Water Crisis : Local Disaster Declared

With approximately 113 days of useable water left, the City’s Executive Mayor, Patricia de Lille, has declared a local disaster in terms of Section 55 of the Disaster Management Act. The City may now invoke emergency procurement procedures if required to expedite the emergency and accelerated water resource schemes.

Dam levels have dropped to 31,5%. With the last 10% of a dam’s water mostly not being useable, dam levels are effectively at approximately 21,5%. Consumption has broken through the 800 million litre barrier for the first time to 783 million litres of collective use per day, but we have still not achieved the new collective usage target of 700 million litres per day.

‘Those who have not played an active saving role must do so immediately by ensuring that their homes are water-efficient, that they fix their leaks – both above ground and underground – and that they continue to implement no- to low-cost water-saving techniques,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Informal Settlements, Water and Waste Services, Councillor Xanthea Limberg.

For more information, visit the water restrictions page on the City’s website: www.capetown.gov.za/thinkwater

Source: http://www.capetown.gov.za/media-and-news/Drought%20crisis%20Local%20disaster%20declared

Pic: © Jean Tresfon