Some South Africans are literally paying the government for air
Water scarcity in Gauteng is leading to an increased number of homes with dry taps, but many South Africans are being charged more for water despite the shortage – meaning they are literally paying for air.
This was revealed by Carte Blanche, which investigated the concerning trend across the City of Johannesburg (CoJ).
Since the latter part of 2023, the residents of Johannesburg, the commercial capital of South Africa, have been experiencing frequent water shortages.
The impact of recent events has been widespread, affecting both poor and wealthy areas of the city, with the Minister of Water and Sanitation Senzo Mchunu introducing water shifting – which is similar to load shedding – to ensure that areas were still able to access some water some of the time.
However, notices of planned water outages from the local water authority have become common, with unplanned water shutdowns happening regularly.
While some areas in Johannesburg went without water for a few days, others went without water for as long as 52 days.
Making things worse, it seems the water outages are not the only problem hitting the affected residents.
Carte Blanche reported that, despite the almost two-month outage, many residents noted massive upticks in their water bills owed to the city.
Because there was no water in the pipes, it was discovered that air was pushing through the pipes and water meters, turning them over extremely quickly.
“I would love to take an empty water bottle to the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Senzo Mchunu, and demand he pay me R20 for the bottle – he’d probably laugh at me. But this is the reality for many South Africans who are paying the city for literal air,” a resident told Carte Blanche.
Worryingly, WaterCAN executive manager Dr Ferrial Adam said South Africans have likely been paying for air in their pipes for a while.
She said “air billing” has only become a notable issue during water shifting because of the increased air being pushed through the pipes due to the frequency of the outages, where the difference in the bill is now much higher.
To illustrate the extent of the problem, one resident provided Carte Blanche with their water bill, which has increased from R3,000 to an astounding R165,000 in just one month.
As of February 2024, the bill skyrocketed further to R295,000.
However, the error was obvious when looking at the amount the resident was billed for, with his meter showing he had apparently used 2.1 million litres of water that month, all while experiencing outages.
In response to this problem, the CoJ reportedly told the resident to simply replace the water meter.
Adams added that WaterCAN has noted over 100 cases of extreme water bills due to air billing in 2024, not just isolated in Gauteng.
She also noted that there are methods to remove air from the water system, but the city is not using them. Adams blamed this on the lack of skills and governance in the relevant departments across government.
This is also the main reason for the lack of water in the first place.
“Infrastructure is failing across the board, and without increased spending to fix these issues, I don’t foresee us [South Africa] getting out of this mess anytime soon,” said Adams.
Adam’s sentiment aligns with Free State professor Dr Anthony Turton, who highlighted that an estimated 50% of the water from bulk water suppliers in South Africa does not reach the end consumer due to leakages, theft, and failing infrastructure.
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