EKURHULENI’S top 100 water consumers had been requested by the municipality to implement risk management strategies amidst the current drought conditions.
Speaking at the City Meets Business event at Germiston Lake on Wednesday, MMC for water and sanitation, Tiisetso Nketle, said: “We appeal to you, the business community, to play a meaningful role in reducing water consumption by 15% in your daily operation by fixing water leaks and exploring alternative sources for water.”
Big businesses who fail to adhere to the 15% reduction will receive a 40% penalty on their average consumption over 12 months, calculated from September 2015 to August 2016, and a 30% penalty will apply for small businesses.
The technical manager at Quality Beverages, Brian Ilsley, expressed his gratitude for the city’s efforts to inform customers about the penalties and how they would be applied.
“This platform has revealed how dire these drought conditions are. We will go back to the drawing board and assess how we can implement our own water conservation methods to reduce water consumption without crippling production,” said Ilsley.
The business owners in attendance were also advised on various water sources such as rain water harvesting, grey water recycling and drilling boreholes.
