Johannesburg – AfriForum says it has submitted 60 questions to the Department of Water and Sanitation, requesting clarification of its proposed regulations on the management and control of government waterworks.
The move follows the department’s additional public participation meetings on 15, 16, and 20 April 2026, which AfriForum said: “failed to resolve key concerns and instead deepened uncertainty about legal and practical implications”.
In a statement made available to The Bulrushes on Tuesday, 21 April 2026, AfriForum said it “submitted supplementary written comments to the Department, posing 60 questions arising directly from the Department’s subsequent explanation”.
The questions follow the organisation’s formal submission of comments on 13 April against the proposed regulations.
The regulations were published earlier this year, on 16 January.
AfriForum said: “The fact that a clarification process has resulted in 60 additional questions points to a fundamental problem with the regulatory framework itself”.
Marais de Vaal, AfriForum’s Advisor for Environmental Affairs.
added: “If the Department’s clarification was effective, it would have reduced uncertainty.
“Instead, it has exposed how unclear and internally inconsistent the proposed framework really is.”
AfriForum explained that the uncertainty ultimately centres on three key issues that go to the heart of the regulations, namely;
- whether access to dams for recreational purposes is a lawful public activity or a permission granted by the state,
- what the legal basis is for the system of approvals, leases, and
- agreements and to what extent the Department is claiming control over private land and existing rights.
“These are not abstract concerns. It arises directly from the department’s own documents,” stated De Vaal.
“When the proposed regulations are read together with the Resource Management Plans and the Lease Policy, it suggests a system where access depends on state permission and where long-standing recreational use may be placed in doubt.”
Despite assurances that the regulations do not intend to restrict access or criminalise recreational use, the legal effect of the framework remains unclear and, in some respects, contradictory, said AfriForum.
AfriForum also cautioned against dismissing these concerns as alarmist, emphasising that the questions raised are rooted in basic principles of legality and public administration.
“It is easy to label criticism as alarmist, but the reality is that we are asking very basic legal questions,” said De Vaal.
“If the department cannot provide clear answers to these questions then the problem lies with the regulations, not with those raising concerns about them.”
AfriForum said it supports reasonable and lawful regulation of water resources, but warns that a process marked by ambiguity, shifting explanations, and unresolved contradictions risks undermining public trust.
The organisation called on the department to provide clear, written responses to the 60 questions raised and to reconsider the proposed regulations, “considering the concerns identified”.
To support AfriForum’s efforts to protect public access to water resources and hold government accountable, visit www.afriforum.co.za for more information.
