At 17.30 (5.30pm) on Tuesday 13th December in the municipal auditorium, you must definitely listen to Stephen Müller, the Overstrand Municipality’s Director of Infrastructure and Planning, when he delivers a presentation on the OM’s approach to the water crisis we are experiencing.
Palmiet River
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - GREATER HERMANUS WATER CRISIS
Water usage of Greater Hermanus
1. How much water does Greater Hermanus use per day (on average over the year and at peak periods, assuming there are no restrictions in place)?
Sources of Water – current
2. What amount of the water demand of Greater Hermanus is met by De Bos?
3. What amount of the water demand is currently met by the Gateway boreholes, what is their full licenced extraction amount and when will they be at full production?
Hemel & Aarde boreholes
4. What amount of water will they yield?
5. When will these be licenced, in full production and supplying water to Greater Hermanus?
Sustainability of boreholes
6. How sustainable is all the extraction of ground water to meet such a significant portion of the water needs of Greater Hermanus?
Preekstoel developments
7. What work is being done to re-furbish and enhance the aged Preekstoel water treatment plant and also to enable it to handle dam and borehole water?
Impending water shortages
8. How low can De Bos Dam go before it is effectively empty and un-usable?
9. If rains are poor, De Bos may be empty in mid-2012. What happens when the boreholes cannot then meet the full water demand of Greater Hermanus?
Level of De Bos
10. Rainfall in the last 5 years has been close to or even better than average. Why is De Bos so low (41%) while farm dams in the Hemel & Aarde valley are full and Cape Town Dams are at 90%?
Use and diversion of water in the De Bos Catchment area
[BACKGROUND: Media reports (Times Live 21 August 2011) allege that a wealthy British farmer in the catchment area of De Bos dam is diverting water, that would otherwise enter the dam, and using it to fill his own farm dams and to irrigate water-intensive export crops. The report says that the matter is under investigation by DWAF. A visual inspection (confirmed by Google Earth) shows lush cultivation in a large part of the catchment area, and accordingly it seems possible that other farmers are likewise using lots of water in the catchment area.]
11. What is the status of the investigation by DWAF in the Hemel & Aarde?
12. Have the alleged infringements of water usage been stopped and if not, why not?
13. Is the level of water-intensive irrigated-agriculture (which benefits a few) appropriate in this tiny rainfall-sensitive catchment area serving the needs of thousands living in Greater Hermanus?
14. Do farmers also extract water from De Bos for irrigation?
Developments in the area
15. Why are further retail and residential developments continually allowed in an area which cannot even meet current water demands?
Curbing demand
16. Why are there no progressive water tariffs in place in this time of water crisis?
17. What is being done to ensure compliance with municipal garden and other water restrictions, including infringements by absentee owners?
18. Why are there no signboards at the entrances to the area indicating that this is a water crisis area?
Reclamation of sewage water
19. What plans are there to reclaim sewage water and incorporate it in our drinking water?
20. What amount of drinking water can be reclaimed?
21. How safe is this reclaimed water for drinking, cooking, washing?
22. What are the risks of contamination through plant failures and how are these to be avoided?
23. How long will it take to get such a reclamation plant into operation?
24. What are the capital costs of a reclamation plant, how will it be funded, and what impact will it have on current water costs?
Desalination
25. What are the capital costs of a desalination plant, how would it be funded, what impact would this have on current water costs?
26. What quantity of drinking water could be provided using desalination?
27. How long will it take to get the funding and establish and get a desalination plant into full production?
Water Wastage
28. What quantity of water is wasted through aged leaking pipes, unmetered connections, etc?
29. What is being done to stop this wastage?
Fernkloof Dam
30. Why can this water not be used to supplement other potable water sources?
31. Could the wall be raised to increase storage capacity?
De Bos Dam:
32. Could the wall be raised to increase storage capacity?
33. Is it feasible to pipe water from Palmiet which has a much bigger catchment area?
PREPARED BY:
Ed Blignaut, Roy Lennox
Hermanus Ratepayers Association: Water
0833993081
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