Hospitals in Western Cape drill for water to stave off drought disaster
Hospitals in the province require 1.8-million kilolitres of water per year to operate, and the resulting ‘extra water’ from boreholes would augment supply from the city
Hospitals in the Western Cape face disaster if the taps run dry — a prospect that is looming for the first half of 2018.Now‚ in a bid to stave off this crisis‚ the provincial government has started drilling for water at some state hospitals.Long-term interventions were put in place some time ago but‚ "a large aspect of the short-term plan centres around the drilling and activation of boreholes at hospitals", said provincial health spokesperson Mark van der Heever.Hospitals in the province require 1.8-million kilolitres of water per year to operate. He said the resulting "extra water" extracted from boreholes would augment the supply from the city.Already drilling had begun at some hospitals‚ as well as the "re-activating" of existing boreholes at others — such as at Karl Bremer Hospital, where the site is delivering 10‚000 litres of water per hour.At Tygerburg Hospital too‚ an old borehole is being activated‚ while water from the borehole at Khayelitsha Hospital is being tested for ...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.