Wasting more than 130million kilolitres of water resulted in a R710-million revenue loss for eThekwini in the 2015-2016 financial year, says the DA in Durban.
The party unveiled a water plan yesterday to be presented to the city's leaders.
It proposed a three-pronged approach: "Using what we've got, saving what we've got and appreciating what we've got."
This would involve rainwater harvesting in informal settlements, rethinking stormwater drainage systems, encouraging people to save water and enforcing water restrictions.
DA eThekwini caucus leader Zwakele Mncwango said the city had no plans for easing water-shortage problems or for checking the water-distribution infrastructure so that old, leaking pipes could be replaced
"Our water supply is crumbling . and there is no plan to overhaul it. Our pipes burst, our [water-treatment] plants break down, our leaks increase and this ANC municipality wastes almost half of its clean water," said Mncwango.
Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille has announced a name-and-shame plan to crack down on water guzzlers. From today, customers who pay admission-of-guilt fines or appear in court charged with contravening water restrictions will be named. Streets in which fines are handed out will also be named.
Mncwango said it was wrongthat a city that got more than 1000mm of rain a year could not implement innovative, cutting-edge systems to provide water for residents.
"The lack of a drought-relief plan and the crumbling water infrastructure make for a dangerous recipe."
He said Durban mayor Zandile Gumede was focused on internal ANC issues, not on taking the city forward for the next five years.
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