PRESENTATION TITLE

Presented by:Name SurnameDirectorate

Date

BRIEFING TO THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON WATER AND SANITATION

ON PROGRESS REPORT ON THE PROCESS OF ALLOCATION OF WATER USE LICENSES IN

DIFFERENT SECTORS TO ADVANCE THE DEVELOPMENTAL NEEDS OF SOUTH AFRICAMS MA DIEDRICKS

DIRECTOR – GENERAL

05 AUGUST 2015

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PRESENTATION OUTLINE Introduction Overview of Water Use licensing Water Use Licenses in different Sectors Current Interventions Legislative Developments Support to Resource Poor Farmers Conclusion

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INTRODUCTION

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THE NATIONAL WATER ACT, 1998…

The National Water Act, 1998 (Act 36 of 1998) was promulgated into law on 1 October 1998.

The National Water Act,1998 replaced the Water Act of 1956 The significant difference between the two Acts is that the Water Act of

1956 was based on the riparian principle, legislating water as a private good linked to land ownership, while the National Water Act, 1998 legislating water a public good with the Minister as the custodian of the Nations water resources.

The purpose of the National Water Act, 1998 is to ensure that the nation's water resources are protected, used, developed, conserved, managed and controlled in ways which take into account amongst other factors -

(a) meeting the basic human needs of present and future generations;(b) promoting equitable access to water;(c) redressing the results of past racial and gender discrimination;

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(d) promoting the efficient, sustainable and beneficial use of water in the public interest;

(e) facilitating social and economic development;(f) providing for growing demand for water use;(g) protecting aquatic and associated ecosystems and their biological

diversity;(h) reducing and preventing pollution and degradation of water

resources;(i) meeting international obligations;(j) promoting dam safety;(k) managing floods and droughts,and for achieving this purpose, to establish suitable institutions and to

ensure that they have appropriate community, racial and gender representation.

…THE NATIONAL WATER ACT, 1998…

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Section 21 of the National Water Act, 1998 defines the following activities as a water use:

(a) taking water from a water resource; (e.g. Irrigation from a dam, river or borehole)

(b) storing water; (e.g. Off-Channel Dam or a in stream dam)(c) impeding or diverting the flow of water in a watercourse; (e.g. weir, dam,

bridge)(d) engaging in a stream flow reduction activity contemplated in section 36;

(e.g. commercial forestry)(e) engaging in a controlled activity identified as such in section 37(1) or

declared under section 38(1); (e.g. irrigating with water containing waste)(f) discharging waste or water containing waste into a water resource through a

pipe, canal, sewer, sea outfall or other conduit;(g) disposing of waste in a manner which may detrimentally impact on a water

resource;(h) disposing in any manner of water which contains waste from, or which has

been heated in, any industrial or power generation process;

…THE NATIONAL WATER ACT, 1998…

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(i) altering the bed, banks, course or characteristics of a watercourse;(j) removing, discharging or disposing of water found underground if it

is necessary for the efficient continuation of an activity or for the safety of people; and

(k) using water for recreational purposes. Section 22 of the National Water Act, 1998 provides that a person

may only use water -(a) without a licence -(i) if that water use is permissible under Schedule 1;(ii) if that water use is permissible as a continuation of an existing lawful

use; or(iii) if that water use is permissible in terms of a general authorisation

issued under section 39;(b) if the water use is authorised by a licence under this Act; or(c) if the responsible authority has dispensed with a licence requirement

under subsection

…THE NATIONAL WATER ACT, 1998

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OVERVIEW OF WATER USE LICENSING

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THE WATER USE LICENCE APPLICATION SCHEME

INPUTS

DWA

OUTPUT

ApplicationApplication feeSpecialist studiesOther relevant documentation

Decision:Authorisation or Decline

Assessment

Considerations

National Water Act, 1998Other LegislationSpecialist Studies (Inputs)Special ConditionsComments from I&AP

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Water Use Licenses in different SectorsThe table below provides the total number of water use licences and volumes of water issued per water use sector

Period

2001 - 2010 2010 - to date

Water Use Sector Number Volume / ha Number Volume / ha

Agriculture 1327 921019791 654 2220534883

Mining 92 860936345 268 273167693

Local Government 133 170183780 340 442336764

Industry 61 703937825 152 119244046

Development 38 2317223 98 95165806

Forestry 427 15721 339 15334

TOTAL 2078 2658410685 1851 3150464526

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PROGRESS TO DATE

The Department has authorised a total volume of 3.14 billion cubic meters of water to the agricultural sector totaling an expansion of 314 155 ha, at an average of 10 000 m3 per hectare, to the irrigation sector.

The Department has also seen major improvement in the authorization of mine improving from 92 authorizations prior to 2010 to 268 beyond 2010 bringing the total number of mines authorised to 360.

Similar improvements is seen in the Industrial, Local Government and Developments sectors. The industrial sector authorisations have improved from 61 to 152 for the period prior to 2010 to the period after 2010, the Local Government sector from 133 to 340 and developments from 38 to 98 for the same period.

In terms of forestry the Department has authorised the establishment of an additional 766ha of forest from 2001 to date.

CURRENT INTERVENTIONS

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o The e-WULAAS system will radically transform water use licensing and is to be fully implemented by September 2015;

o Flexible and adaptable to any configuration of the business process;o Having all the document suite to support the business decision and

therefore obviating the process delays and improving efficiencies;o Providing platform for direct application by the public which reduces

the engagement timelines during the initial application stage;o The authorisation process will be transparent and therefore the need

to dedicated resources to ensure the smooth implementation of the business process.

ELECTRONIC WATER USE LICENCE APPLICATION AND APPROVAL SYSTEM (E-WULAAS)

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o There are currently 1514 un-finalised licence applications which are planned to be completed within 2015/16 financial year;

o An action plan is being put in place to pool together the available resources in the Department with the view of finalising outstanding licences within 7 months;

ERADICATION OF OUTSTANDING LICENCES

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NEW WATER LICENSING REGIME

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Water Use Licensing Business Process

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LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS

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LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS…

• The National Development Plan requires regulatory impediments to growth to be urgently addressed;

• This called for the regulatory regime for mining authorisations to be streamlined and aligned;

• Joint meetings were held during 2013 with the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) and the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) and it was agreed that legislative amendments to the current legislation, which is administered by the three Department’s should be effected, in order to integrate and align all the time frames and all procedures within the different pieces of legislation;

• The joint primary purpose of the above mentioned being for environmental law in mining areas to be applied in a well co-ordinated, structured and synchronised manner, which gives effect to the “one environmental system”;

• DWS has as its primary objectives two key aspects: 1. Decreasing the timeframes for processing license applications; and 2. Alignment of the appeal process – to include an internal appeal authority, as both DEA and DMR currently have internal appeal panels;

• The agreed time frame for the processing of the respective authorisations is the cumulative period of 300 days and a further 90 days for the internal appeal process. 18

…LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENT • On 2 June 2014 the President assented to the National Environmental Laws

Management Act, 2014 (Act 25 of 2014) as well as the National Water Amendment Act, 2014 (Act 27 of 2014) (NWAA);

• The two Acts came into operation simultaneously on 2 September 2014;• The NWAA will be given effect to by its corresponding regulations which has

been published for public comments and the Department is now considering comments and finalising the Regulations for final gazetting;

• Both the NWAA and its Regulations reflect the formal agreement between DWS, DEA and DMR i.e to give effect to “the one environmental system”; and further gives rise to the integrated water use licensing process, with a shortened timeframe and an aligned internal appeals process, which provides for the Minister to serve as the internal appeal authority, who may appoint an appeal panel (as an advisory panel), to assist the Minister with regard to decisions she may take on disputes relating to water use licence applications arising from the new integrated water use licensing process;

• The above legislative developments can be construed as a means to a smoother and expeditious licensing process, as well a measure which eradicates some of the problems currently faced with the ineffective and costly nature of the existing independent Water Tribunal, which is currently still in the process of being reconstituted; 19

NATIONAL WATER AMENDMENT ACT AND REGULATIONS…

NWAA RegulationsSection 1 – Definitions; Chapter 1 – Interpretation and Purpose of

the Regulations;Section 26 – Regulations amending the agreement b/n DWS, DEA & DMR must be done by Minister in concurrence with the affected Ministers;

Chapter 2 - Responsible Authority -;

Section 41 – ensures compliance with environmental legislation and standards; provides for Minister to align and integrate the water use licensing process; creates the internal appeal mechanism;

Chapter 3 – Application for Water Use Licence – Part 1 – Pre Application process; Part2 – Application compilation and submission

Section 148 – Amends the appeal process by subjecting disputes against the responsible authority in respect of licence applications and conditions set, to the internal appeal process;

Chapter 4 – Transfer of the water use licence – Part 1 – Procedure for temporary transfer of a water entitlement; Part 2 – Transfer by holders of water use authorisation

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…NATIONAL WATER AMENDMENT ACT AND REGULATIONS

NWAA Regulations

Section 163 A – subjects any amendments to the amendment Act that has the effect of amending the agreement between DWS, DEA & DMR to the concurrence of all 3 relevant Ministers

Chapter 5 – Compulsory licensing

Chapter 6 – Review and Amendment to a water use licence

Chapter 7 – Renewal of a water use licence

Chapter 8 – Public Participation Process

Chapter 9 - Appeals

Chapter 10 – General Matter

Chapter 11 – Transitional Arrangements and Commencement 21

SUPPORT TO THE RESOURCES POOR FARMERS

(IMPACT OF WATER ALLOCATION REFORM)

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LEGISLATIVE MANDATE

• Section 61 and 62 of NWA, 1998 permits the Minister to provide financial assistance to Resource Poor Farmers

• Policy on financial assistance to resource poor irrigation farmers (2004)

• Regulations on Financial Assistance to Resource Poor Farmers (2007)

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RPF : OBJECTIVES• To ensure reliable and equitable supply of water for

sustainable economic and social development including eradication of poverty.

• Promote, support and facilitate the equitable development of agricultural water use by providing financial support to resource poor farmers

• To promote food security, improve rural livelihoods and contribute towards poverty alleviation through water-based agricultural activities

• Increase profitability of water-based farming systems

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CURRENT RPF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE PACKAGES1. Grants on Capital cost on Bulk water distribution Infrastructure

• Canal / weir/ pipeline/ main pump stations/ communal storage dam/ water metering

2. Subsidy for Operation and Maintenance of Water Works ,WRM and Depreciation

• Phased out in five years • Scaling down by 20% annually

3. Grants on Acquisition of water entitlement for irrigation • Purchasing of water rights for RPF from willing sellers

4. Grants for socio economic viability studies and investigations• Project planning & proposals / technical feasibility studies/

hydrological studies5. Grants for training of WUA or ALE Management Water Use

Efficiency and Management/ dispute management/ technical

6. Grants on Rainwater Harvesting tanks for food security through family food production and other household productive

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DWS RPF SUPPORT COMPLEMENTS OTHER GOVERNMENT PROGRAMMES

• RPF Programme complement other Government initiatives targeting the development of resource poor farmers such as:

– Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme (CASP)– Micro Agricultural Finance Institute of South Africa (MAFISA)– Land Reform

• Interaction mechanism with stakeholders through institutional structures like Coordinating Committee on Agricultural Water (CCAW) is utilised to align these programmes.

• CCAW technically engages and recommends projects to be funded by DWS. CCAW is convened and chaired by the Department of Agriculture in each Province.

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RPF SELECTION CRITERIA

Through CCAW a resource poor farmer is eligible for financial assistance if the farmer :– →is a South African citizen;→is a member of Water User Association or DWS→ approved Legal Entity;→is a member of HDI; and has:--agricultural land or access to agricultural land;-a water use authorisation, except where application is for the acquisition of water entitlement; and-a agricultural water use development needs but is unable to raise finance for that purpose.

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KEY BULK INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS IMPLEMENTED…

PROVINCE NAME OF PROJECT

TYPE OF ASSISTANCE

IMPACT OF INTERVENTION

NORTHERN CAPE

Blucusso Trust DWS contributed R11 080 275.00 towards the construction of the main pipeline for irrigation

The Project has 466 beneficiaries and are specializing on Vine farming.

LIMPOPO The Moretele CPA

DWS financed the refurbishment of the irrigation pipeline .

The Project has about 5500 beneficiary who acquired the land through the Land Restitution Programme and are specializing on Citrus production.

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…KEY BULK INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS IMPLEMENTED

PROVINCE NAME OF PROJECT

TYPE OF ASSISTANCE

IMPACT OF INTERVENTION

MPUMALANGA Mfumfane Irrigation Project

DWS constructed a R 12 000 000.00 pipeline for irrigation

Mfumfane project comprises of 88 individual farmers on 88 plots ranging in size from 5 to 10 hectares and in total covering 487 hectares under irrigation. They specialize in sugar cane production 29

The Department has made good progress in Water Use Licensing.

The Department has responded to the needs of the different sectors in terms of growth and development.

There is ongoing interventions such as the one stop shop being implemented by the Department of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) to further alleviate regulatory obstacles.

There are ongoing engagements with the different sectors; NEDLAC and other stakeholders to continuously improve our water licensing regulatory regime.

CONCLUSION

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THANK YOU

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