DWS Launches National Pollution Register for Water Enforcement

Posted 27 September 2026 Written by Acts Online
Category Environmental Law

Brought to you by SAnews: The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) will launch a public National Pollution Register on 1 October 2026 to disclose enforcement actions taken against non-compliant companies, municipalities, and other entities.

Under the statutory framework of the National Water Act, No. 36 of 1998, the register provides public transparency regarding regulatory compliance, administrative enforcement, and judicial outcomes relating to water resource contamination. The platform consolidates records where regulatory intervention has been initiated under the Act’s pollution prevention and remediation provisions.

The register will track and publish specific compliance enforcement records, including:

  • Administrative directives issued in terms of the National Water Act, No. 36 of 1998 requiring entities to cease unlawful discharges or remediate pollution;
  • Criminal convictions secured against corporate entities, municipal bodies, and individuals for pollution-related offences; and
  • Court orders directing entities to pay damages, civil penalties, or rehabilitation costs arising from contamination of water resources.

Enforcement activity listed on the register includes municipal infrastructure failures, such as the directive issued by DWS in August 2025 against the Hartebeestfontein Wastewater Treatment Works concerning effluent affecting downstream water resources.

What this means for you, your business, or your clients

  • For yourself: Environmental and legal compliance officers can access public records directly via the register to conduct independent environmental due diligence and counterparty vetting.
  • For your business: Operating firms facing pending statutory notices under section 19 or section 20 of the National Water Act, No. 36 of 1998 face public listing, escalating commercial counterparty scrutiny, ESG reporting impact, and reputational risk.
  • For your clients: Advise corporate and municipal clients holding water use licences to audit discharge compliance immediately and remediate outstanding DWS directives to avoid public registry publication, criminal exposure, or civil liability.

Originally published at https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/new-register-track-action-against-water-polluters

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