ENG1502
ASSIGNMENT 3 2024
(720331)- DUE 22
AUGUST 2024
[Company address]
, ENG1502 Assignment 3 2024 (720331)- DUE 22 August 2024
Water crisis in South Africa A new report by South Africa’s Department of Water and Sanitation paints
a grim picture of the quality of the country’s drinking water, and its water infrastructure. The Blue Drop
Audit Report is meant to ensure that water service authorities are held accountable for providing safe
drinking water. The audit report found that the quality of the country’s drinkable water is getting worse.
Nearly half (46%) of all water supply systems pose acute human health risks because of bacteria or other
pathogens in the drinking water supply. The report also found that more than two thirds (67.6%) of all
wastewater treatment works are close to failure. On top of this it showed that over 47% of all clean and
treated water was lost through leaks, or could not be accounted for. The national Blue Drop Risk Rating
is an assessment focused on critical risk areas within water services. It looks at water supply systems at a
specific moment in time. This year’s report showed that the overall risk had dropped from 52.3% in 2022
to 47.15% in 2023 after some water supply systems made improvements and improved their risk category
from critical or high to medium or low risk. But this should not be celebrated. To achieve Blue Drop
certification, water supply systems must meet 95% of the criteria for delivering clean, drinkable water –
and only 26 of South Africa’s 958 water supply systems managed this. The report found that several
water supply systems were operating close to or beyond their design capacity. Monitoring and
compliance were severely deficient. This makes fixing problems impossible as the scale of the issues at
stake are not being identified. The report said that in 23 parts of the country, water supply systems are in
“poor and critical condition”. Almost half of all water supply systems (46%) do not comply with
microbiological standards. In these water supply systems, drinking water is contaminated by sewage and
bacteria. Viruses and parasites such as Legionella and Cyanobacteria may have grown in the piped water
systems and or water sources. These present acute health risks, such as gastro illnesses with diarrhoea
usually being the prime symptom. Other primary waterborne illnesses can include cholera, dysentery,
hepatitis A and typhoid. Another problem the report highlighted was that more than half of the country’s
municipalities (57%) do not notify water users when they discover that the water has been contaminated.
Not issuing notices or warnings of contaminated drinking water places citizens at risk of contracting
waterborne illnesses and is an unacceptable practice due to the possible serious health repercussions of
drinking contaminated water. Anja Du Plessis, 9 December 2023 Source:
1. What is the writer’s purpose with this text? Support the answer by referring closely to the text.
(10 marks)
The writer's purpose in this text is to inform and raise awareness about the severe water crisis in South
Africa, specifically highlighting the declining quality of drinking water and the poor state of water
infrastructure. This is evident through the detailed presentation of data and findings from the Blue Drop
ASSIGNMENT 3 2024
(720331)- DUE 22
AUGUST 2024
[Company address]
, ENG1502 Assignment 3 2024 (720331)- DUE 22 August 2024
Water crisis in South Africa A new report by South Africa’s Department of Water and Sanitation paints
a grim picture of the quality of the country’s drinking water, and its water infrastructure. The Blue Drop
Audit Report is meant to ensure that water service authorities are held accountable for providing safe
drinking water. The audit report found that the quality of the country’s drinkable water is getting worse.
Nearly half (46%) of all water supply systems pose acute human health risks because of bacteria or other
pathogens in the drinking water supply. The report also found that more than two thirds (67.6%) of all
wastewater treatment works are close to failure. On top of this it showed that over 47% of all clean and
treated water was lost through leaks, or could not be accounted for. The national Blue Drop Risk Rating
is an assessment focused on critical risk areas within water services. It looks at water supply systems at a
specific moment in time. This year’s report showed that the overall risk had dropped from 52.3% in 2022
to 47.15% in 2023 after some water supply systems made improvements and improved their risk category
from critical or high to medium or low risk. But this should not be celebrated. To achieve Blue Drop
certification, water supply systems must meet 95% of the criteria for delivering clean, drinkable water –
and only 26 of South Africa’s 958 water supply systems managed this. The report found that several
water supply systems were operating close to or beyond their design capacity. Monitoring and
compliance were severely deficient. This makes fixing problems impossible as the scale of the issues at
stake are not being identified. The report said that in 23 parts of the country, water supply systems are in
“poor and critical condition”. Almost half of all water supply systems (46%) do not comply with
microbiological standards. In these water supply systems, drinking water is contaminated by sewage and
bacteria. Viruses and parasites such as Legionella and Cyanobacteria may have grown in the piped water
systems and or water sources. These present acute health risks, such as gastro illnesses with diarrhoea
usually being the prime symptom. Other primary waterborne illnesses can include cholera, dysentery,
hepatitis A and typhoid. Another problem the report highlighted was that more than half of the country’s
municipalities (57%) do not notify water users when they discover that the water has been contaminated.
Not issuing notices or warnings of contaminated drinking water places citizens at risk of contracting
waterborne illnesses and is an unacceptable practice due to the possible serious health repercussions of
drinking contaminated water. Anja Du Plessis, 9 December 2023 Source:
1. What is the writer’s purpose with this text? Support the answer by referring closely to the text.
(10 marks)
The writer's purpose in this text is to inform and raise awareness about the severe water crisis in South
Africa, specifically highlighting the declining quality of drinking water and the poor state of water
infrastructure. This is evident through the detailed presentation of data and findings from the Blue Drop
