ASSOCIATIONS
59
Plastic pipes help SA
through toughest drought
in decades
More plastic water pipes must be installed to help save
water in the face of drought and water restrictions.
By Southern African Plastic Pipe Manufacturers Association (SAPPMA)
COULD THE PROBLEM HAVE BEEN AVOIDED?
Whilst environmental factors such as El Niño and
climate change are largely to blame for the country’s
crippling water woes, the Southern African Plastic
Pipe Manufacturers Association (SAPPMA) says
that lacking and ageing water infrastructure have
exacerbated the problem.
“We first started sounding the alarm bells as early as
2010 over the lacking water infrastructure and the failure
by local municipalities around the country to invest in
upgrading and replacing their pipelines. We saw signs
of severe water losses in distribution, caused by water
leaks and wastage, many years before the crisis reached
its full impact,” says Jan Venter, chairperson of SAPPMA
— a non-profit association that represents more than
80% of the plastic pipe produced in South Africa and
focuses its efforts on ensuring pipe systems that are
leak-free and durable for long-term use. It also focuses
on the rehabilitation of old pipelines.
South Africa is currently in the grips of one of the
worst droughts in decades, with five of the country’s
provinces already declared drought disaster areas.
The Western Cape, Northern and Eastern Cape, and
Limpopo are the areas facing the greatest lack of
water, with the Mother City counting down the days
to the predicted Day Zero, when the province’s taps
will run dry.
South Africa’s pipelines were installed in the early 1950s
and 1960s, and were manufactured from cement,
asbestos, or steel. These old pipes have an economic
lifespan of a maximum of 50 years and have long since
corroded and disintegrated. This became evident many
years ago as we started seeing an increase in water
leaks and disrupted water supplies around the country.
Millions of litres of treated water have been going lost
every year,” he says.
Venter confirms that the effects of the severe drought
could have been negated had their calls for water
infrastructure improvements been heeded earlier by
the authorities. MUNICIPAL INVESTMENTS INTO IMPROVING
WATER INFRASTRUCTURE
Towards the end of 2017, the City of Cape Town
announced plans to spend R8-billion on its water
infrastructure over the next 10 years. According to
Anic Smit, head of planning, design and projects of the
City’s water reticulation services, the City has invested
R1.2-billion on water engineering, refurbishment,
and replacement infrastructure during the 2015/16
financial year.
“Pipelines lie at the heart of South Africa’s infrastructure
and must be replaced before they fail. Water distribution,
waste disposal, irrigation, and telecommunications all
rely on pipelines to function. However, the majority of The drought’s impact on pipe manufacturing businesses
Cape Town-based OKE has reported a 20% drop in
irrigation volumes. “Due to the lack of rain, farmers are
not investing in new developments and are holding back
www.plumbingafrica.co.za
HDPE pipes are being used to
replace old infrastructure.
Continued on page 61 >>
March 2018 Volume 24 I Number 1