Cape Town - Dam levels across the province are dropping slightly, but that is normal and to be expected at this time of the year, according to Local Government MEC Anton Bredell.
Bredell said: “We are in the hot, summer months where water demand is high, and the province is largely a winter rainfall area. It is not unusual to see dam levels dropping.
“What is reassuring is that the levels are higher than they have been in the past seven years for this time of year. That gives us a good basis for the year to come,” said Bredell.
He added that the latest average dam level across the province was 62.2% which was 11.7% higher than last year.
The City said the capacity of dams supplying the Cape Town metro decreased by 1.7% in the last week, from 83.4% the previous week to 81.7%. At the same time last year, dam levels were at 69.3%”
In a statement the City said: “Daily water consumption for the same period decreased to 784 million litres per day, compared with 812 million litres the week before.
Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) spokesperson Sputnik Ratau said: “While the majority of catchments in the Western Cape show a healthy water situation, the Gouritz Catchment which covers the Central Karoo, Little Karoo and the coastal belt of the Southern Cape remains a concern.”
Ratau said: “The DWS is pleased to see Theewaterskloof Dam hovering above 80% for the past few months. Theewaterskloof is the largest dam in the Western Cape with significant supply to Cape Town and surrounding areas.”
Meanwhile, the wildfire that has been threatening the Barrydale area for the past two weeks had been largely been brought under control by Sunday.
Bredell said: “All the controlled fires have been completed and, as planned, the section of the wildfire that originated in the mountains and was moving towards the town of Barrydale, burnt itself out.
“However, as weather conditions changed, another section of the fire was carried by the wind to Grootvadersbosch. This fire remains inaccessible. Firefighters continue with mopping-up operations around Barrydale, while the fire in Grootvadersbosch is being closely monitored,” said Bredell.
Cape Argus