Don’t stop your water saving efforts just yet!

In spite of the wonderful rains that we enjoyed this past weekend and that the levels of Kouga’s supply dams have increased dramatically, it is unlikely that water restrictions will be lifted in the near future.

“Early indications are that the Department of Water and Sanitation does not yet want to relax the restrictions that they have placed on extraction from the dams,” Kouga Mayor Horatio Hendricks said. “This means that water restrictions, as well as the rationing at Hankey and Patensie will have to remain in place for now.”

Kouga makes use of the Algoa system of supply dams. Nelson Mandela Bay also draws water from the same dams. The dams are all owned by the Department of Water and Sanitation, whose mandate it is to ensure water security for all South Africans.

“The combined levels of the Algoa system was still less than 40% on Tuesday. This means we are not out of the danger zone yet,” the Mayor said. “We would, however, like to see the water rationing lifted in the Gamtoos Valley towns of Hankey and Patensie, as the Kouga Dam’s level jumped from just 7% on Friday morning to 39% on Wednesday morning. We will be engaging with the relevant roleplayers in this regard.”

Press Release – Kouga Municipality Media Liaison