The Gauteng Provincial Government urged residents and businesses on Monday to reduce water consumption, warning that reservoir and tower storage levels are declining despite the system operating at or near full pumping capacity.

Johannesburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni together account for roughly 70% of the water supplied by Rand Water, so pressure in the metros is felt across the province.

Residents have been asked to repair leaks, take shorter showers, avoid hosing driveways and report bursts.

Water activists, however, caution against framing this as a consumption problem. “Gauteng's water system has been under increasing pressure for years,” WaterCAN executive manager Ferrial Adam told Business Day, pointing to ageing infrastructure and municipalities struggling to keep networks functioning. “In Johannesburg alone, billions of litres (and rand) of water are lost every year through non-revenue water.”

“People need to be part of the response,” she said, “not simply told to use less water.”

The People's Water Forum has reported delays on reservoir projects at Hursthill, Crosby, Blue Hills and Kaalfontein, and says workers on the Crosby project have gone unpaid for months. It has called for greater transparency over funds flowing to Johannesburg Water.

This bulletin takes the point. Asking a household in Ivory Park to shorten a shower while a reservoir project stands delayed and a burst main runs for a week is not a serious water strategy. Conservation is reasonable and residents should heed it — but the burden cannot rest on the resident alone.

Branches are asked to keep logging visible leaks and bursts ward by ward, and to escalate them within 48 hours.