Windhoek
If residents in the central areas could reduce their water consumption by 20 percent, there could be sufficient water to last until April next year.
With a 25 percent water saving, the water supply can last to June next year, but if the situation continues as is, where no water is being saved, the central region could run dry by October 3. These scenarios were sketched by NamWater’s manager of hydrology, Andre Mostert, last week when the water utility invited members of the press to visit two of the three dams that supply the central area, including Karibib, Windhoek, Gobabis and customers along the pipeline route. Mostert presented several scenarios to explain how long the current water supply would last if various water saving measures are implemented.
“We need to start saving water and do something about it. If we don’t stand together we’re going to run out of water,” he stressed. “Unfortunately at the stage we are now, we will not make two rainy seasons,” he said.
According to last week’s figures, the combined water level in the three dams stands at an alarming 14.8 percent, although NamWater recently told New Era it is looking at the possibility of pumping water from Kombat, which is said to have vast water reserves.
Mostert explained that the country is facing a prolonged drought, more extreme than other preceding droughts on record and consequently there has been a very little inflow into the dams over the last two rainy seasons.
He said in 1996 the central areas faced a similar situation when Windhoek nearly ran out of water, but fortunately the rains came just in time to save the situation.
Meanwhile, NamWater’s chief executive officer, Vaino Shivute, has sent out letters calling on bulk users to reduce their water consumption by at least 20 percent.
“Think of the impact it will have on the industry and on people’s jobs. Some industries are going to close down. Think about it… if we can’t supply water NamWater is going to be in financial trouble,” said Cliff Olivier, NamWater’s head of the central business unit.
Olivier believes if residents save can reduce their current water consumption by 25 percent it could get the central region halfway through to the next rainy season.
He advised residents of the central area to fix any leaks, to choose plants that need less water, not to fill their swimming pools and not to wash their cars with hosepipes, among other water saving measures.
Asked if water scarcity will lead to higher water prices, Olivier responded in the negative, saying the price NamWater charges for water is based not on demand, but on how much it costs to supply the water.
Also of great concern to NamWater is the quality of the water in the Swakoppoort Dam, which is reportedly heavily polluted. Swakoppoort has a capacity of 63 million cubic metres, the biggest among the dams that supply the central area.
Manager of water supply in Khomas Region Koos Theron said the Omatako Dam has very good quality water and Von Bach has fine quality water, but the Swakopport Dam – whose catchment area is in and around Windhoek – presents a major problem with algae. There are also nitrates and high levels of salt in the water.
Theron said phosphate, which is food for algae, runs from the Windhoek catchment area into the dam as all the storm water drains down to the Swakoppoort Dam.
“There is a huge informal settlement west of Windhoek that is not properly serviced and the waste flows into the dam. We’ve been struggling over the past four weeks to get the water as it should be,” Theron remarked.
To solve the problem, NamWater installed six solar bees, which keep the water circulating. The units float and circulate in the water, which disturbs the movement of the algae and influence its process of feeding and growth.
“It is a research project and we are waiting for a report from our scientists, but I’m confident it is helping a lot. It could have been far worse if we didn’t do this,” Theron said.