Recent rainfall has significantly improved Cape Town’s water storage levels, although officials say long-term water security remains a concern.
The City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation, Zahid Badroodien, says dam levels have increased by almost 20% following a major rainfall event.
“In the space of two days with one significant rainfall event, our dam levels have gone up by almost 20%, which puts us at about 67.8% as of yesterday. Certainly much improvement in terms of our dams, and the city is now safely or almost at least safely outside of our drought caution. So that’s some good news,” Badroodien said.
However, he warned that despite the improvement, water conservation efforts must continue as infrastructure challenges persist, particularly during heavy rain events.
Badroodien raised concern over the impact of littering and illegal dumping on stormwater and sewer systems, saying it contributes to flooding and system blockages.
“Foreign objects, litter, everything that we’re throwing in the roads, has a major impact on our sewer and stormwater systems… our teams have needed to work nonstop to pull out things that shouldn’t be there,” he said.
He urged residents to make use of waste collection services and avoid dumping in roads, stormwater systems, and retention ponds.
“Please don’t litter in the roads, don’t dump in our stormwater systems. Use waste collection services in order to reduce the impact of flooding,” he added.
VOC News
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