JUST IN: Water shedding starts on Monday
The Ekurhuleni Metro will start with water shedding measures from Monday in an effort to save water.
According to metro spokesman, Themba Gadebe, the metro has no choice but to take this drastic step as voluntary water saving measures by residents have averaged a savings rate of about 3.5% a week, a far cry from the required 15%.
“Recent rains have not significantly improved water levels,” he says.
“The country needs good rainfall for an extended period to come out of the drought of recent years.”
Water rationing measures will initially be implemented from 9pm to 5am every night starting from Monday.
This means that there will be no water during this period in the affected areas.
“If these measures do not achieve the required 15%, the metro will ration water during the day as well.”
Here is the water shedding schedule:
• Springs (9pm to 5am): Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.
• KwaThema (9pm to 5am): Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
• Tsakane (9pm to 5am): Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
• Duduza (9pm to 5am): Monday, Wednesday and Friday
Ekurhuleni announced water restrictions in September and further said it would start levying penalties for excessive water consumption starting from October.
In terms of the restrictions, businesses are required to reduce their water consumption by 15% of their average annual consumption and households may not exceed 25kl consumption per month.
So far, about 3 000 business units and 41 000 households have exceeded their allocated water usage.
Penalties levied during the month of October amount to R1.7-million.
Read: ‘Zero tolerance’ and hefty fines for contravening water restrictions
The metro urges residents to continue adhering to water restrictions and implement water saving measures.
Restrictions include no watering of gardens during the day, no use of hosepipes and no filling of swimming pools.
Water saving measures include fixing of leaking pipes, taking five-minute showers instead of using a bathtub as well as using a cup to brush teeth.
Read: Water saving tips that help
Residents are encouraged to report any water leakages or pipe bursts to the call centre on 0860 543 000.
The metro claims they are improving measures to respond timeously to water loss in public areas.
For any enquiries pertaining to water rationing, restrictions and to report individuals who continue to disregard the current interventions, members of the public may use the following email: savewater@ekurhuleni.gov.za
