The Johannesburg Water (JW), SAPS and JMPD have recently removed illegal water connections from mainline supply for Waterworks informal settlement in Lenasia South, Johannesburg. This follows after JW faced challenges to provide sustainable water to the community.
Johannesburg Water Communications and Marketing manager Isaac Dhludhlu, said the population of Waterworks is estimated to 3 232 and consumes 0.38 ML of water per day. He added that Johannesburg Water used to provide water tankers every day, on a continuous basis at this location.
“Illegal water connection has caused JW to shut down the water supply on Wednesday between 21:00 and 4:00 am daily. The entity used to cut off water in order to maintain sufficient reservoir capacity. In order to stop the challenge of illegal connections, we are currently constructing a new 15ML reservoir which will complement the supply to Lenasia High Level Reservoir. The construction will be completed in 2021”, he added.
Dhludhlu said the Lenasia water supply system has a 700 mm diameter mainline, which is connected to the Rand Water pipeline.
“The mainline system supplies three reservoirs in Lenasia South, which are Cosmos reservoir, Hospital Hill reservoir and High Level reservoir. Lenasia Hospital Hill and Lenasia High Level reservoirs have high water demand exceeding mainly supply. This is caused by illegal water connection by informal settlement found in this area”, said Dhludhlu.
He said JW teams around the City are busy with maintenance of burst pipe repairs, leak repairs, active leak detection and valve maintenance. Dhludhlu encouraged community members to report leaks at Johannesburg Water on: 011 688 1577 or 011 688 1400, in order to minimise waste of water but improve turnaround times.
