Despite heavy rains in the past 24 hours, Cape Town faces a severe water crisis if the city and dam catchment areas do not receive more rain, the water resources projected to last for less than 100 days.
The City of Cape Town website informs that it receives water from the Wemmershoek, Steenbras Upper, and Steenbras Lower dams, plus eight smaller dams. Every day it supplies 880000 cubic meters of water to Cape Town residents.
Given the dire water status, the City of Cape Town will be implementing more stringent Level 3B water restrictions from 1 February, to achieve its goal of a daily water usage of 800 million liters per day. The dam levels are currently at 40%, and it will take three years to refill them. The water restrictions allow watering of gardens on Tuesdays and Saturdays, before 9h00 and after 18h00, but only with a bucket or a watering can. Cars and boats may not be washed with Residential water.
In addition, the City is evaluating longer term alternative water sources, including desalination, underground water, surface water, and water reclamation. Feasibility studies are being undertaken for each of these sources, spanning water supply for the next twenty to thirty years.
According to the City of Cape Town, shorter-term projects are underway: ‘In the short term Voelvlei Augmentation Scheme Phase 1 will be implemented as the next scheme to supply additional water to the Western Cape water supply system (WCWSS). This would involve building a scheme to pump excessive water from the Berg River into Voelvlei Dam. The environmental impact assessment for this project is now underway‘.
Springs in the Table Mountain range are another option. ‘The City is currently applying to the National Government to use these springs more extensively, and if these applications to further harness these springs is successful, they will be used for irrigation to otherwise offset the demand on our potable water resources’.
In addition, ‘the City has been studying the deep aquifer underlying the Cape Folded Mountain Belt (which runs essentially from Van Rynsdorp to Mossel Bay) for more than ten years to determine the best possible sites to be able to extract water viably and with the minimum impact on the environment. This water will be abstracted to augment the potable water supply. The City is nearing the end of the exploratory phase and are about to enter the pilot phase which will help identify and confirm the locations and design of future production wellfields. The City chose to adopt a precautionary approach to the project in order to ensure that the integrity of the environment was not compromised’.
Chris von Ulmenstein, WhaleTales Blog: www.chrisvonulmenstein.com/blog Tel +27 082 55 11 323 Twitter:@Ulmenstein Facebook: click here Instagram: @Chris_Ulmenstein
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