THE DROUGHT CONTINUES… AND OUR DAM LEVELS ARE DROPPING ….
VIEW FULL WATER RESTRICTIONS AND BY-LAW
WATER RESTRICTIONS IN
FORCE
In terms of Section 4 of the Water Services Act 108 (No 108
of 1997) and Clause 31 of the Water and Sanitation Services By- Law, the
following will be prohibited from immediate effect:
1. All domestic customers
will have a flow meter restrictor installed to reduce the water pressure to
reduce losses.
2. All domestic customers to
limit water usage to 50 litres per person per day or 15 kilolitres per month
for households.
3. All domestic customers,
with excessive use, will have a flow meter restrictor installed to limit usage
to 15 kilolitres per month.
4. For Non-Assistance to the
Poor (ATTP) users, notices to all consumers using above 15 kilolitres per month
will be served immediately and restrictors will be installed thereafter, at the
cost of the customer.
5. Industrial and
commercial users and institutions will be requested to reduce their consumption
by at least 20%:
5.1 Reduce their water consumption for
production.
5.2 Reduce their domestic consumptions
5.3 Reuse and recycle water.
6. No use of
municipal water supply allowed to water gardens, wash cars, hose down walls or
paving, top up pools, fountains or ponds, etc.
7. No use of
hosepipes allowed (to water gardens, wash cars, hose down walls or paving, top
up pools, fountains or ponds, etc.), unless:
7.1 The water is from a
source other than municipal.
7.2 The water is used
for firefighting purposes.
8. No use of
sprinklers or irrigation systems allowed, unless the water is from a source
other than municipal.
9. All building
contractors to use treated effluent, collected from Fishwater Flats at no cost
(or any other appropriate wastewater treatment works), other than for concrete
work.
10. All borehole users
must register with the NMBM and must abide by all relevant legislative
requirements in terms of use for domestic purposes only (National Water Acts
and NMBM By-law).
11. All boreholes usage
to be restricted by 20%, as per directive from the Department of Water and
Sanitation.
12. No applications to
build swimming pools will be approved.
13. No use of automatic
urinal flushing systems allowed.
14. All car washes must
be closed if they have not achieved the requirement to recycle 60% of their
water.
15. Municipal swimming
pools must be filled with suitable ground water.
16. No municipal showers
around recreational facilities will operate.
17. Schedule of water
tariffs:
17.1 Residential, institutional and government users
will remain on Part B of the Schedule of Tariffs.
17.2 Commercial and Industrial users will remain on
Part B of the Schedule of Tariffs.
18. All requirements of
the NMBM Water and Sanitation By-Law will be enforced.
19. Every special previous
concession falls away and reapplication must be made.
The prohibitions contained in this
notice shall not apply in any case specifically exempted, in writing, by the
Executive Director: Infrastructure and Engineering.
Noticeboards must be prominently
displayed where water from sources other than the Municipality’s water supply
system is used for irrigation. Land owners must notify the NMBM Infrastructure
and Engineering Directorate in writing of the existence of boreholes on their
property, including the intention to sink new boreholes.
The contravention of this prohibition constitutes a criminal offence.
Water Tariff Structure:
Part B of the Charges & Tariffs (Applicable during times
of water shortage) (Excl. VAT):
2020/21
|
||
Residential:
|
>0 = 0.3 kl/d
|
R15.67
|
>0.3 = 0.5 kl/d
|
R20.00
|
|
>0.5 = 0.8 kl/d
|
R30.00
|
|
>0.8 = 1.0 kl/d
|
R50.00
|
|
>1.0 = 1.6 kl/d
|
R100.00
|
|
>1.6 kl/d
|
R200.00
|
|
ATTP
|
R15.67
|
|
Institutional & Gov. Dept.
|
R22.45
|
|
Commercial / Industrial
|
R22.29
|
Part C of the Charges
& Tariffs (Applicable during times of water shortage emergency) (Excl.
VAT):
2020/21
|
||
Residential:
|
>0 = 0.3 kl/d
|
R19.63
|
>0.3 = 0.5 kl/d
|
R30.00
|
|
>0.5 = 0.8 kl/d
|
R60.00
|
|
>0.8 = 1.0 kl/d
|
R100.00
|
|
>1.0 = 1.6 kl/d
|
R150.00
|
|
>1.6 kl/d
|
R300.00
|
|
ATTP
|
R19.64
|
|
Institutional & Gov. Dept.
|
R22.45
|
|
Commercial / Industrial
|
R25.00
|
Note: The above Tariffs are
subject to change in line to what Council Approves.
WHAT HAS THE MUNICIPALITY DONE
ABOUT THE WATER SITUATION?
The Municipality has implemented a
number of emergency schemes and interventions to mitigate the consequences of
the water shortage. Here are some of them:
1. Emergency schemes
- Making available non-potable water to the public at no cost, to offset potable water consumption.
- Promoting use and making available return effluent water from all waste water treatment plants
- Making available untreated ground water at Coega Kop (this water will be collected at the Motherwell Cemetery).
- Using additional clarified and chlorinated unfiltered water from the Nooitgedagt Water Treatment Works to increase the Municipality’s total treatment capacity by 30 megalitres per day.
- Planning and completing feasibility studies for the desalination of sea water.
- Fast tracking the construction of the new Coega Kop Water Treatment Works and Well Field ground water from the artesian aquifers in the area surrounding Coega Kop.
2. Interventions
Human capital resourcing, i.e. staff
recruitment comprised the appointment of 13 plumbers, as well as 1 Senior
Superintendent, 2 Superintendents and 6 Installation Inspectors.
3. Other interventions:
- Sourcing external capacity to augment internal capacity – Contractors were procured to assist in leak detection and fixing.
- Intensification of the Assistance To The Poor (ATTP) Programme – This programme inter alia ensures that internal leaks in indigent local households are fixed.
- Serving notices to schools that consistently record high consumption.
- Installing water demand management devices at schools to stop water abuse.
- Training Peace Officers authorised to issue fines to water abusers and enforce the NMBM Water & Sanitation Bylaw.
- A 10-year business plan was developed and approved by Council to deal with the major problem of non-revenue water, as well as bulk water supply and meters; remote meter reading; pressure management and billing management; water and sanitation tariffs; leak repairs; operations and maintenance; domestic meter audits; valve and hydrant audits; water meter replacement; reservoir rehabilitation; and community awareness.
We urge all our stakeholders to be vigilant in the
protection of our water infrastructure, as water disruptions are occurring as a
result of theft and vandalism at reservoirs and pump installations.
We thank all our residents and stakeholders for working with
us to mitigate the impact of the water shortage. We require the active
participation of each and every resident to ensure water sustainability in our
City.
Please take up the challenge of bringing our consumption
down to 250 megalitres a day. We can do it!