Natasha Odendaal
Natasha Odendaal is Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor for Engineering News and Mining Weekly.
Magalies Water, Glencore and the Bakwena Ba Mogopa Community launch water pipeline project
8th January 2026 Magalies Water, Glencore and the Bakwena Ba Mogopa Community, along with the Rustenburg local municipality, have jointly launched Phase 1 of the... →
DWS investigating possible dam failure at Thabo’s dam
12th December 2025 The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has sent a team of engineers to investigate a possible dam failure on a farm along the R568 road near... →
Water Research Commission launches water-saving campaign
9th December 2025 As South Africa risks its water demand outstripping water supply, the Water Research Commission (WRC) has launched a new water-saving campaign to... →
Cape Town’s new water projects receive in-principle approval for PPP model
5th December 2025 The procurement phase for the Faure New Water Scheme (FNWS) and Paarden Eiland Desalination Plant (PEDP) is set to start in 2026, after the City of... →
More sluice gates closed at Vaal
2nd December 2025 Four sluice gates at the Vaal dam remain open after the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) closed two more on Tuesday. The first gate was... →
Water security key to economic stability, reflects Rand Water chairperson
2nd December 2025 Sustainable water management is not just an environmental concern, but an economic, developmental and moral imperative, with water security... →
DWS closes another two Vaal dam sluice gates
1st December 2025 Two more sluice gates have been closed at the Vaal dam to reduce outflows as water inflows into the dam decrease. The Department of Water and... →
Two sluice gates closed at Vaal dam, outflow increased at Bloemhof dam
1st December 2025 The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) closed two sluice gates at the Vaal dam over the weekend to reduce outflow. Eight sluice gates will... →
Vaal sluice gates to remain open, Bloemhof outflow increased
28th November 2025 Ten sluice gates at the Vaal dam will remain open on Friday, as the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) maintains the status quo. By Friday,... →
DWS opens three more Vaal sluice gates, 10 gates now open
27th November 2025 The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) is opening up three more sluice gates at the Vaal dam on Thursday to manage rising inflows at... →
Rate cuts positive turn for South Africa households, however financial strain remains
26th November 2025 Despite some interest rate relief for South African households during the first half of 2025, financial pressures remain. While the Altron FinTech... →
Three sluice gates remain open at Vaal
25th November 2025 The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) is keeping three sluice gates open at the Vaal dam. As rainfall resumed this this week, the department... →
DWS closes two Vaal sluice gates
24th November 2025 The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has closed two sluice gates at the Vaal dam, reducing water outflow. Over the past week, the... →
South African Human Rights Commission calls for resolution of Gauteng water crisis
21st November 2025 The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) on Friday called on all stakeholders to act with urgency to address the water crisis in Gauteng.... →
DWS to open five sluice gates at Vaal dam
17th November 2025 The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has opened five sluice gates at the Vaal dam on Monday following heavy rainfall in Gauteng. The gates... →
Vodacom, Starlink partner for Africa connectivity
12th November 2025 Telecommunications company Vodacom Group has entered into a pivotal agreement with satellite broadband provider Starlink to deliver high-speed,... →
Rand Water’s Water Wise launches outreach initiative to tackle community water shortages
28th October 2025 Water utility Rand Water’s Water Wise is launching the ‘Drop-by-Drop Water Conservation Outreach’, calling for urgent and united community action... →
Wits launches research centre to tackle South Africa’s water challenges
18th September 2025 The University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) has launched its flagship water research centre, Wits:H₂O, in response to South Africa’s deepening water... →
DWS, Awsisa ink landmark agreement to advance water security, sanitation
18th August 2025 The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) and the Association of Water and Sanitation Institutions of South Africa (Awsisa) have signed an... →
More than $10bn committed during Water Investment Summit
18th August 2025 More than $10-billion has been committed for priority water projects across dozens of countries during a three-day inaugural African Union-Africa... →
Vaal dam water levels edge up
14th August 2025 The water storage levels of the Vaal dam increased week-on-week from 106.3% last week to 107.3% this week. The dam, a vital component of the... →
Cabinet green-lights water Bills
8th August 2025 South Africa’s Cabinet has approved the Department of Water and Sanitation’s (DWS’s) Water Services Amendment Bill and National Water Amendment... →
Water storage levels hold steady, DWS to maintain Vaal dam above capacity
7th August 2025 The water storage levels of the Integrated Vaal River System (IVRS) is currently at a healthy 101%, reflecting only a slight dip from the previous... →
Constitutional Court upholds Vodacom appeal in Please Call Me matter
31st July 2025 South Africa’s Constitutional Court on Thursday upheld an appeal by telecommunications group Vodacom against a 2024 Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA)... →
Rand Water talks medium-term infrastructure plans, notes maintenance disruption frustrations
29th July 2025 Water utility Rand Water’s extensive months-long maintenance from May to July was a necessary disruption to increase capacity and resilience, while... →
Rand Water supply free of ARV traces
18th July 2025 Water utility Rand Water on Friday assured that no ARV traces are in the water it supplies. The bulk water services provider, which has been... →
DWS assures ARV traces in water harmless
18th July 2025 Following a study that has found traces of anti-retrovirals (ARVs) in water samples taken from rivers and potable water sources, the Department of... →
City of Tshwane welcomes court ruling setting aside 2019 Rooiwal tender
27th June 2025 The City of Tshwane on Friday welcomed the North Gauteng High Court’s judgment declaring invalid the city’s 2019 decision to award a tender for the... →
Human rights body sets outs legal remedies to tackle water mafia plague
25th June 2025 The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has published a comprehensive policy brief highlighting the various legislative and policy... →
Rand Water progresses extensive maintenance plan
24th June 2025 Rand Water is moving on to the final stretch of it months-long critical maintenance programme from June 30 until July 18. The water utility started... →
DCDT issues ICT equity equivalent investment programmes draft policy for comment
23rd May 2025 The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) on Friday gazetted a draft policy direction on the role of equity equivalent... →
Rand Water embarks on extensive planned maintenance
23rd May 2025 Rand Water is preparing to kick off an extensive planned maintenance programme from May to July, impacting various municipalities throughout... →
City of Cape Town calls for public comment on proposed wastewater treatment facilities operator appointments
19th May 2025 The City of Cape Town’s Water and Sanitation Directorate has invited comment on a proposal to appoint external service providers for the operation... →
South African households recover slightly after rates cuts
6th May 2025 The latest Altron FinTech Household Resilience Index (AFHRI) has improved, for the third consecutive quarter, following a series of repo rate cuts... →
DWS closes two more Vaal dam sluice gates, four to remain open
2nd May 2025 After closing two sluice gates at the Vaal dam on Thursday, another two will be closed on Friday. This will leave four sluice gates open as the... →
Two sluice gates at Vaal to be closed as water levels start to slowly decline
30th April 2025 Two sluice gates at the Vaal dam are set to be closed on Wednesday as the water inflows start to decline. The Vaal dam water level has decreased... →
Vaal, Bloemhof dams start to show some stability – DWS
29th April 2025 Ten sluice gates at the Vaal dam remain open on Tuesday, with outflows of 1 771 cubic metres a second (m³/s), while water releases at Bloemhof dam... →
Four more sluice gates opened at Vaal
25th April 2025 Rapidly rising inflows into the Vaal dam have necessitated the opening of four more sluice gates on Friday. This will bring the total number of... →
Two Vaal sluice gates closed, Bloemhof outflows reduced
15th April 2025 As water levels at the Vaal and Bloemhof dams start to reduce, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has started reducing outflows at both... →
Vaal’s water levels continue to rise, five sluice gates to remain open
7th April 2025 As the water levels of the Vaal dam continue to rise, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) will keep all the five sluice gates open, with... →
Third sluice gate opened at Vaal
1st April 2025 The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) on Tuesday opened a third sluice gate at the Vaal dam to increase water outflows and manage inflows.... →
