NELSPRUIT’S council began a R3-million upgrade of rural water treatment plants in surrounding villages on Wednesday after almost two years of complaints about water quality. The cash-strapped council was initially unable to fund the upgrade for rural settlements 40km from the town’s CBD but approved the project earlier this year following a R3-million donation from the Portuguese government. Nelspruit chief executive, Roelf Kotze, said on Wednesday that initial work had begun on the major Matsulu water treatment plant which purifies water for 58000 villagers from the Crocodile River.