Johannesburg Water Crisis: Is City of Millions Really Running Out?
Summary
Johannesburg residents have faced water outages lasting more than 10 days as reservoirs and towers struggle to refill. Researchers say the region’s dams are full, but aging, poorly maintained pipes and storage facilities, water losses from leaks, and rising demand are limiting delivery to homes and businesses.Key Facts
- Johannesburg has roughly 6.2 million residents and relies on a system that moves dam water through treatment plants, pumps, and municipal storage.
- Water researcher Craig Sheridan said maintenance of pipes, reservoirs, and water towers has lagged while demand has grown.
- Former water affairs director Mike Muller said the distribution network loses more than 30 percent of supplied water through leaks.
- Mayor Dada Morero said some households had gone without water for more than 10 days and reservoirs were refilling more slowly than water was being used.
- Morero said Johannesburg Water planned to acquire tanker trucks to deliver water to informal settlements.
- The mayor said water storage levels rose from 37 percent on Monday to 41 percent on Tuesday.
- Residents and businesses have reported serious effects, including people traveling to collect water and a shop owner spending a day’s profit to refill a backup tank.
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