Residents urged to save water

Ward 20 councillor, Clr Jill Humphreys has urged residents to use water sparingly.

This comes after the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (EMM) council passed a motion to implement water restrictions as gazetted by national government.

Clr Humphreys said although notices would be put out with specifics of the water restrictions, residents need to start using water consciously.

“In the interim residents should not water their gardens using a hosepipe or sprinkler system. They should also remember to fix any leaks on their property,” said Clr Humphreys.

She said the reason behind the motion was the drop in main water supply in the country.

“Our main water supply has dropped below the 70 percent mark and when that happens government needs to make provisions to keep water supply,” said Clr Humphreys.

She urged residents to use artesian water sparingly.

“Although there are no bylaws yet that govern borehole water, we urge our residents to be careful when making use of borehole water as that may be all we have left and we need to make sure we use it wisely,” she said.

She said residents should also reduce washing machine usage.

“Make sure all taps are properly closed. Shower for five minutes instead of bathing or have more than one person using the same water. Grey [used] water can be used for your garden,” said Clr Humphreys.

She said each household should reduce it consumption by an average of 10 percent.

In November last year, taps ran dry in Bedfordview after water levels dropped in both the Signal Hill and Malvern East reservoirs, leading to interruption in supply.

At the time, Clr Humphreys said Rand Water was struggling to keep up with the demand and efforts to keep the two reservoirs filled were failing.

She said any leaks should be reported.

“We have asked for a dedicated 24-hour hotline to report water issues. I will revert to residents as soon as we have it, but for now they can report leaks to 0860 543 000.”