Cape Town - Dam levels have declined slightly by 0,4% over the last week to 75,6 % of storage capacity. This drop is due to evaporation caused by the hot and windy weather that has been experienced over the past week.
The average water consumption by water users, however, decreased slightly from 563 million litres per day to 556 million litres per day for the past week.
It is expected that the National Department of Water and Sanitation will only make its decision known in December about what the water usage limit for Cape Town will be for the year ahead. It is thus required that water usage remains in the current 500 million litre usage band.
The permitted usage under Level 5 restrictions is 70 litres per person per day; and the Level 5 tariffs are still on the higher end of the tariff scale and thus cost more.
Although we have successfully navigated the crisis, it is clear that our relationship with water continues to evolve for the better.
Level 5 restriction don’ts
- No watering/irrigation with municipal water is allowed. Nurseries or customers involved in agricultural activities, or those with gardens of historical significance, may apply for exemption
- No topping up (manual or automatic) of swimming pools with municipal drinking water is allowed
- No washing of vehicles, including cars, taxis, trailers, caravans or boats allowed with municipal drinking water
- No washing or hosing down of hard surfaces with municipal water
- The use of municipal drinking water for ornamental fountains or water features is prohibited
- All private swimming pools must be fitted with a cover
- The use of any portable or temporary play pools is prohibited
- Should borehole/well-point water be used for outdoor purposes, including garden use, topping up of swimming pools and hosing down of surfaces, it should only be done for a maximum of one hour on Tuesdays and Saturdays before 09:00 and after 18:00. However, the City discourages the use of this water for these purposes to prevent the over-abstraction of aquifers
- The operation of spray parks is prohibited
- No new landscaping or sports fields may be established except if irrigated only with non-drinking water
* Please visit www.capetown.gov.za/thinkwater for all water-related information, such as the Level 5 guidelines and Frequently Asked Questions.
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