Poor service delivery continues in the Theewaterskloof Municipality; accusations are being traded back and forth and taxpayers are getting the short end of the stick.
These are the problems that residents of the Theewaterskloof municipal area have had to endure for years.
Minister Anton Bredell, the Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development responded to questions in the Western Cape Provincial Parliament on Thursday and said they recognise the concerns relating to governance, service delivery and water security in the Theewaterskloof Municipality.
“The people of Theewaterskloof deserve a municipality that is well governed, accountable and able to deliver reliable basic services. Our approach is therefore not simply to respond to individual crises, but to address the underlying institutional and infrastructure challenges that affect sustainable service delivery,” Bredell said.
Water security in Villiersdorp
Water security in Villiersdorp, in particular, is under the spotlight after it emerged that taxpayers had to pay for borehole repairs themselves and that the municipality is allegedly using more water from the Elandskloof Dam than it has been allocated.
According to communications officer of the Theewaterskloof Municipality, Tarren- Lee Habelgaarn, TWK has access to several water sources for Villiersdorp. “The primary allocation from the Elandskloof Water Scheme amounts to 694 000 kℓ per year. In addition, the Municipality has access to a further 150 000 kℓ per year, as well as an allocation of irrigation water which, where necessary, can be utilised for drinking water purposes. Against these available water resources, the Municipality abstracted approximately 450 000 kℓ from the Elandskloof Dam and available boreholes during the 2025-’26 financial year,” she said.
Water usage from the Elandskloof Dam
Hermanus Times has received documents regarding the municipality’s water usage from the Elandskloof Dam. According to the documents, TWK used 839 600 kℓ of water from the Elandskloof Dam in 2024, 550 550 kℓ in 2025, and – up to May – 356 310 kℓ in 2026. Residents are now wondering whether the municipality has plans in place to ensure water security in the town.
“Water management within the Theewaterskloof municipal area and its communities requires increasing attention due to various factors, necessitating a long-term planning approach by the Municipality. These factors include, among others, population growth and the fact that water storage and supply resources are not expanding at the same rate. This places increasing pressure on existing water resources. In addition, existing water infrastructure is ageing, which contributes, among other things, to water losses,” Habelgraan said.
According to her the municipality’s integrated five-year water plan focuses on maintenance, improved infrastructure, reducing water losses, investigations into expanding existing water sources as well new water sources and community participation in anti-vandalism initiatives.
Incidents of vandalism
She also emphasised the the greatest challenge remains repeated incidents of vandalism. “This places extraordinary pressure on municipal resources and funding and the Municipality simply cannot afford to repair every vandalised public asset, including boreholes. The boreholes at the tennis court and the nature garden were developed as supplementary water sources and maintained by the Municipality. Unfortunately, the water supply capacity of both facilities has repeatedly been compromised by serious acts of vandalism.”
She further stated that a new pump was installed at the tennis court borehole in 2024. “Just one month later, it was vandalised to such an extent that it could not be used. In February, the pump was repaired, only to be seriously vandalised again in June,” she said.
To report any vandalism please contact: 0800 214 4730 (confidential reporting) or contact your nearest police station or dial 10111
