31 May 2006 Operation Gcin'amanzi continues to reduce unaccounted for water Operation Gcin'amanzi, a multi-million rand project to upgrade municipal water infrastructure, continues to gain momentum in Soweto by saving and reducing exceptionally high unaccounted for water. The results achieved from the Phiri prototype as well as from other areas like Naledi, Moroka, Moletsane, Protea etc, are better than anticipated. Since the launch of the project in September 2003, the following interventions have been implemented: Replacement and upgrading of municipal water mains Leakage detection and repair of house connections to individual properties On-property plumbing repairs(fixing/replacing of leaking taps, toilet cisterns, etc) Metering of properties with a free-pay water meter, which also allows for the monthly dispensing of 6kl free basic water per stand Creation of employment opportunities to assist in the roll-out of these measures, and the development of skills through training Some of the main achievements of the project to date are: The average monthly water consumption per property in Phiri has been brought down to 10.62 kl per property per month, resulting in an 80.7% reduction of 44.4kl, per property per month The total accumulated reduction of bulk water purchases achieved by the project to date is 14,715,892 kl. This represents a corresponding saving in water purchases of R40,589,152 for the past twenty-one months period Only 50% of consumers are using more than the 6 kl free basic water allocation, and are topping up on average by R38.34 per month, which translates to 7.1 kl in addition to the free basic water Water supplied to properties has drooped on average from 66 700 liters per month per stand to approximately 11 000 liters per month per stand 14.7 billion liters of water has been saved to date Further benefits of the project include the writing-off of debt accrued prior to the installation date of water meters and the indigent's policy that has been introduced by the Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg to assist in addressing some of the problems faced by the majority of the poor households in Soweto. Johannesburg Water remains committed to its objective of bringing Joburg's liquid gold under better control and improving service delivery in general. Issued on behalf of Gerald T Dumas Managing Director Johannesburg Water (Pty) Limited Issued by: Baldwin Matsimela Acting Senior Manager: Marketing and Communication Tel: 688 1666 Cell: 082 859 0459