The Department of Water and Sanitation, in collaboration with Rand Water, has completed phase one of Station 5 A, a water purification plant capable of pumping 150 megaliters per day.
The newly restored purification facility, located in mid-Vaal just outside Johannesburg in Emfuleni Municipality, costs more than R4 billion.
This is the plan of South Africa’s Department of Water and Sanitation to secure water for more than 16 million people in the province.
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Vaal Dam concerns
The Vaal Dam provides water to agriculture, mining, and inhabitants in Gauteng. Over the years, the water and sanitation department overlooked infrastructure improvements at Vaal Dam.
This concern was revealed in early 2023 when floods nearly toppled the dam if floodgates had not been opened.
Historically, mishandling of water at the municipal level has also led to shortages and rolling water cuts for Johannesburg residents, who make up the largest consumer of Rand water and with much of the Vaal dam water polluted due to failure by the Mfuleni municipal water management.
In 2021 Water and Sanitation Minister Mchunu had put the Emfuleni municipality under administration for failure to manage its water and sanitation, which resulted in sewer spillages in communities and into the Vaal River ultimately polluting raw water sources.
