Call for Gauteng residents to ‘significantly’ curb water usage
Contingency measures have been put in place to ensure that water supply will continue uninterrupted during this period.
Image: iStock
The department of water and sanitation has called on Gauteng residents to significantly cut back on water usage due to a planned shutdown of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) tunnel system for inspection and maintenance.
Over the weekend, the department said the shutdown, which has been gazetted, will last for two months, starting from October 1 to November 30. No water transfers to the Vaal River system will be possible over this period as the tunnel will be drained.
“The LHWP augments the water resources in the Vaal river system that provides water to Rand Water, Sasol, Eskom and a large number of smaller users,” the statement read.
“During the inspection and maintenance work, water consumers and especially the farming community will be affected. This necessitates that water users heed the call to use water with the utmost sensitivity to the limited water supply.
“To this end, no water may be taken from the Liebenbergsvlei River for any agricultural purposes between 6am on a Saturday, until 6am on a Monday following that Saturday.”
The department said sparingly water use was crucial “to guarantee that as the work continues, water users are not left in need and that they are able to carry on with their lives”.
They added that contingency measures had been put in place to ensure that water supply would continue uninterrupted during this period.
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