The City of Cape Town has warned residents to continue saving water and not to become lax with their efforts, despite the increase of dam levels to 38.1%.
According to a statement on Monday June 18, the City’s collective consumption over the past week was at 520 million litres a day, which shows progress since June last year, when dam levels were at 21.2% and consumption was at 615 million litres a day.
Deputy mayor Ian Neilson said Cape Town was in a better position due to additional water saving over the past summer season, but it
was still important to get Cape Town down to to a collective usage target of 450 million litres a
day.
“At this stage, we need to ensure that we adhere to the targets and restrictions that we have set.
“The national Department of Water and Sanitation requires Cape Town to get down to a collective usage target of 450 million litres
a day. It remains important to get as close to it as possible to ensure that water resources are stretched,” he said.
Winter water-saving tips:
Stick to short, stop-start showers or skip a day if you can.
In winter, water may take a bit longer to heat up. Don’t let the cold water run down the drain while you wait for it to heat
up.
Rather collect it in a clean container and use it for drinking or to wash dishes or laundry.
Install flow restrictors on indoor taps to reduce the flow rate to less than 6 litres a minute.
Low-flow showerheads can reduce flow to a maximum of 10 litres a minute.
You can also reduce the water pressure to your property by turning your stopcock lower and/or installing a flow restrictor on the
main pipe connection from your meter.
Continue to harvest rainwater and use it to flush the toilet or to clean floors.
Continue to switch between using waterless hand wash where possible and using water and
soap.
