Cape Town a dam sight better than Jozi

Tougher water curbs will hit Cape Town from next Thursday, but they don't come close to Johannesburg's hardline approach.

Starting last night parts of the City of Gold will be without water from 8pm to 4am "until further notice".

In an alert on its Facebook page, Johannesburg Water said reservoir outlet valves would be closed in a move to reduce "escalating water consumption".

"The areas affected overnight will be Deep South, Soweto, Midrand, Sandton and Randburg," it said.

"Water levels at the integrated Vaal River system have not risen sufficiently to satisfactory levels."

• Brace yourself - City of Joburg to turn off the taps at night in some areas to reduce consumptionResidents in parts of Johannesburg will be left without water - starting on Thursday evening as the city takes drastic action to reduce consumption. 

Cape Town's intensified restrictions look lily-livered in comparison, limiting garden watering to an hour a day on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and a ban on washing cars with municipal water.

The restrictions were agreed yesterday by the Cape Town council, but not before a debate in which the ANC proposed a ban on swimming pools and the ACDP called for curbs on "ornamental water fountains, water parks and water features".

Grant Haskin of the ACDP also said extra revenue from punitive water tariffs should be used to educate residents about saving water and "for the installation of grey-water and water-harvesting devices at city-owned facilities".

• Durban set for water blip todayWith temperatures soaring this week and water restrictions being tightened, it is easy to see why Durban residents are tempted to stockpile water. 

The ruling DA rejected the proposals.

Mayor Patricia de Lille warned that residents who ignored water restrictions may have their supply restricted, saying the plan to target the 20000 worst water guzzlers would involve "door-to-door visits, issuing more fines where applicable, and installing water-restriction devices if usage continues to be high".

Dam levels are at 40%, but De Lille said the city's dams were only 30% full "because we cannot extract the last 10%". 

- Additional reporting by TMG Digital