Cases against water services authorities for pollution linked to wastewater infrastructure have climbed to 107, the water and sanitation department reports. Officials blame legislative gaps that hinder holding municipalities accountable for repeated wastewater failures, as the number of open cases continues to grow.
The department provided these figures in response to questions, following the disclosure that 396 wastewater treatment systems had been classified as critical in the 2025 Green Drop assessment. This assessment covers the management and operation of municipal wastewater systems.
Wastewater Management Deterioration
The latest assessment shows continued deterioration in municipal wastewater management, with almost half of the systems assessed being in a critical state. The Green Drop assessment found 396 wastewater systems in a critical state, compared to 334 in the 2022 assessment.
The department attributes the increase to low levels of infrastructure investment and a lack of skilled personnel at water services authorities. They note that poorly functioning treatment systems can result in untreated or inadequately treated sewage entering rivers and other water resources, creating risks for communities and the environment.
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Causes of Critical Systems
The department also attributes part of the increase in critical systems to changes in the application of Green Drop disqualification provisions. Systems that trigger disqualifiers but have a calculated score above 31% are capped at a reported score of 30%. More wastewater systems were also found to have been vandalised through theft, rendering them nonfunctional.
The problem is not confined to a small number of municipalities, with critical systems found across all nine provinces. Major wastewater works in Johannesburg, Pretoria, and eThekwini, as well as systems serving smaller municipalities, are included in the critical systems list.
Investment and Corrective Action
The department has allocated R2.923 billion towards 87 wastewater infrastructure projects during the 2026/27 financial year. Despite this investment, the department has not provided a figure for how many of the 396 critical systems have improved since the assessment.
Systems scoring below the minimum Green Drop score of 31% are placed under regulatory focus, with municipalities required to submit detailed Corrective Action Plans within 60 days of the publication of the report. The plans are expected to identify interventions and ringfence water services grant allocations to address deficiencies in wastewater collection and treatment.
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The department is providing targeted support, but only 70% of the required corrective action plans had been received at the time of its response. Water services authorities that had failed to submit plans had been referred to the relevant Catchment Management Agency for enforcement action.
The department is in the process of amending the Water Services Act and the National Water Act to strengthen accountability and address gaps in the present legislative framework. It includes accountability for recurring wastewater system failures and the accountability of municipal executives.
The latest figures suggest that while the department has increased regulatory intervention and criminal investigations, the underlying problems of ageing and poorly maintained infrastructure, inadequate investment, skills shortages, and weak municipal accountability continue to hamper efforts to improve the country’s wastewater systems.
