NEWS RELEASE                                                                                       22 February 2001

TARGET DATE SET FOR FREE BASIC WATER

May 1 this year has been set as the target date for implementation of free basic water for all consumers in the Cape Metro area.

This and other details of the provision of free basic water emerged when City of Cape Town councillors attended a workshop in Parow today.

One of the key messages to be conveyed to water consumers is that water is a scarce resource - a “hand-up and not a hand-down” to benefit mainly the poor.

Top city officials told councillors that the target date for the implementation of phase one - to deliver 6 000 litres of free water per month to the 95 per cent of domestic consumers who are either metered or use standpipes - is May 1 this year. Phase two, which will extend the service to flats, cluster homes and bulk-metered consumers, will start in July.

It was pointed out that the new service would go hand in hand with a concerted effort to reduce the demand for water in an area facing water shortages.

Once the 6 kilolitre free water service has been introduced, the Council will pursue an aggressive credit control policy and supply cut-offs for non-payers.

In tandem with the implementation of free basic water, the City of Cape Town Council will launch a clear and intensive communication campaign to ensure that all consumers understand the benefit and how the cost will be recovered.

Mike Marsden, Interim Services Co-ordinator for the City of Cape Town, said the challenge facing the city was to ensure that the promise of 6 kilolitres of free water for all was met.

“We have already made substantial strides, but we need to decide how the service will be paid for - whether higher tariffs will apply to bigger users or whether it will be subsidised by other services,” he said.

Mr Marsden said the details of implementation would go before Council in April. Advertisements would then be placed in the Press and there would be a period to consider objections.

“We will turn on the taps in May,” he said.

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