South Africa is not yet facing critical water shortages — but will be “in trouble” if inadequate rain falls over the next three months.
Mike Muller, Director General in the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry, said this week that the period between now and April would be crucial in determining whether the current drought was the country’s worst ever.
The country was hit by severe dry spells in 1992/93 and 1983/84. The Weather Bureau has already declared this season’s drought the worst in 88 years.
Muller said that while conditions were problematic, South Africa was much better prepared than in previous years.
“We have 20% more water stored in our dams than in the 1992/93 season. But while we are well ahead, we’ll be in trouble if it doesn’t rain in the next few months.”
On the ground, farmers insist the drought is worse than that of 10 years ago. Bully Botma, chairperson of Grain South Africa and a farmer himself, said farmers who experienced the drought of 1992/93 said current conditions were more severe.
Dams are on average less than 60% full, compared to 40% in 1992/93. But the department estimates the levels are dropping by 1% a week, while dams in Limpopo are just more than 10% full.
Severe water restrictions also apply to dams in Mpumalanga. Users of the Bronkhorstspruit dam have been forbidden to extract water, while sugar farmers on the Komati river have also been reined in.
Rivers in Mpumalanga are at a criti- cally low level. The storage level in dams on the Olifants river stands at 32% full, and the Krokodil/Komati river storage system at 22%.
Working with police, the water department is using a helicopter to ensure farmers comply with regulations. Offenders faced spot fines of up to R5 000, while repeat offenders’ pumps were sealed, Muller said.
Provinces with large rural populations like Limpopo, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape were struggling, he added.
The government has provided R109-million in drought relief to 36 municipalities in the eight provinces affected. Limpopo has received R32-million of this, Mpumalanga R15-million and KwaZulu-Natal R21-million.
Said Muller: “Where boreholes have dried up, we are funding municipalities to drill deeper. The government’s R109-million relief fund is being used to find alternative water sources. If we can’t find them, we have to truck in water at a huge expense.”
The KwaZulu-Natal Midlands and northern districts are also hard hit. The water level at Midmar dam, outside Howick, stands at 36%. On the South Coast, Pennington, Park Rynie, Scottburgh South, Freeland Park and Umzinto have imposed water restrictions on residents.
For severely stressed towns, the recycling of sewage was an option, Muller said.
“Among the fullest dams at the moment are Hartebeespoort dam north of Johannesburg (84%) and Roodeplaat dam, outside Tshwane (90%),” he said. “Both have been topped up by discharges from the sewage treatment works upstream.”
Most Limpopo municipalities have been living under water restrictions since June last year. “People are in agony,” said Avashoni Magada, water affairs spokesperson in Limpopo.
All municipalities were feeling the pinch, and some, like Blouberg and Bushbuck Ridge, were in dire straits. The authorities estimate that 1,2-million people in the province are affected by the drought.
Magada said many rural people depended on groundwater for survival, but that 122 boreholes had run dry. The national Department of Agriculture and Land Affairs has given the province another R17-million to sink boreholes in drought-stricken areas.
The Western Cape has also appealed to the national government for more support to cope with inadequate rainfall. Water restrictions are in place in parts of the province.
“There is no significant reduction in water resources,” said Cobus Dowry, the Western Cape’s minister of local government. “We have an agricultural drought that could have severe socio-economic consequences for farmers.”
n Meanwhile, recent rainfall has brought relief to some national parks. Kruger National Park communications manager William Mabasa said the southern section of the reserve was dry, but good rains in the north over Christmas had staved off disaster for a few months.
South African National Parks might have to reduce stocking levels of animals in summer-rainfall reserves if good rains did not come soon, said the director of parks, Paul Daphne.
Drought affects tourism revenues: in the winter-rainfall parks tourist numbers dropped dramatically because of late rains last year. Only about 1 000 tourists visited the spring flowers in Namaqua National Park, against the usual influx of 10 000 visitors.
Concerns about tourism drop-offs have seen operators in northern KwaZulu-Natal call for the mouth of the Lake St Lucia system to be opened artificially. The mouth closed about 18 months ago and the present severe drought in catchment areas has reduced the lake by about 30%.
In most drought-stricken areas, private game ranchers on relatively small, closed farms are feeling the pinch. Seun de Swart, chairperson of the Musina Game Association, said a wildlife farmer on a 3 000ha farm could pay up to R1 800 a day for supplementary animal feed.