South Africa’s water problems are no longer only about drought or rural infrastructure. New citizen testing suggests unsafe drinking water can be in the same taps people use for cooking and washing.

Citizen Tests Flag Unsafe Drinking Water Nationwide

WaterCAN’s Annual Citizen Science Water Testing Week ran in September. More than 500 test kits went to community volunteers who sampled water from household taps, JoJo tanks, storage tanks, rivers and dams across all nine provinces. In most provinces, about 66% of tested sources were unsafe for human consumption.

E. Coli Found in Household Supply Points

WaterCAN said some of the most worrying results came from drinking-water sources that should be safe at the point of use. Citizen Science and Training Coordinator Nomsa Daele said South Africans should not have to “second-guess” whether water from taps and tanks is safe to drink.

E. coli was detected in household drinking water in eight municipalities, including King Cetshwayo (KwaZulu-Natal), Johannesburg and Sedibeng (Gauteng), Gert Sibande (Mpumalanga), Waterberg and Mopani (Limpopo), Bojanala Platinum (North West) and Pixley ka Seme (Northern Cape). In King Cetshwayo, a tap sample tested positive for both E. coli and coliform bacteria, which WaterCAN flagged as an urgent health issue.

Sewage Leaks and Weak Treatment Blamed

WaterCAN Executive Director Ferrial Adam said the September results are not “once-off”, with regular testers seeing persistent problems. Professor Anja du Plessis from Unisa, who analysed the data, said the pattern points to sustained system failure, with sewage and wastewater leaking into rivers and dams plus chemical pollution and phosphate “hotspots”. WaterCAN also warned that weak or inconsistent chlorine disinfection and poor routine testing can worsen risks.

What WaterCAN Wants Next

WaterCAN is calling for urgent municipal and provincial intervention in affected areas, routine and transparent water quality monitoring and emergency provision of safe water where household sources are unsafe. The group also wants direct engagement with municipalities, including formal requests for water testing and clear plans to restore safe drinking water at the point of use.