THE chairperson of the eThekwini Ratepayers Protest Movement, Asad Gaffar, has condemned the eThekwini Municipality's decision to implement water restrictions from October 10.
"This restrictive measure unfairly targets paying customers, while ignoring the root cause of the water supply issue; the staggering 50% loss of water during distribution from Uthukela Umngeni Water to household taps," said Gaffar in a statement.
"The municipality's strategy is irrational and unjust. Instead of addressing the massive water losses, they're penalising responsible ratepayers. This approach will exacerbate the economic hardship faced by residents and businesses."
He said they wanted transparency regarding the Water Infrastructure Surcharge Levy, introduced to fund essential repairs, and the disclosure of the total funds collected since the levy's inception, and a breakdown of expenditures to date.
"We urge the municipality to allocate these funds towards repairing the arterial distribution network from reservoirs to meters. This would significantly reduce water losses and ensure a more equitable distribution of resources."
He requested that the city reconsider the water restriction program; prioritise infrastructure repairs; and provide regular progress updates.
"We will continue to advocate for fair and responsible governance. Ratepayers deserve accountability and effective solutions, not restrictive measures that worsen their plight."
At a council meeting earlier this week, Cyril Xaba, the eThekwini Mayor, said the restriction was due to high water usage attributed to rapid urbanisation, ageing infrastructure, water leaks and illegal connections.
“As a city, we have been constantly saying that the demand for water far exceeds supply and we continue to plead with all stakeholders, especially the public, to work with us to address this challenge. It is important to mention that the bulk of water supply to the eThekwini Municipality comes from the Umgeni/uThukela Water catchment system.”
He said the Department of Water and Sanitation had imposed water curtailment in a bid to reduce the current sales and abstraction volume of 8.4% of water usage across the city.
“We urge our residents to use water sparingly, so that we can assist in reducing this high-level of consumption. We want to indicate that we did everything in our power to avert this situation by writing to the Department of Water and Sanitation requesting the postponement of the curtailment, while we implement measures to save water, including non-revenue water. However, we are at the stage where the ultimate goal is to avert a situation where water supply gets depleted from the source.”
To ensure that residents are not adversely affected, the city plans to install restrictors in water metres to all consumers, implement pressure reduction in the reticulation network, and provide metering to all unmetered consumers.
Xaba said they would also improve the turnaround time in repairing leaks and pipe bursts through deployment of ward-based plumbers, embark on drives to ensure community education in water conservation and disconnect illegal connections.
Water rationing would also be implemented in areas where demand is too high or exceeds the available supply.