Review of dam regulations confirms serious shortcomings – AfriForum

The Department of Water and Sanitation’s announcement that its proposed regulations on the management and control of state dams will undergo significant review and will be subject to further public participation, confirms that AfriForum’s concerns about public access to dams, private property rights and the creation of management structures and control mechanisms that may exceed the Department’s legal powers, were justified. This follows widespread public opposition and serious legal issues raised during the consultation process.

The fact that the Department has also suspended existing resource management plans is closely linked to these concerns and further indicates that the current framework cannot continue in its current form.

AfriForum submitted comprehensive formal comments on the regulations in April this year, followed by supplementary comments arising from the confusion caused by the Department’s own additional “clarifications”. The organisation also opposed a substantially similar version of the regulations published in 2023.

AfriForum’s core concern throughout was that, while the Department described the regulations as necessary to protect infrastructure and improve safety on dams, the actual legal effect of the regulations would extend far beyond this. The proposed system would place access to dams and recreational use under a system of state approval, lease agreements and mandatory arrangements, while also creating uncertainty regarding private property rights and existing lawful use.

“No one disputes that infrastructure must be protected or that safety on dams is important. The real issue was always whether the Department’s proposed solution was lawful, proportionate and properly aligned with existing rights. That is where the framework failed,” says Marais de Vaal, AfriForum’s Advisor for Environmental Affairs.

AfriForum also raised concerns that the proposed regulations and associated resource management plans sought to create new governance structures and control mechanisms that may exceed the powers granted to the Department under the National Water Act.

According to De Vaal, the Department’s decision to substantially revise the framework once again demonstrates the importance of active public participation and civic oversight.

“This process showed why meaningful public participation matters. Members of the public, civil society organisations and affected stakeholders invested enormous time and resources into scrutinising these proposals and exposing their contradictions and unintended consequences. It is unfortunate that this process has now repeated itself after similar concerns were already raised in 2023,” says De Vaal.

AfriForum hopes the Department will now fundamentally reconsider the underlying approach behind the regulations rather than merely republishing a revised version of the same framework.

“The Department must ensure that any future regulations are clearly drafted, legally sound and properly aligned with existing rights and legislation. Public resources should not again be wasted on poorly conceived regulatory proposals that create uncertainty and undermine trust,” says De Vaal.

AfriForum reiterates that the organisation supports reasonable and lawful regulation of water resources in the public interest and remains willing to participate constructively in future consultation processes.

If you want to support AfriForum’s efforts to protect public access to water resources and hold government accountable, visit www.afriforum.co.za for more information.