Battling the big dry: Govt enhances efforts to address drought
Government is putting a number of measures in place to prevent taps from running dry
The extreme drought in the Western Cape has brought into sharp focus the fact that South Africa is one of the 30 driest countries in the world and that water security cannot be taken lightly.
Government is putting a number of measures in place to prevent taps from running dry.
Given that South Africa is an arid country, these interventions are critical in the long-, short- and medium-term as many parts of the country remain gripped by drought.
The Western Cape, Northern Cape and Eastern Cape have been declared disaster areas, as have parts of KwaZulu-Natal and the Free State. Parts of the North West have also been without water for a number of years, according to the former Minister of Water and Sanitation, Nomvula Mokonyane.
In an effort to mitigate the drought, the Inter Ministerial Task Team (IMTT) on Drought and Water Scarcity has been holding monthly meetings to formulate a plan of action.
Chairperson of the task team and the former Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Des van Rooyen, has classified the drought as a national disaster.
“This will legally assign the responsibility to the national executive to coordinate the disaster. It will also ensure that provinces, which are not currently declared disaster areas, can be covered through measures to prevent and mitigate against the drought,” said Van Rooyen.
He said the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) will continue to monitor the levels of 214 major dams, as this information is critical to understanding the situation around the availability of water in the systems.
2017 the driest year
Van Rooyen said the South African Weather Service reported that
2017 was the driest year in terms of rainfall as almost the whole country
received below normal levels.
“This denotes that the country has not recovered from the 2014 drought, with the Western Cape experiencing the worst drought in years,” he added.
Forecasting systems indicate that affected provinces may still experience drier than normal conditions.
“The Standard Precipitation Index for the 24-month period indicates areas of mild to extreme drought categories across South Africa, as a result of four consecutive seasons of low rainfall.”
“The cases of all the affected areas are clearly an indication of the need for a national coordinated approach and response to this unfolding challenge,” he said.
Interventions in Cape Town
Water scarcity does not only impact residents' daily lives, it also has profound negative implications on the economies of affected provinces.
“Recent reports indicate that the tourism sector in affected areas is feeling the shock, particularly in the Western Cape,” said Van Rooyen, adding that this is one of the reasons why government cannot sit back and fold its arms.
The Western Cape is one of South Africa's biggest tourist destinations. Figures show that in 2016, 3.6 million foreign and domestic tourists spent R20.6 billion in the province.
In an effort to alleviate the drought in Cape Town, DWS has been working with the city's
authorities.
The dire situation in the City of Cape Town has forced authorities to put stringent measures in place to prolong what could be regarded as a probable Day Zero, when taps could run dry.
The City of Cape Town is implementing level 6B restrictions which means that there is a daily limit of 50 litres per person, whether at home, work, school or elsewhere.
While the city is focusing all its efforts on pushing back Day Zero, it said it needs to be prepared for a scenario where it takes control of the city's water supply to extend it into the winter months.
“We will shut off supply to taps when our dams reach a collective level of 13.5 percent. Once dam levels reach 13.5 percent, they [the authorities] will begin to shut down the reticulation system, except to key commercial areas and institutions such as hospitals,” said the city in a statement.
Once this happens residents will be able to access water from collection points across the city. Each resident will be allocated 25 litres of water a day.
The city has activated its Disaster Operations Centre to execute its Water Disaster Plan which will take effect in the event of Day Zero.
Improvements in Richards Bay
According to DWS, water reservoirs in Richards Bay have significantly improved since the new desalination plant came into operation in May 2017.
Richards Bay is in the City of uMhlathuze in KwaZulu-Natal and is one of the areas that has been severely affected by the ongoing drought.
By August 2016, Richards Bay's main water supply had dropped to a dangerously low level of 16 percent. But the desalination plant – one of DWS's short-term interventions – has improved water security and reliability.
Desalination is the process of removing salt from seawater.The intervention is aimed at increasing domestic water supply to help local communities and business in and around the area.
The plant produces about 10 megalitres of clean water per day and directly benefits the communities of Mandlazini, Meerensee, Nseleni, Khoza, Mzingazi and the Mbonambi
Rural Water Supply Scheme.
The department has also started implementing interventions to expand existing water resources in other parts of the country.
The short- to long-term interventions take a four-pronged approach, which includes desalination, groundwater optimisation, water conservation and demand management, and reuse optimisation.
“[There’s] clearly a … need for a national coordinated approach and response to this unfolding challenge.”
Water saving tips:
Car
• Wash your car with a bucket and sponge only, not a hosepipe.
• Use a commercial car wash that recycles water.
Bathroom
• Turn off the tap while brushing teeth, shaving or soaping hands.
• Take shorter showers and use less water if you bath, although showering is recommended.
• Bath young children together.
• Flush the toilet only when odours make it necessary.
• Put a brick in your cistern to reduce capacity.
Laundry
• Cut back on washing your towels and linen.
• Match the size of your laundry
load with water volume.
Buy an eco-friendly wash ball. Buy a water-efficient washing machine.
Kitchen
Only turn the dishwasher on when it's full.
Use a plugged sink to wash dishes instead of a running tap.
Use less dish-washing liquid to reduce the need for rinsing. Use a plugged sink to rinse vegetables instead of a running tap.
Use the water you used to rinse fruit and veggies to water plants.
Plants and garden
Learn about water-wise gardening.
Water plants at the coolest time of the day.
Group plants together that have the same water requirements.
Water plants with the water you used in the kitchen to rinse fruit and veggies. Choose local indigenous water-wise plants for your home and garden. Use natural and organic garden products.
• Check your water meter for hidden water leaks. Read the water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water has been used. If the water meter doesn't read exactly the same, there is a leak.
Repairing of dripping taps is also essential. If a tap is dripping at a rate of one drop per second, up to 10 220 litres of water could be wasted per year.