As parts of the Amathole district edge closer to water system failure, Hogsback has reversed the script, with residents of the picturesque mountain village refusing to wait for “Day Zero” to arrive.
Faced with projections that the Plaatjieskraal Dam would run dry by early March, the community mobilised, cut consumption by more than half in a matter of weeks and helped stabilise supply — at least for now.
In January, the Amathole District Municipality (ADM) announced that the dam serving the town’s about 1,200 residents had dropped to 15% capacity.
With prolonged dry conditions and below-average rainfall cited as the cause, levels were expected to decline further.
At the same time, coastal towns including Gxarha (Morgan’s Bay), Chintsa and Kei Mouth were already at 0% dam capacity, prompting the municipality to implement water rationing across affected areas.
Hogsback chose a different response.
Within days of receiving a formal water shortage notice, residents formed a water crisis committee in partnership with ADM.
The committee comprises three Hogsback residents and two municipal technicians, and is chaired by retired professional water engineer and resident Trevor Rossouw.
Rather than focusing solely on rainfall, the group turned its attention to infrastructure and consumption.
“Maintenance had been lacking, so that’s where we started,” Rossouw said.
Working with the Hogsback Tourism Organisation, the committee launched a community-wide drive to fix leaks, inspect pipes and circulate daily water-saving notices and practical conservation tips.
Broken infrastructure was identified and repaired in collaboration with ADM technicians.
The impact was immediate.
“In January, they were treating about 9,000 kilolitres [nine-million litres] a month. We’ve managed to bring that down to 4,000 kilolitres,” Rossouw said.
According to him, water consumption dropped by 57% in just two weeks.
That reduction, combined with about 150mm of rainfall in February, allowed the dam level to recover significantly.
Rossouw said last week it had risen to about 70%, climbing about 2.5 metres in 10 days.
On Tuesday, ADM spokesperson Sisa Msiwa said levels had reached about 80%.
Rossouw stressed that rainfall alone did not solve the crisis.
“But we are not abandoning the committee. We are still meeting regularly to assist the municipality in better operating its infrastructure as a team.”
Hogsback’s seasonal pattern makes water management particularly delicate.
The town typically receives summer rainfall, with dry winter months between June and September — its peak tourist season, when visitors are drawn by the possibility of snow.
“It’s our dry months and that’s when the dam level drops, drops, drops until the first rains come in September,” Rossouw said.
“Every year at this time the dam is normally overflowing until about May and then the level starts to fall.
“We are hoping for another 50 to 100mm of rain to restore it fully — but we will continue working with ADM and keep consumption down to where it should be.”
Msiwa described the collaboration as “a success story and a very good example of what can be achieved when we all work together”.
The intervention stands in stark contrast to conditions elsewhere in the district.
On Monday, ADM mayor Anele Ntsangani said the municipality was implementing “stop-gap measures” to prevent system failure as dam levels continued to decline across the region.
The district, which provides bulk water to several local municipalities, has appointed a geo-hydrologist to assess the viability of drilling boreholes in affected areas.
Meanwhile, at Kidd’s Beach, about 450 homeowners and businesses in private estates including Umlele Heights, Umlele Gardens, Umlele Springs and Heron Court have endured intermittent outages since the festive season.
In recent weeks, supply has deteriorated to near-total shutdowns, forcing residents to rely on private boreholes, storage tanks and expensive deliveries.
Despite assurances from Buffalo City Metro that supply would be restored, residents said on Monday they were still dependent on borehole water.
In Hogsback, however, the crisis has demonstrated what co-ordinated local action can achieve.
The tourism organisation said residents and businesses remained aware of the fragility of supply and committed to continued water-saving measures as the dry season approached.
“We know how important protecting our water resources is,” it said.
“We will get through this — together.”
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