Alignment of water use licenses with strategic water management objectives for the uMkhanyakude District area, Kwazulu-Natal

Abstract

In South Africa, water is a scarce resource and the National Water Act (Act No. 36 of 1998) makes provision for water resources to be used, controlled, protected, managed and developed to ensure sustainable use for all. The study was undertaken in the uMkhanyakude District Municipality (UKDM), situated in the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Province. The motivation for this research study is the on-going water shortages and droughts experienced in the Republic of South Africa (RSA), especially the UKDM. With the focus on the understanding by the members of the uSuthu to Mhlathuze Catchment Management Forum (CMF) regarding water governance in the area, a questionnaire was developed to capture the views and perspective of water users within the uSuthu to Mhlathuze Catchment Management Area (CMA). The idea was to gain an understanding of the knowledge of participants related to their authority regarding water governance and water management within the area. Of significance to the study was to incorporate the involvement of those within the CMF and their knowledge on water governance and its implementation. The collected data identified constraints and limitations experienced at catchment level and enabled the making of recommendations to address the issues currently faced by the catchment. A concern is that water uses to some extent of the RSA, especially country areas, are not regulated in an effective and efficient manner. This raises concerns about how water use is unaccounted for in some areas. The National Water Resource Strategy (NWRS) makes provision for instruments, such as Resource-directed Measures (RDM) and Source-directed Measures (SDM) to affirm that the nation's water resources are shared equitably in order to ensure sustainability and the efficient use thereof and to ensure that water is not over-allocated or used and that the quality thereof is not compromised. Chapter 4, Part 1 of the NWA (1998) requires that water uses, as defined in section 21 of the Act, must be authorised. Thus, this raises a question to determine whether authorised water quantities are aligned with the predetermined water quantities of the uSuthu to Mhlathuze CMA. A literature review and secondary data from the Department of Water and Sanitation's (DWS) Water use Authorisation and Registration Management System (WARMS) was used to determine whether issued water use authorisations of the uSuthu to Mhlathuze CMA are in line with strategic objectives of the area. The information gathered regarding water uses within the study area revealed allocations, different uses and users per sector. However, current information regarding the volume within the catchment could not be provided.