo, however the system has changed as load shedding is now centralised and done in Harare.
This is the major reason there has been serious challenges of water supplies to the residents.
Acting Town Clerk Sikhangezile Zhou stood to emphasize the new system of Electricity load shedding.
“Previously we would be warned of the pending load shedding and prerequisite measures will be taken to ensure that there is no damage to the water pumps, but now, since load shedding is centralised and done in Harare this is causing untold damages to the pumps and is a serious contributor to the erratic water rationing.” Said the Acting Town Clerk.
She continued to say that the ZEDTC person in is not privy to the goings on of our City dams and how Electricity is distributed so as not disturb pumping and damage to the system.
During the plenary session residents and the BCC agreed on consulting the responsible authorities to exclude water pipe lines from experiencing severe power cuts.
The Bulawayo Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Hon Judith Ncube was shocked that electricity load shedding was now centralised in Harare.
She thus expressed that the residents make a recommendation to the responsible authorities that water reservoirs be exempted from power cuts.
“As Bulawayo residents can’t we make a recommendation…, I know that load-shedding line exempts United Bulawayo Hospitals and Mpilo Central Hospital from power cuts so as that there no disturbances made, can’t we also present that and make sure the power line to reservoirs are exempted as well? Min. Ncube asked.
Hon. Min. Ncube added that, she did not know about the centralisation of power cuts and therefore promised to raise the issue with other Ministries so as to reverse the centralisation of power from Harare.
She also advised the residents to desist from having political attitudes and be community development advocates.
“The mantra of the Republic of Zimbabwe encourages us to build our country. Attitude is one of the things which has destroyed us. Let’s make use of committees. Akula nkwali eyaqwandela eyinye City of Bulawayo and DDF should work as a team, let’s keep our infrastructure safe from vandalism, some people from outside Bulawayo are vandalizing our property.” She said.
In a bid to try and alleviate the water crisis, the Acting Director of Engineering Services Sikhumbuzo Ncube spelt a plan to be undertaken for the rehabilitation of 100-150 borehole in the next two to three weeks, disinfection and repair work of existing of water kiosks is set to begin this week.
This will then help in sustaining and providing clean, health water to the public.
For long term solutions the City Council also presented different strategies such as commissioning of the lake Gwayi Shangani, construction of a 140 MLD capacity pumping line from Cowdray Park reservoir, refurbishment of existing Insiza pipe line, construction of the Criterion WTP By-pass, refurbishment of the Umzingwane booster station and power supply facilities , upgrading the Inyankuni pipe line, setting up a solar plant at Ncema Dam.
However, for the above strategies, Criterion WTP by-pass will need US$ 800 000, refurbishment of Insiza will costs US$ 400 000, refurbishment of existing Insiza pipe line will need US$1.5 million, US$ 500 000 for upgrading the Inyankuni pipeline and duplicating of Insiza raw pipe line is at an estimated cost of US$ 28 million.