Chronicle Editor
Most supply dams for our cities and towns are full and some are already spilling following the incessant rains received in most parts of the country.
This means that most of our cities and towns are guaranteed adequate water supplies even if it does not rain the next rainy season. The challenge to councils therefore is to ensure residents have adequate water supplies daily.
Most councils need to upgrade their pumping capacity to meet their respective towns’ daily water consumption.
Most cities and towns witnessed phenomenal growth since independence but have not expanded or upgraded their pumping infrastructure to match the increased population hence the water shortage challenges facing many local authorities.
Councils are failing to deliver water to residents and as such some residents are made to go for weeks without running water. Bulawayo, Harare, Gweru and other councils have not invested in bulk water delivery infrastructure since independence and as such cannot pump adequate water to meet their daily demand.
Bulawayo City Council for example is pumping just 94 ML against a daily demand of 155 ML while Gweru has been pumping 60ML a day against a daily demand of 140ML.
The same scenario is obtaining in other cities and towns and there is therefore an urgent need for councils to work on increasing pumping capacity.
The provision of safe drinking water is one of the core responsibilities of local authorities and as such council should move with speed to address this shortcoming of failing to provide this essential service.
There are many suburbs in the different cities and towns that have gone for years without receiving municipal water and this is unacceptable.
In some cases, residents are buying water while others are relying on water from boreholes or wells which at times is not safe for drinking.
Residents are supposed to pay their bills to councils so that the councils provide services such as supplying safe drinking water.
It defeats logic for residents to scrounge for water when their supply dams are spilling. We want to once again implore councils to prioritise the issue of ensuring that residents under their jurisdiction have adequate water supplies daily.
The obtaining situation in some cities and towns whereby some new suburbs have gone for years without municipal water is unacceptable and should be addressed immediately.
Following the good rains received this season, the councils no longer have an excuse for failing to supply residents with adequate water.
Online Reporter