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The Cape Town Cycle Tour Trust (CTCTT) is delivering on its promise not to put any undue pressure on the City of Cape Town’s already constrained water supply by introducing more than 3.3-million liters of potable water into the city’s reticulation system.

According to the organisers of the Cape Town Cycle Tour (CTCT), the water is being sourced from regions of the country which are not experiencing any drought or water restrictions. The City and the Trust have been working closely together to find a solution to introduce water back into the municipal supply.

David Bellairs, director of the CTCT, says they are extremely grateful to the Swellendam Municipality, as well as Municipal Manager Anton Groenewald and Mayor Nico Myburgh. The municipality has donated 2.2-million liters of water to the City.

Coca Cola Peninsula Beverages (CCPB), who is a hydration partner of the CTCTT, has also committed to providing transport solutions in getting the water from Swellendam to Cape Town. This mammoth undertaking is expected to take upwards of two weeks.

According to Myburgh, the motivation for this donation stems from the economic injection of over R15-million created by the Cape Town Cycle Tour in the town of Swellendam and surrounds during the annual Coronation Double Century event. When the call came that the Cycle Tour would offset the water consumption of 15 ooo visitors by sourcing water from a water-abundant area, the Swellendam Municipality responded immediately.

CCPB has also invested three 33 000-liter food-grade water tankers to transport water from sources outside the water-stressed areas as part of its plan to mitigate the water crisis. According to Priscilla Urquhart, Public Affairs and Communications Manager at Peninsula Beverages, the company is very pleased to contribute the use of the water tankers to the CTCTT.

This additional water donation pushes the Cycle Tour water contribution up to over 3-million liters of water. This private donation of water will be added to the Steenbras Dam supply and audited by the City of Cape Town.

In addition to provision of over 3-million liters of water being provided during the event, the organisers of CTCTT will also employ the following strategies to save water:

  • Using locally-produced desalinated water for cleaning purposes
  • Water stations along the route will be reduced to only 14, as this is the essential number of water stations from a medical point of view
  • 360 toilets will be utilised throughout the event, and will only make use of greywater
  • Waterless solutions will be provided as opposed to wash basins for hand washing
  • Spectators will be educated to ensure that there is no spraying down of participants occurring on event day
  • Water ballasts previously used to weight down structures will be changed to cement blocks
  • Water provided by the refreshment station will be privately sourced
  • All excess water will be transferred into grey water bins and taken to a treatment plant to be reused.

Picture: Unsplash

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Lucinda is a hard news writer who occasionally dabbles in lifestyle writing, and recent journalism graduate. She is a proud intersectional feminist, and is passionate about actively creating a world which is free of discrimination and inequality.