News24 | UPDATE | Western Cape govt wants provincial state of disaster amid fires, water crisis

Western Cape Local Government MEC Anton Bredell.

• The Western Cape government wants a provincial state of disaster to be declared due to escalating wildfires and a worsening water crisis.
• Local Government MEC Anton Bredell plans to request Cabinet approval for the disaster declaration.
• If approved, the declaration will enable faster allocation of funds, more effective resource management, and targeted interventions.

The Western Cape government wants a provincial state of disaster to be declared, as escalating wildfires and a deepening water crisis put mounting pressure on municipalities.

Local Government MEC Anton Bredell announced on Tuesday that he planned to ask Cabinet to declare both the ongoing fires and water challenges in the Western Cape a disaster.

If approved, the declaration will allow the government to shift funds more quickly, manage resources internally, and focus interventions where they are most needed.

On Tuesday, Bredell held a media briefing with leaders of affected municipalities and the national Department of Water and Sanitation to assess water and sanitation interventions in Knysna, one of the hardest-hit areas.

The municipality’s main water supply, the Akkerkloof Dam, was sitting at just 15% as of Tuesday.

Bredell said dam levels across the Western Cape currently stood at 58%, compared to 60% last week and 80% this time last year.

In the Garden Route, dam levels were at 43.5%, compared to 44.5% last week and significantly higher levels during the same period last year.

“Cabinet has been asked to consider declaring a provincial disaster due to both fire risks and water challenges,” he said.

Knysna crisis

The MEC said he had expressed concern over the situation in Knysna in private discussions with Premier Alan Winde.

“There has been debate about dam levels, so it is important to clarify the situation. The Akkerkloof Dam is the primary water source. It was at 27% at the beginning of December, dropped to 20%, and now stands at 15%, which equates to about 10 days of water supply.

“This means that if we do not add water to the Akkerkloof Dam within the next 10 days, the dam will be depleted. It does not mean that the town will be completely out of water in 10 days, because we are adding water to the system from other sources. That is why this work is focused on coordinating resources to supplement supply,” he said.

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Bredell added that the municipality was using about 12 megalitres of water per day.

“The core problem is that more water is being drawn from Akkerkloof than is flowing into it. That is the crisis we face. This is why we are urging the people of Knysna to conserve water. To get through this crisis, behaviour must change,” he stressed.

Provincial Department of Water and Sanitation head Zanele Bila-Mupariwa said during the briefing that the department was working closely with the provincial government, Knysna and other authorities to safeguard the water supply and mitigate the impact on residents, businesses and the tourism sector.

“Given the severity of the crisis, the municipality has been directed to urgently activate alternative water sources, including groundwater abstraction, borehole development, reuse technologies and temporary augmentation schemes,” she said.

Bila-Mupariwa added:

Level 4 water restrictions are in place in the town.

The municipality said that an assessment was under way to determine what was required to make a desalination plant, which could provide an additional two megalitres per day, operational.

Knysna Mayor Thando Matika said: “Council has declared the situation a disaster and is escalating it to the district and provincial levels. We are also planning long-term solutions, including a new dam, infrastructure upgrades and replacement of ageing asbestos pipes.”