Samples of Hammanskraal 'dirty water' taken for testing

Published Jun 27, 2019

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Johannesburg - The Department of Water and Sanitation says it awaits test results from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) on drinking water samples that were taken from Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria, to determine drinking quality.

The samples were collected last week with the City of Tshwane the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) and community representatives present, said department spokesman Sputnik Ratau.

"The Department of Water and Sanitation wishes to assure the residents of Hammanskraal that the process to ascertain the quality of drinking water in the area is continuing in earnest. The drinking water samples were taken to the CSIR laboratory for microbiological, chemical, and physical analysis on 20 June 2019. The department is currently awaiting results of the analysis and will communicate these to relevant stakeholders as soon as they are available," Ratau said in a statement.

The water samples were collected from the Temba water treatment plant, Kekana Primary School, the Refentse Clinic and at the Hammanskraal Secondary School.

Angry residents in Hammanskraal and surrounding areas embarked on a series of violent protests last year against the poor quality of their water supply. Tankers have since been used to distribute drinking water to residents. The SAHRC intervened in the "dirty water" saga after residents laid complaints with the commission over the reportedly unsafe drinking water. 

The commission found that by not supplying clean drinking water, the city violated residents' human rights.

African News Agency (ANA)

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