Let The Thirst Games Begin…

As Cape Town’s Taps Begin To Run Dry ,Some Companies Try To Coin The Market.

10 October 2017 / Brandon Lee Westraat

So the thirst games have begun in cape town. And now that the water rationing has begun and the gossip about the water purification plants turns out to be true. It looks like the water purification plants are only going to be up and functioning come the end of February (this is South Africa so we plus a month for every one of Zuma's wives) so probably later. With all this going on its got us wondering when “day zero’ will come and our taps will run dry.

BUT Now a new species has entered this drought-stricken land: the water profiteers. These “water profiteers” are selling water I thousands of liters for a pretty penny.leaving those who can't afford it, high and dry(HaHa see what I did there).

The water restrictions, threats of prosecution and panic is causing an air of tension so thick you could cut it with a knife. But back in suburbia, the panic is real as pools run dry and the seemingly evergreen grass turns that dry shade of yellow. The undercover water users are starting to show themselves, I mean just the other day I caught my neighbor washing his car in his garage(just because we can't see you doesn't mean we can't see the water running out from under your garage door, boet).

I will not deny that the struggle is real though. in some cases, people are willing to spend well over R5000 on water for their pool. There are a couple companies selling these services. One company quoted R5600 for 10000 liters of water, truck straight to your house. This is one of the more pricey ones as the prices can be as low as R 3500 but you sacrifice the quality and usability if this water Be careful though because some of these transactions are illegal, says the department of water and sanitation.

Water and sanitation department spokesperson Sputnik rate said the government was the custodian or trustee of water resources, including dams, rivers, lakes, pans, and wetlands, and groundwater. “It is illegal to sell water. even the department does not sell water, instead, it charges water resource management charges. The municipalities charge service fees for treatment and reticulation. The only case in which water is sold legally is as bottled water,” he said.

“ use of water without authorization is a serious offense I term Section 151 of the Act, which carries a minimum sentence of five years imprisonment or a fine.”

So if any of you are thinking about filling the pool up with municipal water and selling it off to the neighbors, Don't because guess what now you are a criminal.this is the same goes for groundwater and I promise you that there are almost no loopholes because the seawater is a no go as well. You need special authorization to avoid groundwater contamination.

So I leave you by saying be careful who you buy your water in the next couple of months. Make sure they have clearance from the city of cape town.Aswell we need your help monitoring the use of water. This is the only time I give you the right to snitch, so if you see someone wasting hectic then hit up the department's hotline at 0800 200 200.(HaHa don't you just wish that was your phone number, no girl could say they forgot it).