CAPE TOWN, April 22 (Xinhua) -- The business chamber of South Africa's southern coastal Nelson Mandela Bay on Thursday "strongly" appealed to all businesses and residents in the city to immediately and drastically reduce water consumption, as the city's water taps face a risk of running dry.
The city, Africa's automotive industry hub, which has a population of over 1.2 million and is one of eight metropolitan municipalities in South Africa, has over the past year released multiple notices that the local dam levels are "critically low" and that it has to adhere to restrictions imposed by the national Department of Water and Sanitation.
The business chamber, in an article published on its website, worried that the fast running out of water, with no significant rains currently projected for the area, leads to a high risk that 40 percent of Nelson Mandela Bay will have no water by the end of May.
"When the dams run dry, many reservoirs will naturally be starved of water due to the high demand and will need to be shut down. With demand remaining around 280 mega liters per day, dry taps are inevitable as both the Kouga and Kromme systems serving the Metro will run dry," the chamber's CEO Denise Van Huyssteen said in the article.
The chamber said frequent pump station failures and high Water consumption over the past few months also contributed to the situation.
Despite the water crisis, there is little visible awareness around the Metro, which incorporates Gqeberha, formerly Port Elizabeth, and shopping centers, restaurants and other public amenities do not appear to be actively driving water-saving messages and measures.
It recommended all businesses and residents adopt measures like rainwater harvesting, recycling initiatives, and water restrictors wherever possible.
The municipality in March warned that if demand is not reduced, large parts of the city may have to collect water from water tankers for weeks or even months.
To sustain water resources, the municipality has divided into three zones, with zone one being asked to reduce consumption by 20 percent and the two others by 40 percent. ■