1. Water Resource Protection in South Africa
5th World Water Forum – Istanbul, Turkey
16-22 March 2009
Harrison Pienaar - Department of Water Affairs and Forestry
Stanley Liphadzi - Water Research Commission

2. Presentation Outline
Legal Framework for Water Resource Protection (WRP)
Contextualizing Water Resource Protection
Giving Effect to WRP - Progress to Date
Remarks
Environmental Flows – A Research Perspective
Ecosystem Goods and Services
Environmental Flows Benefits
Concluding Remarks

3. Legal Framework for WRP in SA
Chapter 18 of Agenda 21
(14 June 1992)
White Paper on National Water
Policy of SA (April 1997)
Water Law Principles
(November 1996)
National Water Act (NWA)
(Act No 36 of 1998)
Constitution of the RSA
(Act No 108 of 1996)
Water Resource Protection
(Chapter 3 of NWA)

4. Contextualizing Water Resource Protection1 2
Gazette classification
system
Classify each
significant resource
Resource Directed
Measures
The National Water Act specifies a series of measures which together are intended to ensure the comprehensive protection of all water resources.
These measures are designed to protect the health of the water resource. They look after the quality of water, quantity of water, the animals that live in the water resource, and the vegetation (plants) around the water resource. All these must be healthy for the water resource to function properly and to provide water.
These measures are called resource-directed measures.
One of the major challenges of sustainable water resource management is to assess as accurately as possible how much water can be taken out of the system before its ability to meet social, ecological and economic needs is reduced. The classification system and the determination of the resource quality objectives are two mechanisms that can be used to try and balance protection and development.
Determine the
Reserve
Establish resource quality objectives 4 3

5. How much water can be used
Classification of Water Resources
Present state
Level of protection
Classification
How much water can be used
Future state

6. Gazetting of Classification System
Section 12 of NWA provides that the Minister must prescribe a
system for classifying water resources – requires gazetting the
water resources classification (WRCS)
The gazetted WRCS will provide a definition of the classes that are
to be used and the procedures to be followed to recommend a class
WRCS needs to be published in the Government Gazette for
comments for not less than 60 days
All comments received will be recorded and considered

7. 7-Step Classification Procedure
Water resources classification system to comprise of:
Biophysical aspects
Socio-economic status and trends
Delineation of water resource units
Functional relationship between resource units
Develop alternate scenarios and outline their possible implications
Evaluate with stakeholders and make recommendation
Authority makes decision on class
Management
Ecological classification
Natural A
Moderately used/impacted
AB,B, BC, C
Heavily used/impacted
CD, D
Unacceptably degraded
EF, F

8. The Bucket of Water analogy
The Bucket of Water analogy. The Reserve can also be seen as a speed limit (or a restriction within prescribed limits) which allows governed use and enforces responsible behaviour through legislation. Travelling at “full speed” (or allowing unrestricted use) is dangerous and foolhardy, and ignores the rights of other users. To take the speed limit analogy further, the ecological Reserve determination could be seen as the means of finding out what the speed restriction for a particular stretch of road should be, depending on the type of traffic it has been accommodating, and will need to accommodate in the future.

9. Resource Quality Objectives
Numerical and narrative descriptors of the conditions that must be met to achieve the recommended ecological management scenario
Based on formally accepted departmental policy statements, methodologies or publications
RQOs form part of the management of implementation phase of the Reserve and are not strictly speaking part of the Reserve determination. They act as targets for the Catchment Management Strategy. They can be achieve incrementally within agreed timeframes.

10. Giving Effect to WRP – Progress
Implementation spans across several sectors and govt. departments
Different govt. depts. have equally strong mandates
Roles and responsibilities not always clearly defined
DWAF - primarily water resource management
DEAT - biodiversity conservation
NDA/LA - land management
DPLG - development planning across government
Initiatives mostly reflect needs specific to one dept. or sector
Collaboration between depts. or sectors easily complicated
Cooperative governance inevitable to facilitate effective implementation
DWAF has strong mandate wrt. water resource protection (chapter 3 of NWA)

11. Remarks Implementation of protection provisions in NWA
Integration of decision-making processes
Strategies to be technically sound (scientific and legal)
More vigorous implementation crucial

12. Environmental Flows – Research Perspective
South Africa has been active in E-flows research for years
Environmental flows understandably linked to socio-economic growth and development
Government and water institutions have e-flows related programmes/departments
There is effort to empower local communities and users in managing their catchments
Have began to acknowledge our limitations or short comings
Strong research programmes and leadership

13. Ecosystems Goods and Services
This must be done in the African (South African) contest- to be relevant and credible
Working for Water and Working for Wetlands programmes had projects that advanced payment for ecosystem services (PES) and benefited local communities too:
Increased water services and goods
Rehabilitation (job and wealth creation)
Downstream users compensate /pay landowners for the good stewardship of the land (natural capital)- Government carry the costs
More still has to be done especial to accommodate intangible benefits

14. Environmental Flows Benefits
Africa’s Economy depends on Water
Imagine the National Parks without water
Biodiversity / wild life
Tourism
Jobs
GDP of the country
Baseflows are important in rural areas (people, livestock/agric, and businesses)
Strengthen relationships between neighboring countries
Removes water from the political arena (Quality and quantity are equal important)

15. Concluding Remarks
Redressing past inequities in water allocation and ensuring equity between generations simultaneously
Ensuring “some for all forever”, together
Protection often viewed as competing with socio-economic needs
Administrative capacity to implement protection provisions of water legislation
Linking water resource protection to water services provision critical

16. THANK YOU!