Taps in Butterworth and surrounding villages in Mnquma municipality have run dry due to the water shortage crisis which has gripped the district for months.
As a result of the crisis, Amathole District Municipality (ADM) has imposed restrictions, saying it fears a complete dry-up in the next 50 days if consumers fail to use water sparingly.
ADM spokesman Siyabulela Makunga said yesterday the water crisis was the result of drought in the area and that the recent heavy rains were not enough to prevent the situation.
Makunga said the situation was so bad that ADM had decided to “heighten water rationing” in the area.
He said the district, which serves as a water service authority for local municipalities under their jurisdiction, had also opted to reduce water supply from approximately 14 megalitres (ML) a day to eight. He said the district had toyed with the idea of turning water off at certain times of the day to prolong the lifespan of dwindling reserves.
Mnquma is among three municipalities in the province which were declared drought disaster areas last December.
Subsequently, a provincial drought disaster was declared by premier Phumulo Masualle and gazetted on April 22.
“While rainfall in March and again in July did bring welcome relief to some areas, the Xilinxa Dam supplying Butterworth, Kotana, Ehlobo as well as many other rural villages between Butterworth and Centane, received very little inflow and the level has continued to drop to alarming levels,” Makunga said.
He added that the Xilinxa Dam was at 13%, which included “dead storage”, water below the outlet level which can only be used by installing pumps into the dam.
He said their investigation had showed that only an estimated 50 days of water supply was left in Xilinxa Dam.
He said alternative short and long term intervention measures were being explored, including investigating ground water potential in the area, “However, it is highly unlikely that sufficient ground water yields will be found to make a significant difference,” he said.
According to Makunga, the district’s call for consumers to reduce consumption had yielded no results and now their only option was to reduce water supply.
Owing to the large network and layout of the infrastructure, some areas were able to get water all the time, while other areas have no water.
Makunga said a professional service provider had been contracted and he was on site investigating alternative possibilities for managing water rationing.
“But the reality is that some people will continue to experience more prolonged outages than others.
“In order to provide some relief, ADM will increase the flow every few days.
“Water tankers have also been deployed to cart water to the most severely affected areas.”
He urged consumers to use water sparingly, “as the situation is getting worse by the hour”.
Mnquma municipality spokesman Loyiso Mpalantshane yesterday declined to comment on the water shortage and referred queries to ADM as it is the water services authority for local municipalities under their jurisdiction. — asandan@dispatch.co.za
Taps in Butterworth run dry
As a result of the crisis, Amathole District Municipality (ADM) has imposed restrictions, saying it fears a complete dry-up in the next 50 days if consumers fail to use water sparingly.
ADM spokesman Siyabulela Makunga said yesterday the water crisis was the result of drought in the area and that the recent heavy rains were not enough to prevent the situation.
Makunga said the situation was so bad that ADM had decided to “heighten water rationing” in the area.
He said the district, which serves as a water service authority for local municipalities under their jurisdiction, had also opted to reduce water supply from approximately 14 megalitres (ML) a day to eight. He said the district had toyed with the idea of turning water off at certain times of the day to prolong the lifespan of dwindling reserves.
Mnquma is among three municipalities in the province which were declared drought disaster areas last December.
Subsequently, a provincial drought disaster was declared by premier Phumulo Masualle and gazetted on April 22.
“While rainfall in March and again in July did bring welcome relief to some areas, the Xilinxa Dam supplying Butterworth, Kotana, Ehlobo as well as many other rural villages between Butterworth and Centane, received very little inflow and the level has continued to drop to alarming levels,” Makunga said.
He added that the Xilinxa Dam was at 13%, which included “dead storage”, water below the outlet level which can only be used by installing pumps into the dam.
He said their investigation had showed that only an estimated 50 days of water supply was left in Xilinxa Dam.
He said alternative short and long term intervention measures were being explored, including investigating ground water potential in the area, “However, it is highly unlikely that sufficient ground water yields will be found to make a significant difference,” he said.
According to Makunga, the district’s call for consumers to reduce consumption had yielded no results and now their only option was to reduce water supply.
Owing to the large network and layout of the infrastructure, some areas were able to get water all the time, while other areas have no water.
Makunga said a professional service provider had been contracted and he was on site investigating alternative possibilities for managing water rationing.
“But the reality is that some people will continue to experience more prolonged outages than others.
“In order to provide some relief, ADM will increase the flow every few days.
“Water tankers have also been deployed to cart water to the most severely affected areas.”
He urged consumers to use water sparingly, “as the situation is getting worse by the hour”.
Mnquma municipality spokesman Loyiso Mpalantshane yesterday declined to comment on the water shortage and referred queries to ADM as it is the water services authority for local municipalities under their jurisdiction. — asandan@dispatch.co.za
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