Agriculture
(1) Whether the national Department of Water and Sanitation has started with the planned construction work to increase the capacity of the feeder canal from the Holsloot River to the Brandvlei Dam; if so, what are the relevant details; if not;
(2) whether any undertaking was given by the national Department that it would commence with the construction; if so, (a) what are the relevant details and (b) when was that undertaking given?
(1) Construction of the raising of the feeder canal from the Holsloot River to the Brandvlei Dam, with an approved project cost of R21.0 million, is currently in progress. On 6 November 2020 the contractor and the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), Directorate Construction South, signed the Service Level Agreement and commenced with the site establishment and procurement of subcontractor services.
However, the programme was delayed and construction temporarily stopped due to a delay in the vetting and awarding of the subcontract required for the supply and delivery of concrete. A farmer adjacent to the riverbank of the Holsloot River challenged the raising of the feeder canal project. This action caused additional delays, which required that the scope of works had to be revised. At this stage the appointment of the local construction workers are not finalised. It is anticipated that these local construction workers will add capacity to the existing DWS, Directorate Construction South who currently has one permanent team on the construction site. DWS, Directorate Construction South aims to appoint the additional local construction workers by December 2021 so that there are at least three construction teams on site.
Currently, the progress to date include; site establishment, site clearance and completion of the access road, excavation on the left side, placement of concrete on the left side and the procurement of sealant material.
According to the updated programme, completion of construction is scheduled for 7 July 2022.
(2) Question 5 (2) is not applicable as the Department of Water and Sanitation has commenced with construction.
