Water restrictions in the pipeline for Nelson Mandela Bay
Port Elizabeth - The Nelson Mandela Bay council has voted in favour of implementing the first phase of water restrictions for residents, after a heated debate on Wednesday.
The water restrictions were tabled by new mayoral committee member Annette Lovemore, who asked that the matter be approved as a point of urgency, as the city had already exceeded its allocated water usage.
The announcement of water restrictions comes after the Gamtoos Irrigation Board said that the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality had exceeded its water supply quota from the Kouga Dam because it had not adhered to government-gazetted water restrictions.
The Gamtoos Irrigation Board said the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality's failure to adhere to gazetted restrictions, coupled with the rapidly declining levels of dam levels, was raising alarm amongst farmers in the area, who were dependent on the water for irrigation.
Mayor Athol Trollip said the City had been aware that its total consumption was too high, but that the previous government had done little to address the issue, despite warnings for more than a year.