City Power and Eskom are constantly urging residents to use electricity wisely, telling us to turn off our geysers and pool pumps and to switch off lights. However, taking a drive around Joburg, one notices numerous streetlights on during the day. This begs the question, how much electricity is being wasted by those urging us to save? In my opinion, this is the pot calling the kettle black.
A journalist from this newspaper went out to do some investigating and when they approached City Power for an explanation, they were told that sometimes City Power leaves the lights on during the day to prevent cable theft. The reason for this is that it is more dangerous for thieves to tamper with cables when they are live because of the risk of electrocution.
Joburg residents know there is a massive problem with cable theft, but is leaving the lights on and wasting electricity truly the best solution? It seems City Power’s ‘solution’ is going to end up creating more problems, and is very short sighted. Leave the lights on to prevent cable theft – and when the electricity runs out… well, I guess that is a problem for another day.
In last week’s column, I wrote about City Power’s Time of Use system where the entity is going to start charging different rates depending on the time. This is in the hope that residents and businesses will have a change of mindset and start thinking about the electricity they are using… well, I think City Power needs to evaluate their own mindset as well.
If cable theft is a problem in a particular area, maybe security companies, residents and the Community Policing Forums can assist by reporting suspicious behaviour and patrolling the area.
Maybe, just maybe, the idea of coming up with solutions for cable theft could be taken a little more seriously without the solution being wasting a precious commodity that South Africa is desperate to save.
I am not an expert when it comes to electricity or cable theft, but the solution on the cards right now seems ludicrous. Surely there is someone out there who has a better solution than City Power’s?
Do you have a solution for City Powers’ cable theft problem, that does not involve keeping the lights on?
Post your comment below.
