New water restrictions to result in intermittent water supply, warns Rand Water
Rand Water has warned that the new water restrictions it has imposed will result in intermittent water supply.
This is on top of the existing water restrictions that were imposed by the entity last week in an effort to recover water supply in its reservoirs.
Last week Rand Water imposed a 30% reduction of water supply.
Spokesperson Makenosi Maroo says that the restrictions, which begin on Friday night, will see certain areas go without water for hours at a time.
“From 8’oclock tonight we’re going to try and recover what comes into our reservoirs, what comes in and out in terms of the bulk storage of water.
“So depending on the reservoir and how much water was consumed, there may be intermittent water supply. So some areas will have water while others may not have water. “
Municipalities that will be affected include City of Johannesburg, City of Ekurhuleni,
City of Tshwane, Rand West Local Municipality, Mogale City, and Rustenburg
The county’s reservoirs currently stand at between 30% and 38%.
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They need to be at a 60% capacity to maintain uninterrupted water supply.
Maroo says that because of the high demand, it has been left with no choice but to take over the municipalities’ water supply.
“So we did not see the results we were hoping for because of the restrictions. Now we’re saying over and above the restrictions we are coming up with another measure to ensure that we’re going to protect the integrity of our system and to ensure that there is water supply for basic needs. We are now taking control of water supply and we’re not relying on consumers to use water sparingly.”
It’s not clear how long the water restrictions will be in place.
But Rand Water says these will be enforced until the water levels at its reservoirs has sufficiently recovered.
