Property owners urged to curb domestic water use as Level 5 restrictions come into force. With the City of Cape Town’s announcement this weekend that Level 5 water restrictions are now in place. Property owners and tenants should do all that they can to comply with the new regulations.
The City of Cape Town has implemented Level 5 water restrictions, with immediate effect, to curb household water usage as summer approaches. Restrictions include capping water use for domestic properties at 20 kl a month, and introducing further measures to reduce water pressure, if needed. Capetonians have also been advised to keep an emergency store of between two and five litres of water for drinking and basic hygiene at all times.
In a statement released on Sunday by the City of Cape Town, Mayor Patricia de Lille says: “Since 1 July, the City’s goal has been to reduce consumption to 500 million litres per day. As of last week, consumption stood at 599 million litres per day. With the winter rainfall season likely to end in the next three to four weeks, we simply have to get used to using less water as we enter the summer season.”
The upper limit of 87 litres of water per person and the overall target of 500 million litres per day of collective consumption remain in place with Level 5 restrictions. But, the cap on water usage per domestic property is now set at 20 kl per month and property owners who exceed this monthly limit could face fines up upwards from R5 000.
Measures to reduce water pressure are likely to result in supply interruptions being experienced in higher-lying areas of the city’s supply zones for short periods during the day. De Lille says multi-storey buildings that do not make use of pumps and overhead tanks as required by the City’s building regulations are likely to experience supply problems. Residents are encouraged to approach their body corporates or managing agents to ensure that these systems are in place and operational
For information on how to meet the 87-litre per day usage requirement, visit the water restrictions page on the City’s website and use the water calculator. Residents can contact the City via email to water@capetown.gov.za for queries about the water pressure reduction, or to report contraventions of the water restrictions (evidence should be provided to assist the City’s enforcement efforts), or they can send an SMS to 31373
Contact Drainmen Services to assist with Grey Water Installations to save water.