CAPE TOWN, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- The South African government will be offering financial support to the City of Cape Town in addressing a deepening water crisis, Minister of Water and Sanitation Nomvula Mokonyane said on Sunday.
A full plan is being worked out to fund some projects undertaken by the city to find additional water resources, Mokonyane told the Cape Town Press Club.
She was speaking after the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA), which administers the city, said it was considering legal action to compel the national government to help address the water crisis in Cape Town, hit by the worst drought in history.
The national government has been criticized for failing to come to Cape Town's rescue. A repeated call on President Jacob Zuma to declare the crisis "a national disaster" has not been responded.
Mokonyane outlined her department's role in curbing the crisis which might lead to the worst scenario on April 12 when water taps are turned off, known as Day Zero.
If this happened, Cape Town, with a population of about 6 million, might be the first metropolis in the world to run out of water.
"We must allay the fears of South Africans," Mokonyane said.
She said her department will assist Cape Town to implement a four-pronged strategy in the short term.
This includes desalination, groundwater optimization, conservation and the re-use of water.
Three aquifers are expected to provide a total of 65 megalitres of water in May and June, according to the minister.
A desalination plant will be erected "some time this year," she said.
In addition, her department has granted approval for three water use licences for groundwater programs in three different areas of the city, Mokonyane said.
But she said throwing money would not be enough to head off Day Zero.
Capetonians must adapt to the situation by saving water, the minister said.
"Day Zero can be avoided if all of us become positive and move beyond politics and appreciate that the realities of climate change are upon us," she said.
The minister urged the city to ensure that all water users have more information on how to save water, especially at household level, given that 70 percent of water is being used domestically.
Water users in Cape Town are still using more water than their rightful allocation, according to Mokonyane.
Under more stringent restrictions that will take effect on February 1, Capetonians are required to use less than 50 litres of water per person per day.
Also on Sunday, the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) urged Capetonians to strictly adhere to the water restrictions.
"We appeal to people, because it will take everyone's efforts to deal with this issue, to stick to the current water restrictions, so we can try delay Day Zero as much as possible," commission spokesperson Gushwell Brookes said.
Amid growing panic over Day Zero, Capetonians have been scrambling to store bottled water these days, leading to a shortage of bottled water. Many shops have already run out of stock.
Even buckets or other water containers are difficult to find. At a shop selling plastic goods on the southern suburb of the city, people waited in a long queue on Sunday to buy water containers.
Daniel Kayin, a middle-aged company employee, told Xinhua that at the place where he lived, all water containers had been sold out.
"I've to drive extra miles to come to another side of the city to buy water containers. I've to prepare for Day Zero," he said.
