“Bathurst has enough water for approximately another three weeks and Port Alfred is also water stressed with enough water for only a month and a half,” said Khululekile Mbomlekwa, Head of Communications
at Ndlambe Municipality.
“Bathurst has enough water for approximately another three weeks and Port Alfred is also water stressed with enough water for only a month and a half,” said Khululekile Mbomlekwa, Head of Communications
at Ndlambe Municipality.
The Bathurst Regional Council is committed to conserving water and is working with the community to preserve this most precious resource, but with dam levels dwindling, this target has reached crisis point.
Bathurst’s Golden Ridge Dam has dried up and the town’s Mansfield Dam was 15% full when levels were last checked on 10 February.
The persistent drought in the Ndlambe municipal district is the worst some farmers have seen in more than 70 years and with no end in sight, farmers and residents are facing harsh water restrictions.
“I’ve had to sell some of my livestock and the agricultural side of things is really taking its toll on my income and my ability to keep my employees,” said one farmer in the area.
Water restrictions have been imposed on Bathurst and surrounds and the municipality says they will cut water off on Tuesdays, Thursdays and on some Saturdaysbetween 6.30am and 4.30pm.
Meanwhile the Sarel Hayward Dam level in Port Alfred is only 30.69% full which leaves enough water to last for bout a month.
“The extreme heat has played a large factor in this, but one must realise that the festive season saw many visitors in Bathurst and Port Alfred which took strain on the water reserves,” said Mbomlekwa.
The level of the cana lbelow the weir creates a difficult situation when water is pumped to the balancing dam
creating a challenge in supplying smaller reservoirs near the town. The Ndlambe Municipality also started implementing nightly water restrictions in Bushman’s River and Marselle towards the end of last yearwhen the problem became apparent.
There are many things that can be done to conserve water. Some simple suggestions from Ndlambe Municipality include turning the tap off when you clean your teeth which can save around 17 litres of water per minute; using buckets to wash cars instead of hosepipes; installing rain water tanks; and only doing laundry when there is a full load of washing.
“This is honestly a shocking situation, the infrastructure needs to be better and the municipality
need to have a back up plan in place before we end up in this crisis,” said one Port Alfred resident.
Mbomlekwa urges residents to invest in water tanks and be water-wise, otherwise the situation will have even more drastic consequences.
“The only thing we can hope for is rain, rain and more rain. There is nothing we can do. “The only gospel we can preach is save!” Mbomlekwa urged.
