There is a severe microbial contamination in South African rivers and dams . Tha's according to a report from the Department for Water and Sanitation which found that  more than half of the sampled sites presented a high health risk if water from the source was used for irrigating crops that were eaten raw, and only 42% indicated a low risk.  The results also revealed that water in 64% of the sampled sites was unsuitable for recreational activities. Jon Gericke spoke to Dr Moloko Matlala, Chief Director for National Water Resource Information Managemnt at the Department of Water and Sanitation