The AfriForum branch in Vryburg had the town’s drinking water tested by a laboratory after various residents expressed their concern over the quality of the water.
According to Alta Pretorius, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for Stellaland, the problem possibly stems from the water pumps often being out of order, resulting in lower reservoir water levels in the reservoirs. The local municipality seems to have no money to repair these pumps. Although AfriForum’s Vryburg branch has donated parts before to have these pumps repaired, the pumps keep on breaking because of a lack of maintenance.
“Despite the levels of E. Coli- and faecal coliform bacteria being low, it remains a major cause for concern because SANS:214’s national standards stipulate that no trace of E. coli may be present in drinking water. We advise residents to boil the water before drinking it or using it to prepare food,” Pretorius says.
The local AfriForum branch informed the residents and the municipality of the situation and will continue to apply pressure on the municipality to have the water purified and the pumps repaired and maintained.