Day Zero rushes forward – and is set to continue as usage of Capetonians surges
High water usage by residents of Cape Town over this past week has brought Day Zero closer by in excess of three weeks to 29 April 2018.
Total storage has fallen by 1,1%. As of this week, dam levels stand at 33%. The City’s overall water usage rose to 641 million litres per day. As at today, only 34% of our residents are saving water. Agricultural users also consumed water at a similar rate to the city.
The dashboard can be viewed here: www.capetown.gov.za/dayzerodashboard
‘If water consumption continues to rise, together with the very hot windy conditions which increase evaporation losses, we can expect Day Zero to happen as soon as 18 March 2018. This is a terrifying prospect. Residential customers remain the largest portion of water users. If we can bring consumption down to 500 million litres per day, we will be able to avoid Day Zero,’ said the City’s Director of Water and Sanitation, Peter Flower.
Day Zero is the day that almost all of the taps in the city will be turned off and people will have to queue for water at approximately 200 sites across the peninsula.