Cape Town dams brimming after heavy winter rains, but city warns of future water shortages

The City of Cape Town has recorded a drastic increase in dam levels this winter.

In a statement, water and sanitation MMC Zahid Badroodien said the dams were 97.1% full. At the same time last year they were 72.6% full.

“Rainfall data recorded since the beginning of June at dams that supply the city shows rainfall to be well in excess of long-term averages for this time of year,” said Badroodien.

“Also, it is likely to be one of the wettest Junes in the past 70 years at Wemmershoek.”

However, Badroodien warned consumers that the water problems that have plagued the city in the past are far from over.

“While we appreciate the heavy rain that has been filling our dams, we cannot allow this to give us a false sense of water security for the future.

“This is because we need more than just dams to ensure our water supply is resilient for years to come, as clearly highlighted by our customers during the drought, to help navigate future climate shocks.

“For this reason, the city is making every effort to ensure that its plans to bring an extra daily 300-million litres of water online by 2030 progresses,” said Badroodien.

He said Cape Town residents currently pay, on average, between 5c and 8c a litre for tap water.

“Our water resilience is important for our residents and for economic growth in Cape Town. We want to thank our residents for contributing to building our water future, be it from paying their water bills to making water wise decisions in their daily lives.”

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