WATER curtailment is the buzz word of the moment, as this came into effect in the City on 10 October. It is important for me to clarify that this water curtailment is not water shedding and the City will not be implementing a roster of water cuts. It is important to set the record straight as there have been several misleading media reports. The water curtailment is not water shedding where there is a schedule for water cuts at certain times. However, the purpose of the water curtailment is to avoid water shedding by bringing down the total volume used in a controlled manner. 

The curtailment will be implemented for a period of 12 months, and the City urges residents to use water sparingly to assist in reducing the high consumption. Some of the contributing factors to the high-water usage include rapid urbanisation, illegal connections, and aging infrastructure which causes water leaks. The average water consumption in eThekwini is very high, as it is between 270 and 298 litres per capita (person), per day (l/c/d) compared to the international average of 173 l/c/d. The water curtailment is critical in ensuring long-term water security and lowering overall demand. 

During this process, the City’s teams will be monitoring the system and manage excessive demand. This will be done through pressure reduction in the reticulation network, installation of restrictors in water meters of all consumers, disconnecting illegal water connections, and improving turnaround time to repair leaks and burst pipes. There is no water cuts schedule that will be developed for the public, the
restrictors that will be installed will control and minimise flow of water. This will help reduce wastage on an individual’s properties. It also has another important bene t, because when the flow is restricted, the pressures in the system are better managed and maintained. When the entire system pressure is reduced, it also reduces leaks and burst pipes in the pipe network. During a media brie ng held jointly with Umngeni-uThukela Water (UUW), it was made clear that the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) limits the amount of raw water that UUW can abstract from the Mgeni Water Supply System. This is to enable continued water availability, including during periods of below-average rainfall. 

The risk of not enforcing the abstraction limit is that, should a drought occur, there will not be sufficient water in the system for UUW to continue providing eThekwini Municipality with a reliable water supply. However, if UUW implements the gradual reduction as planned, the water supply should remain stable, even with below-average rainfall. If there is below average rainfall, any restrictions required would be more manageable. It is in this regard that the DWS issued a notice to UUW to reduce the volume of water abstracted from the Mgeni system to their licenced volumes in July 2023.