Letter. Persistent Rainfall Not a Passport For Using Water Irresponsibly

Although dams are mostly full country-wide thanks to good rains in the catchment areas, the Department of Water & Sanitation is appealing to the public to be mindful that South Africa is still a water scarce country. Read the following letter….

Dear Editor

Most parts of South Africa have experienced good mid-winter rainfall across the country. This should not be seen as a ticket to careless usage of water by consumers as water remains a scarce and irreplaceable natural resource.  

Currently there is enough water almost everywhere with a few exceptions of some parts of Eastern Cape. This should not make us complacent and forget where the country once found itself.

In 2018 The City of Cape Town endured severe water shortages emanating from a three year drought. The City’s water supply ran dry and almost reached the dreaded Day Zero. What transpired in Cape Town should always be kept at the back of our minds.

Working With (out) Water – Trawling for Answer to the Western Cape Water Crisis

The Eastern Cape is still experiencing water challenges due to lack of rainfall in water catchment areas. Yes, the rain falls freely, but it cost a fortune the minute it touches the ground. Hence we need to take good care of water at all times.  

There is no guarantee that a week after tomorrow, we are still going to experience rain due to global warming and constant changing of weather patterns that comes with the extremes.

Water conservation starts now…

It’s our opinion that members of the public should avoid acting as if a month from tomorrow there will still be similar rainfall to that currently experienced. Water conservation start right now when there is still water available, not vice versa.

It is the responsibility of municipalities and water boards to act proactively in terms of upgrading and maintenance of water infrastructure. A burst pipe should not take days leading to months before it gets attended to or repaired.

Both the community members and water suppliers have an obligation to securing water and the infrastructure used to supply water.

Report vandalism, non-attendance to problems

You are urged to report any act of vandalism of water infrastructure to the law enforcements authorities. The same applies to water service providers responsible for supplying water to communities. They must also be reported to the Department of Water and Sanitation when failing to attend to water losses due to failing infrastructure.

The toll free number is 0800 200 200.

As the country and the world at large celebrates “World Water Month” in March with the theme “Valuing Water”,  let us look back at the importance of water in our daily lives, economy and the environment that we live in.

Let us ask ourselves what role we are playing to sustain this scarce resource?

By Marcus Monyakeni

Department of Water & Sanitation