9 January 2024 – 15:30
Customer Notice
Johannesburg Water urges Soweto residents to curb consumption
Johannesburg Water urges the residents of Soweto to urgently reduce their water consumption as the demand on Rand Water’s Meredale reservoir is high. As a result, this has affected the reservoir’s water levels and put the bulk supplier’s system under immense strain and furthermore, threatens the sustainability of bulk supply.
The Meredale reservoir supplies the bulk of Johannesburg Water’s Soweto reservoirs and towers, as well as the Eagles Nest and Crown Gardens reservoirs.
Soweto’s Doornkop reservoir in particular, is under severe strain. While the Zondi reservoir has been experiencing extremely high demand which has necessitated immediate interventions to reduce the demand and manage supply.
Although Johannesburg Water has ongoing daily mitigation strategies in place – which are part of the Entity’s Water Conservation and Water Demand Management Strategy – the demand on the system continues to be far too high. Due to high demand on the Meredale reservoir and as part of a mitigation strategy, the following reservoirs will be throttled: Doornkop, Zondi, Diepkloof and Power Park reservoirs.
To ensure sustainability and a steady supply of water, the Entity urges Soweto residents to use water sparingly, especially since consumption is expected to increase as schools and industries reopen in the next week.
This coincides with the implementation of the City of Johannesburg’s Level-1 water restrictions. Under level-1 water restrictions, the watering of gardens is prohibited between 6am and 6pm from 1 September to 31 March annually. Furthermore, residents are not permitted to wash cars, paved areas and driveways using hose pipes. Car wash businesses are requested to use buckets instead of hosepipes.
Here are simple water-saving habits to implement into your daily routine:
• Do not leave taps dripping
• Wash your car on the grass with grey water as this will water your lawn at the same time
• Shorten your showering time. Take shallow baths and avoid filling your bathtub to a depth greater than 100mm
• Use a glass of water to rinse when brushing your teeth
• Reuse grey water to water your garden or pot plants
• Fix all leaking plumbing features in your house.
Johannesburg Water is committed to providing sustainable water. As such, water restrictions will be enforced by fines to customers who contravene the Water Services By-Law.
Ends
Issued by: Johannesburg Water Communication and Marketing