According to Daryl Johnston, MMC Provincial Regional Operations and Utilities Authority the city has allocated 75 million rand to replace worn pipes in the water network.

“With this budget, we have an estimated goal of replacing 18,420m of pipeline in a range of projects.” The City of Tshwane has listed the following work areas:

• Pretoria North and Dorandia

• Mamelodi

• Eersterust

• Greater Sinoville area

• Constantia Park and Moreletapark

• Riamarpark

• Clubview

and leak detection with Experimental projects use new technologies to find leaks before they are visible on the ground. These are then prioritized within our budget, limiting the technical water loss we incur.

Such city-planned initiatives are accompanied by a government call for South Africans to conserve water – allowing Rand Water to bring their reservoirs back to a target level of 60%.

Some of South Africa’s largest municipalities in Gauteng face frequent water cuts, with reservoirs and pipeline infrastructure under strain. In early October, Rand Water announced that it was implementing Phase 2 water restrictions on heavy water users.

The agency then urged residents of Gauteng to implement water-saving strategies as Tshwane was affected by the water loss along Joburg and Ekurhuleni towns.

Makenosi Maroo, a spokesperson for Rand Water, told Newzroom Afrika that under the Phase 2 water limit – tap water is still available to cities where Rand Water supplies water, but it won’t be as strong as it should be.

Maroo says that in the event of a tap running dry, it could be the result of decisions by municipalities

Affected areas will have to increase the level of restrictions if public water consumption is to be does not decrease and if the tank cannot be filled quickly, is added.

The Department of Water and Sanitation, in the event of an emergency, has indicated it is committed to providing more water to the Rand Water system.

With the current Rand Water challenges, Tshwane is now prioritising critical infrastructure maintenance to reduce water leaks. So as we call on residents save water, on our part we are accelerating fixing water leaks. #watershedding #RandWater pic.twitter.com/w3TE1Lbi4a

— Mayor Randall Williams (@tshwane_mayor) October 21, 2022