Grocott's Mail
  • NEWS
    • Courts & Crime
    • Features
    • Politics
    • People
    • Health & Well-being
  • SPORT
    • News
    • Results
    • Sports Diary
    • Club Contacts
    • Columns
    • Sport Galleries
    • Sport Videos
  • OPINION
    • Election Connection
    • Makana Voices
    • Deur ‘n Gekleurde Bril
    • Newtown… Old Eyes
    • Incisive View
    • Your Say
  • ARTSLIFE
    • Cue
    • Makana Sharp!
    • Visual Art
    • Literature
    • Food & Fun
    • Festivals
    • Community Arts
    • Going Places
  • OUR TOWN
    • What’s on
    • Spiritual
    • Emergency & Well-being
    • Safety
    • Civic
    • Municipality
    • Weather
    • Properties
      • Grahamstown Properties
    • Your Town, Our Town
  • OUTSIDE
    • Enviro News
    • Gardening
    • Farming
    • Science
    • Conservation
    • Motoring
    • Pets/Animals
  • ECONOMIX
    • Business News
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Personal Finance
  • EDUCATION
    • Education NEWS
    • Education OUR TOWN
    • Education INFO
  • Covid-19
  • EDITORIAL
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Trending
  • In the words of Nelson Mandela, “To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity”
  • Avbob 2023 Poetry Competition Winner: Sithembele Isaac Xhegwana of Makhanda
  • Flooding at the James Kleynhans Water Treatment Works
  • Avbob 2023 Poetry Competition Second Place: Jeannie Wallace McKeown of Makhanda
  • Residents of Extensions Nine, 10, Transit Camp, Phumlani and Enkanini voice discontent!
  • Makhanda Creatives Speak Out
  • Running towards a drug and alcohol-free Makhanda
  • What’s On 23 – 30 March
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Grocott's Mail
  • NEWS
    • Courts & Crime
    • Features
    • Politics
    • People
    • Health & Well-being
  • SPORT
    • News
    • Results
    • Sports Diary
    • Club Contacts
    • Columns
    • Sport Galleries
    • Sport Videos
  • OPINION
    • Election Connection
    • Makana Voices
    • Deur ‘n Gekleurde Bril
    • Newtown… Old Eyes
    • Incisive View
    • Your Say
  • ARTSLIFE
    • Cue
    • Makana Sharp!
    • Visual Art
    • Literature
    • Food & Fun
    • Festivals
    • Community Arts
    • Going Places
  • OUR TOWN
    • What’s on
    • Spiritual
    • Emergency & Well-being
    • Safety
    • Civic
    • Municipality
    • Weather
    • Properties
      • Grahamstown Properties
    • Your Town, Our Town
  • OUTSIDE
    • Enviro News
    • Gardening
    • Farming
    • Science
    • Conservation
    • Motoring
    • Pets/Animals
  • ECONOMIX
    • Business News
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Personal Finance
  • EDUCATION
    • Education NEWS
    • Education OUR TOWN
    • Education INFO
  • Covid-19
  • EDITORIAL
Grocott's Mail
You are at:Home»NEWS»Water levels drop below half in three provinces
NEWS

Water levels drop below half in three provinces

Sue MaclennanBy Sue MaclennanNovember 7, 2019Updated:November 12, 2019No Comments2 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

The current hot temperatures in major parts of the country have plunged three provinces to stress levels as their dam levels dropped to below half in the past two weeks.

According to the Department of Water and Sanitation report, the dam levels in Limpopo, Eastern Cape and North West have plummeted to below 50% in two weeks, amid fears that the situation may deteriorate unless rain comes soon.

The Eastern Cape and North West provinces’ dam levels have dropped to below 50%, a few days after Limpopo dropped to 49.8%.

The Joe Gqabi district, with eight towns under its jurisdiction, is the latest to join the drought-stricken areas in the Eastern Cape. The Orange River which runs through Aliwal North, Ugie, Mount Fletcher, Mclean, Lady Grey, Barkly East and Burgersdorp, is completely dry and most of the affected towns now rely on groundwater and water tankers.

Last week, the Provincial Government declared the water situation in the province a provincial disaster, which means that water funding is now prioritised to avert catastrophe.

Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu last week assured South Africans that there was no need to panic “as long as water users used it wisely and sparingly until the normal summer rainfall”.

Scientists have projected above normal rains between the months of December 2019 and February 2020.

However, these are likely to cause localised flooding.

It is predicted that the current hot temperatures are likely to continue until the end of summer, with the exception of the Western Cape, which has received heavy winter downpours since May.

The rest of the country has had sporadic rainfalls that have made little or no impact on the dam levels.

South Africa receives 450 millitres of rain a year.

Sisulu said South Africans should increase their water conservation efforts and change their consumption patterns of this scarce resource in order to cope with the situation. – SAnews.gov.za

Previous ArticleCapital gets a taste of victory
Next Article Who do you say I am?
Sue Maclennan
  • Twitter

Local journalism

Comments are closed.

Tweets by Grocotts
Newsletter



Listen

The Rhodes University Community Engagement Division has launched Engagement in Action, a new podcast which aims to bring to life some of the many ways in which the University interacts with communities around it. Check it out below.

Humans of Makhanda

Humans of Makhanda

Weather    |     About     |     Advertise     |     Subscribe     |     Contact     |     Support Grocott’s Mail

© 2023 Maintained by School of Journalism & Media Studies.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.