The City of Cape Town has warned Capetonians that stockpiling municipal water will only bring Day Zero forward and will hinder the city’s efforts to save water.
“Stockpiling municipal water, whether at home or at work, will prevent us from stretching our water supplies into the winter months and beyond,” the City said in a statement.
The City has asked residents to make it “their mission to protect the remaining water” as they do not want to risk the scarce amount of H2O left. “We cannot afford any action that could jeopardise the little bit of water that we have left,” the City added.
“The stockpiling of municipal water threatens our water-saving effort and residents are urged not to engage in this practice.”
Mayoral Committee Member for Informal Settlements, Water and Waste Services and Energy, Xanthea Limberg, said that residents are required to only use 50 litres per person per day.
Limberg added: “If you are getting by with less than your 50 litres and stockpiling that, it goes against the new relationship with water that we are all trying to establish. If you are using or stockpiling municipal water above your allocation, it is an illegal act and doing so will bring Day Zero closer again. This will also mean that you will pay hefty tariffs for high municipal water usage.”
The region’s dams are currently sitting at a shallow 24.7%, and all of the city’s taps will be turned off on Day Zero which was recently pushed back from mid-May to June 4, 2018.
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