---
title: "Critical but stable – SA's water quality and infrastructure rated"
description: "A media briefing by the Department of Water and Sanitation officials revealed the state of South Africa’s water and associated infrastructure. It’s critical, but stable. Daily Maverick has created some graphs to put you in the picture."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "IN GRAPHS"
author: "Onke Ngcuka"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/onke-ngcuka/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-06-06-the-quality-and-service-delivery-of-your-water-and-sanitation/"
published: "2023-06-06T22:47:43"
updated: "2023-06-07T10:05:11"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 172
---

# Critical but stable – SA's water quality and infrastructure rated

> A media briefing by the Department of Water and Sanitation officials revealed the state of South Africa’s water and associated infrastructure. It’s critical, but stable. Daily Maverick has created some graphs to put you in the picture.

By Onke Ngcuka · Published 7 June 2023, 00:47 SAST · Updated 7 June 2023, 12:05 SAST

## Key points
- South Africa's water and sanitation service delivery has been given a failing grade in the Department of Water and Sanitation's latest Watch Reports.
- DWS releases Watch Reports on water and sanitation service delivery
- Reports assess quality of drinking water, wastewater systems and distribution of drinking water
- Blue Drop report expected in July, No Drop report in September and interim Green Drop report in July
- Government seemingly still in the dark about source of deadly cholera outbreak

## Content

The quality of South Africa’s drinking water has declined alongside water and sanitation service delivery. These are among some of the key findings of the Watch Reports released by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) in Pretoria on Tuesday.

The three Watch Reports — Green Drop, Blue Drop and No Drop — are regulatory mechanisms the department uses to monitor the quality and service delivery of water and sanitation by municipalities, alongside water conservation and demand management.

The Green Drop report specifically looks at the state of wastewater systems, while the Blue Drop looks at the quality of drinking, and the No Drop assesses the distribution of drinking water.

**Read more in Daily Maverick:**[Government seemingly still in the dark about source of deadly cholera outbreak](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-05-31-government-seemingly-still-in-the-dark-about-source-of-deadly-cholera-outbreak/)

After a hiatus of almost a decade, the reports are back, with the full Blue Drop report expected in July. The full No Drop report is expected to be released in September and an interim Green Drop report is scheduled for release in July. **DM**