Durban — the city with one of the highest rates of water loss in SA — will start squeezing the taps of residents from next week after receiving a directive from the national Department of Water and Sanitation to chop consumption by 8.4%.
he eThekwini mayor, Cyril Xaba, told a council meeting on Monday that new water restrictions in the metro would come into effect on 10 October.
This comes after the city received a government directive that requires the metro to reduce its water consumption by 8.4% (or 118 Ml/day) over the next 12 months, at least.
Full details of the rationing plan have not been announced yet, but there were indications that the plan could include shutting off reservoirs in selected residential areas once consumption exceeds a stipulated daily limit — along with additional reductions in water pressure and the possible installation of more water restriction washers on household meters as happened during the 2016 drought.
Significantly, the city has not disclosed its latest water loss statistics, but last year eThekwini’s “non-revenue water” losses stood at a staggering 56% (compared to less than 33% 10 years ago). This figure refers to water revenue lost from a variety of causes — including leaking municipal pipes, non-payment, theft or metering errors.
eThekwini Mayor Cyril Xaba has announced that Durban residents face new water ‘curtailment’ measures from next week. (Photo: Gallo Images / Darren Stewart).
Xaba asserted: “We did everything in our power to avert this situation by writing to the department requesting the postponement of the curtailment while we implement measures to save water, including non-revenue water. However, we are at the stage where the ultimate goal is to avert a situation where water supply gets depleted from the source.”
Xaba’s comments give the impression that the government directive is a recent initiative, whereas the national department started cracking the whip more than a year ago when it threatened to chop bulk water supplied to Durban via the uMngeni-uThukela Water Board.
The department had previously confirmed that it issued a “notice of intent” to issue a directive on 18 July 2023, calling on the utility to reduce the volume of water abstracted from the Midmar, Albert Falls and Inanda dams to protect these regional water resources.
In a presentation to the council this week, eThekwini water and sanitation chief Ednick Msweli said the cuts would not be implemented “overnight” but introduced gradually to achieve an 8.4% reduction over 12 months.
Other measures to reduce water consumption include repairing leaking municipal pipes and building new water reuse/recycling schemes at the KwaMashu, Northern and Southern sewage treatment plants.
Msweli did not provide any timelines for the commissioning of these three recycling plants, while the new Smithfield Dam on the uMkhomazi River is unlikely to be commissioned until 2028 — suggesting that Durban residents face water shortages for at least three years unless eThekwini works much faster to plug the leaks in its water pipelines.
Xaba said this week, “As a city, we have been constantly saying that the demand for water far exceeds supply and we continue to plead with all stakeholders, especially the public, to work with us to address this challenge.
“The curtailment will be for a period of 12 months and we urge our residents to use water sparingly so that we can assist in reducing this high level of consumption.”
