According to James Brent-Styan, spokesperson of the Western Cape Local Government and Environmental Affairs Department, the average level of dams across the Western Cape had dropped to 31%.
He added that municipalities and provincial authorities were working hard to alleviate the challenges this posed.
According to a statement by DWS, the water level of major dams that supply the Western Cape Water Supply System (WCWSS), had been falling at between 1,2% and 2% per week for the past year.
“After two years of inadequate rainfall, the levels of the dams are lower than previous years, and this has resulted in some areas becoming water stressed, which raise concerns for water security this season and the following season,” the statement said.
“Although we do not have water restrictions on our farm, our dams are almost depleted. To mitigate our water situation we give less water to our early apple varieties so that we can provide the trees that still bear apples with an adequate amount of water.
You might score now, but in the long run it will have a negative impact on next year’s harvest,” according to Stephanus Samson, manager of Oudrift Trust, a deciduous fruit farm in the Langkloof Valley.
