HESSEQUA NEWS - Poor rainfall, extremely low dam levels, as well as a hot and dry summer season, has increased need to continuously save water.
To make sure there is enough water available in dams everyone needs to do their part to use water sparingly and adhere to water restrictions which are in place.
• Gardens may only be watered between 17:00 - 19:00.
• Sprayers may be used, but water hoses may not be used without supervision.
• Hosing down of paving and cement surfaces are not permitted.
• Washing of vehicles/boats/caravans will be allowed by means of a bucket.
Hessequa Municipality reserves the right (after consideration of a motivated application) to provide written consent for release of specific restrictions for certain consumers.
• Take shorter showers and turn off the shower while soaping up, then turn it back on to rinse.
• Make sure you put a full load into your washing machine and dishwasher before starting a wash cycle.
• Cut down the amount of water flushed down the toilet by placing a 2-litre plastic bottle full of water in the water tank (cistern) of your toilet. This could save you up to 7 300 liters of water each year.
• When washing dishes by hand, do not leave the water running to rinse dishes. And if you have a double basin, fill one with soapy water and one with clean water to rinse.
• Install a system to pump gray water (from the washing machine, basins, shower, and bath) to the garden.
• Plant indigenous plants which can tolerate extreme heat and require little watering.
• Group plants with the same water need together so that you don't overwater plants with varying water needs.
• Put a covering layer around trees and plants. Covering will slow evaporation and will also discourage weeds from growing.
• Plant in the right season. For winter rainfall areas, you will need to plant in autumn and early winter so the plants have a chance to develop their root systems before the dry season. In summer rainfall areas, you can plant in spring and early summer.
• A dripping tap (one drop per second) could waste up to 30 liters of water an hour, which adds up to 10 000 liters a year.
• Educate your children about simple ways to save water around the home and encourage your colleagues to start saving water at work.
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