Tshwane Mayor Randall Williams on Monday called for “significant engagement with Rand Water” to address the water crisis in parts of the metro.
Residents in Soshanguve, Pretoria East, and Laudium have been suffering from water supply problems since 2022.
Tshwane city water crisis
The City of Tshwane requested an assessment of the current water supply issue on Monday. This is after Mayor Williams met with the CEO of Rand Water a week ago.
Williams said the City of Tshwane is committed to implementing initiatives to save water and reduce consumption to “prepare for the coming heat wave”.
“During the past week, we have seen some areas in the city dry. To respond to this, we have drained some reservoirs and installed water tankers.
The following areas are affected by the ongoing water crisis, and have “now been without water for several days”, according to the mayor:
- Soshanguve,
- Laudium,
- Part of Pretoria East:
water reservoir
As confirmed by the City of Tshwane, Magaliesburg reservoir at 34% and Rosslyn reservoir at 53%, which is “a little bit but we should be able to make it through the day”.
Atteridgeville Reservoir, which also supplies Kalafong hospital, is empty. However, special water tankers have been deployed to help in Kalafong.
Bronberg Reservoir has recovered and is at 65% as of Monday morning, while Heights Reservoir is at 97%.
The Laudium reservoir rose from 5.21% on Sunday to 25% on Monday morning.
Increase water supply
However, the City’s efforts are in vain if there is no provision to feed the reservoir, some of which are dry.
Williams explained: “In some cases, we have completely isolated reservoirs to recover the lowest percentage, indicating that the supply is simply insufficient.”
The only way forward, he said, is to increase the water supply to the region “to provide an adequate level of water.”
A plan to solve the water crisis
Back in October 2022, the City of Tshwane said it would increase its water production capacity by optimizing existing plants, as well as building new ones.
At the time, MMC for Utilities Services, Daryl Johnston, said the metro could produce up to 90% of its water, but unfortunately “it comes at a huge price.”
Watch: Tshwane water plan
“We need to create the right approach for the national government and the capital market.”
If implemented successfully, Johnston said the project would last more than five years and would “make a difference in the lives of Tshwane residents.”
Meanwhile, Joburg water is urging residents to use water sparingly as ongoing power outages have resulted in reservoirs not being filled to capacity.
Areas affected include Honeydew, Linden, Hursthill and Brixton.
Also read: Centurion section without water for more than a week
Gauteng water restrictions
Level one water restrictions were imposed in Gauteng in September and will remain in place until March 31.
During this time, residents are prohibited from using hosepipes to water gardens, wash cars, and clean streets – using gray water.
Pools and water features can only be filled between 6am and 6pm to ensure the system remains stable.