- As part of its feasibility study, the City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate is calling on the public to comment on the proposal to implement and operate the City’s first permanent desalination plant in Paarden Eiland through an external mechanism.
- The comment period started on Friday, 31 January to Monday, 3 March 2025.
The City is encouraging public comment on the practicality of using a suitable external service delivery mechanism to implement and operate the planned Paarden Eiland Desalination Plant.
‘It is important for the City to give the public a fair chance to provide their considered, informed inputs on these matters. We encourage residents and stakeholders to submit their comments by 3 March 2025. All feedback will be incorporated in the final, completed feasibility study report, which will be made available to the community for comments before it is submitted to Council for their consideration,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation, Councillor Zahid Badroodien.
About permanent desalination:
- Desalination is a scientific process of removing salts from sea water, then processing it further to make it suitable and safe for human consumption.
- In the face of climate change, unpredictable rainfall and a growing population, this proposed plant forms part of the City’s various water augmentation projects in the City’s New Water Programme (NWP) and Water Strategy, which aims to diversify drinking water supply resources and build a resilient future supply.
- The planned permanent desalination plant is expected to produce between 50 and 70 million litres of water per day. Overall, the Water Strategy aims to increase the city’s water supply by an additional 300 million litres from diversified sources.
Information sessions
Residents and interested parties, wanting to know more, are invited to attend information sessions:
- Wednesday, 12 February 2025 at 18:00 – 20:00 at the Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Civic Centre, 12 Hertzog Boulevard, Cape Town. Or virtually via Microsoft Teams: https://bit.ly/4ghqlDY.
- Wednesday, 19 February 2025 at 18:00 – 20:00 at Auditorium, Milnerton Library, Pienaar Road, Milnerton, Cape Town. Or via Microsoft Teams: https://bit.ly/40OcMXV.
Information can also be obtained from the Council resolution and report, Desalination Booklet, and the Water Outlook Report.
For more information and general enquires, email: public.participation@capetown.gov.za or call 0800 212 176.
Have your say: capetown.gov.za/City-Connect/Have-your-say/Issues-open-for-public-comment/paarden-eiland-desalination-plant.
Submit your comments by 3 March 2025:
• Email: public.participation@capetown.gov.za
• Online: www.capetown.gov.za/collaborate
• Deliver your written comments to your sub-council office: https://bit.ly/3CUlnKW
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
