The average level for dams across the Western Cape stands at 21.3%
Last year this time, dam levels stood at 31.6%.
Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning MEC Anton Bredell said the latest dam levels are a continued cause for concern.
“The good news is we are nearing our expected rainfall season in the province and we are hopeful that we will be able to see the year through without any of our high-risk towns running out of drinking water. But the public must not be complacent – we cannot rely on rainfall. We still need to save water to keep pushing day zero out,” Bredell said.
Bredell called on the public and business sector to continue to drive water use down.
“Even if we get exceptional rains this year, we want to urge everyone to keep their water use as low as possible. Even if it is raining cats and dogs, we must now look towards getting through the summer of 2018/19. To achieve this, our dams and underground water sources will need to recover as much as possible,” he said.
While some dams are showing levels of less than 10%, this does not mean areas around those dams will be cut off, Bredell added.
“Our municipalities are all part of larger water schemes that include getting water from sources like boreholes. At this stage we are confident that our municipalities are still able to provide drinking water to all their communities over the short term, despite low dam levels.”
Bredell said he was concerned about jobs and the sustainability of the agriculture sector which remains severely affected by the ongoing drought.
“We are continuously engaging the sector and the National Government to see how we can continue to support our farmers and farmworkers. To date, over R100 million has been diverted in drought relief for farmers.”
Theewaterskloof is currently at 10.8% (2017: 27.5%); Voëlvlei Dam is at 16.1% (2017: 33.1%) and Clanwilliam Dam 9.7% (2017: 34.4%). Bergrivier 51.3% (2017: 40.8%).