By Deon Schlechter
WINDHOEK – The possibility of water shortages in Windhoek started off this year, with very little rain recorded as well as severe drop in water levels in the three dams that supply the city, according to the latest NamWater dam bulletin.
The delay in the rain along with continuing heatwaves and dropping water levels have raised fears at the City of Windhoek, because the three dams supplying the 330 000 Windhoek residents only have a combined total volume of 46 percent, prompting the city fathers to urge for an immediate 10 percent reduction in water usage among residents.
Von Bach is currently 57 percent full, Swakopport 43.3 percent while Omatako is 12 percent full.
“Although we had a reasonably good rainy season, the inflow of water into the dams that are supplying Windhoek is insufficient. If Windhoek experiences low rainfall, it will lead to a serious water shortage crisis,” said the city’s public relations officer Lydia Amutenya.
The national water utility company, NamWater supplies Windhoek with a monthly quota of water, which should sustain the reservoirs only until June 2015. The remainder of the city’s water comes from boreholes that are normally reserved for use during times of droughts. “Already [last] month [December 2014], Windhoek residents have consumed 10 percent of the water earmarked for 2015,” said Amutenya.
As though a precursor some Windhoek residents were slapped with exorbitant utility bills for November/December for exceeding the water limits per household.
Windhoek is already subjected to tighter water restrictions that are reviewed every rainy season.
However, the water shortage is not only confined to Windhoek, and NamWater says due to the absence of good downpours in November and December 2014 in most parts of the country, the levels of major dams in the central areas are slightly lower than in the corresponding period in 2014. The levels of Friedenhau Dam and the Oanob Dam too have dropped slightly, says NamWater.
The country does, however, have some of the dams at better levels compared to last year, especially levels of dams in the south that have risen substantially. Dams in the Gobabis areas are all substantially higher than at the corresponding time last year. Naute Dam near Keetmanshoop, the biggest dam in Namibia, is 76.1 percent full, compared to 55.5 percent last year at the same time. Hardap Dam near Mariental is 53.9 percent full, compared to 28.4 percent at the same time in 2014. The Swakopport Dam is now 43.3 percent full, compared to 50.5 percent last year at the same time.
Recent modelling predicted shortfalls in water supply by latest 2020, based on the median scenario, and this will be much earlier if Namibia experiences more poor rainy seasons, independent experts have warned. Government recognised an imminent water crisis at the beginning of last year, launching an N$7.6 million pre-feasibility study to investigate all alternative water sources, which could be developed to secure a long-term, affordable water solution for these areas as well as parts of the Omaheke and Otjizondupa regions and Cuvelai delta.
Launching the project in partnership with the City of Windhoek and NamWater, Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry, John Mutorwa, stressed that Windhoek’s run-away population growth and economic activities have prompted the urgent study.