Opuwo Council insists water bad for health

THE Opuwo Town Council is disputing claims by NamWater that the water supplied to the town is fit for human consumption.

According to a report on a chemical water analysis done by NamWater in 2002, a sample of the town’s water was classified as falling in Class D and thus unfit for human consumption. Opuwo councillors have issued a statement titled ‘NamWater is lying to the country’ in response to the water utility’s recently expressed views of the water problems at the town.”The truth is NamWater is lying to protect themselves.Opuwo’s water problems can and should be squarely laid in front of NamWater and their inability to provide quality water fit for human consumption,” maintains the council.The analysis of a sample taken at Opuwo in December 2001 and tested the next month indicates that the level of magnesium present in the water in the form of calcium carbonate was considered “high risk” and in Class D.Class A denotes excellent water quality, while Class D is not fit for consumption.The levels of most other elements in the water sample were deemed as either excellent or good, and the total hardness of the water was categorised as Class C, but of low risk.Although the water sample was deemed “unsuitable for human consumption”, it was found suitable for livestock.NamWater Communications Manager Johannes Shigweda said his company would meet today to discuss the claims and would then respond.The councillors stick by their assertion that people in Opuwo are getting sick because of the quality of water supplied to the town.”The hospital is struggling to keep their delicate machines running as they get blocked or even explode.Residents have to keep replacing their geysers, taps and kettles,” say the council.The councillors do not accept NamWater’s claims that their water woes can be blamed on wastage and poor infrastructure maintenance.The Deputy Chairperson of the Management Committee of the Opuwo Town Council, Gert Tjipeuja, told The Namibian that most of the underground pipes were replaced in 1999, but that the lime in the water had resulted in blockages and pipe bursts.The council is also refusing to accept that the wastage of water has made the management of debts difficult.Because the quality of the water is so bad, they say, water meters installed only a few years ago have had to be removed.The council maintains that being one of the fastest-growing towns in Opuwo, the town needs a better water supply than what it is currently being extracted from boreholes.A water meter audit conducted in by private engineering consultants showed that at least 154 of the 283 water meters at the town would have to be replaced because they are damaged.”One of the major problems in Opuwo is the high lime content of the water, which continuously results in water meters getting stuck.It also causes inaccurate meter readings, since the internal diameter of the meter decreases and the flow velocity subsequently increases,” reads the report.According to the report, leakages on Government and other private properties amounted to more than 22 per cent of the town’s water consumption.Opuwo councillors have issued a statement titled ‘NamWater is lying to the country’ in response to the water utility’s recently expressed views of the water problems at the town.”The truth is NamWater is lying to protect themselves.Opuwo’s water problems can and should be squarely laid in front of NamWater and their inability to provide quality water fit for human consumption,” maintains the council.The analysis of a sample taken at Opuwo in December 2001 and tested the next month indicates that the level of magnesium present in the water in the form of calcium carbonate was considered “high risk” and in Class D.Class A denotes excellent water quality, while Class D is not fit for consumption.The levels of most other elements in the water sample were deemed as either excellent or good, and the total hardness of the water was categorised as Class C, but of low risk.Although the water sample was deemed “unsuitable for human consumption”, it was found suitable for livestock.NamWater Communications Manager Johannes Shigweda said his company would meet today to discuss the claims and would then respond.The councillors stick by their assertion that people in Opuwo are getting sick because of the quality of water supplied to the town.”The hospital is struggling to keep their delicate machines running as they get blocked or even explode.Residents have to keep replacing their geysers, taps and kettles,” say the council.The councillors do not accept NamWater’s claims that their water woes can be blamed on wastage and poor infrastructure maintenance.The Deputy Chairperson of the Management Committee of the Opuwo Town Council, Gert Tjipeuja, told The Namibian that most of the underground pipes were replaced in 1999, but that the lime in the water had resulted in blockages and pipe bursts.The council is also refusing to accept that the wastage of water has made the management of debts difficult.Because the quality of the water is so bad, they say, water meters installed only a few years ago have had to be removed.The council maintains that being one of the fastest-growing towns in Opuwo, the town needs a better water supply than what it is currently being extracted from boreholes.A water meter audit conducted in by private engineering consultants showed that at least 154 of the 283 water meters at the town would have to be replaced because they are damaged.”One of the major problems in Opuwo is the high lime content of the water, which continuously results in water meters getting stuck.It also causes inaccurate meter readings, since the internal diameter of the meter decreases and the flow velocity subsequently increases,” reads the report.According to the report, leakages on Government and other private properties amounted to more than 22 per cent of the town’s water consumption.