KwaZulu-Natal Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs on water restrictions at iLembe and Ethekwini

24 Jun 2015

Due to dam levels reaching critically low levels, mandatory curtailments in the distribution of water have commenced in earnest in some municipalities in KZN in order to mitigate the risk to supply assurance in the short term. The regions most impacted by the water rationing are iLembe district and Ethekwini metro.

Water rationing is a level 4 water restriction measure (the highest). It has commenced at 30% restriction and depending on the dam levels, it will be incrementally moved to 50% restriction.

Umgeni Water (which is the bulk supplier for iLembe and Ethekwini) is implementing a 30% reduction in potable water production at its Hazelmere Waterworks. Before the onset of the drought, Umgeni Water was producing 40Ml/d (40 million litres) of drinking water at its Hazelmere Waterworks. The production has since been reduced to 28Ml/d (28 million litres per day).

The potable water produced will be allocated to the 3 Water Services Authorities (Ethekwini, iLembe and Semcorp Siza Water) on the following basis:

eThekwini Water and Sanitation: 9,8 Ml/d (prior to the proposed curtailments it received 14 Ml/d)
iLembe district municipality: 8,6 Ml/d (prior to the curtailments it received 12, 3 Ml/d)
Semcorp Siza Water: 9, 6 Ml/d (prior to the curtailments it received 13, 7 Ml/d)

The Water Rationing for Ethekwini Municipality is as follows:

Item No.	Reservoir Names	Planned Water Interruption Durations	Frequency	Area Supplied & Affected
1.	Waterloo Reservoir (Which includes Katzkop Reservoir)	9h00 to 15h00	Daily	Southridge, Riyadh, Waterloo, Hammonds Farm, Parkgate, Ottawa, Sibaya Casino, Temple Valley
2.	Grange Reservoir (Which Includes Everest Heights &Redcliffe Reservoirs	21h00 – 05h00 (By Shift Controller @ Night) 08h00 to 14h00 08h00 to 14h30	Daily	Verulam CBD, Redcliffe, Oaklands, Missionlands, Canelands Industrial area
3.	La Mercy Reservoir	12h00 to 18h00	Daily	La Mercy, Seatides
4	Westbrook Reservoir	12h00 to 18h00	Daily	Westbrook, Desainagar, Hotels along the beach
5.	Nyaninga Reservoir Mt Moreland PRV	11h00 to 17h00 11h00 to 17h00	Daily	King Shaka Airport, Mount Moreland, Dube Tradeport, Dube AgriZone
6.	Canelands Reservoir	10h30 to 16h30	Daily	Connerstone Ridge, Canelands Thunder Town
7.	Ndwedwe Reservoirs	11h00 to 17h00	Daily	Parts of Ndwedwe, Cottonlands, Belvedere high level area.
8.	Lungisisa Indela Village (LIV) ET	11h30-17h30	Daily	LIV School
9.	Avondale Reservoir Outlet (in Ballito)		Daily	Frazers, Greylands & Farmers along the N2 Freeway

“The current drought crisis requires all citizens of KZN, to play their part in conserving water. We need to save every drop because as of now every drop of water counts. The effects of climate change are with us as evidenced by the below average rainfall received during the summer season which has left a number of dams almost dry. The province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) is on the red-code in as far as water is concerned and drastic interventions are being undertaken to manage the drought crisis,” said KZN MEC for Cogta Nomusa Dube-Ncube.

“We must accept that water is everybody’s business and that government and sector stakeholders cannot conserve it alone. Our plans ensure that no resident will go without water even when the taps begin to run dry. As part of our plans, teams are will be moving between affected areas to monitor water usage. Water efficiency and water use educational programmes must rolled out intensively. We thank all those who have made lifestyle changes to reduce water consumption. We all need to play our part during this difficult period by adhering to the water restrictions. Households and businesses are encouraged to implement various measures which include the re-use of water, said Dube-Ncube.

We can do the following to save water:

Fix leaking taps or report them to local authorities immediately. A dripping tap (one drop per second) wastes up to 30 litres of water an hour.
If you take a bath do not fill up the bath tub. Preferably take a 5 minute shower.
Close the tap when brushing your teeth. Rather use water from a cup.
Close the tap when shaving.
Do not rinse glasses and cutlery under running water. Fill a basin and rinse in it.
Avoid washing vegetables under running water. Use a bowl to do this; re-use the water for instance in the garden.
To check if you have toilet leaks, put a few drops of food dye in your cistern. If the colour slips into your bowl, you have a leak. A leaking toilet can waste up to 30 litres of water per hour.
Hosepipe usage is prohibited during this period. Wash your car using two buckets of water. This can save up to 300 litres each time you wash your car.
Wash your car on the grass as this will water your lawn at the same time.
Teach children not to waste water and engage them in water saving exercising, e.g. teaching them how to read a meter.
Only water your garden with grey water before 10.00 am and after 4:00pm in the evening. Watering while the sun is high wastes water as most of it gets evaporated into the air with the heat of the sun.
Avoid watering on windy days as the water easily evaporates.
Make use of “grey water”. This is the water from your kitchen and bathroom that can be reused in the garden.
Collect rain-water for irrigation from the roof in tanks or containers placed under roof gutters.