Turning to tech to keep water on tap

Cape Town pins hopes on science as Day Zero nears

● It’s science to the rescue in drought-stricken Cape Town, where technology has replaced rain and prayers as the best hope of avoiding Day Zero in 89 days’ time.

Instead of looking to the sky, water crisis managers are rolling out hitech water-saving wizardry to help keep the taps running — even if only at a trickle.

Drought task teams have been set up to prepare for rationing, now considered likely. This week the Sunday Times established that:

● “Restrictor” technology that detects and cuts flow from broken or vandalised pipes is being rushed into Western Cape schools;

● The Western Cape education department is installing remote-access and time-of-use water meters. These are already in 358 of the province’s 1 672 schools; and

● Air condensers have been fitted at two provincial government buildings in Cape Town, one at Karl Bremer Hospital in Bellville and the other at Elsenburg in Stellenbosch. The water produced is pumped into ventilation and cooling systems.

The public works department is experimenting with “bioretention” areas that capture storm water that seeps into the ground, where it can be recovered via boreholes.

Provincial public works deputy director-general Gavin Kode said the measures were aimed at making critical facilities water secure.

It’s too little too late for some experts, among them Anthony Turton.

Turton called on Cape Town residents to “assume the brace position” because Day Zero was unavoidable.

“What we cannot say is exactly when Day Zero will be,” Turton wrote in a public post.

The city council conceded that dry taps were now “likely”.

Mayor Patricia de Lille blamed most residents who she said refused to reduce consumption. She said the city had no option but to impose hefty fines for overuse.

“Despite our urging for months, 60% of Capetonians are callously using more than 87 litres per day. It is quite unbelievable that a majority of people do not seem to care and are sending all of us headlong towards Day Zero.”

From Day Zero, residents will have to queue for a 25-litre daily ration at one of 200 distribution points — roughly one for each suburb.

Camps Bay and Clifton Ratepayers’ Association chairman Chris Willemse said there was no plan for the large proportion of residents unable to fend for themselves.

Gavin Smith of the Cape Town Greater Civic Alliance said distributing water was a last resort prompted by the city’s infrastructure challenges and layout, with high-lying areas on mountain slopes unable to cope with reduced pipe pressure.