HARARE City Council has recommended that the water situation be declared a national emergency to allow partners to move in and assist.

Chairperson of the Environmental Management Committee Clr Kudzai Kadzombe said the situation had reached alarming levels hence the need to declare the situation an emergency.

Seke and Harava Dams have dried up forcing council to decommission the Prince Edward Water Works. The plant produces over 80 million litres dailiy.

The drought comes at a time pollution and a dilapidated water reticulation system are at the centre stage.

The city’s Environment Management Committee met this week and resolved to declare the situation a State of Emergency. Clr Kadzombe highlighted the dire situation and urged residents to develop coping mechanisms while lasting solutions are being pursued.

“When we get to a situation like the one we are in now, we have to be prepared as a city and as a nation to survive in that mode,” she said.

The matter will go through council bebefore we write to Government.
Full council will meet early next week. She said council will in the interim look for water bowsers and sink deeper boreholes.

Cllr Kadzombe however said the long term solution is additional water sources. Harare has been facing water problems and the city recently introduced water rationing and a timetable to go with it.

The recent monetary policy statement which requires suppliers to get forex at the interbank rate has also gravely affected water supply.

This means the city now requires more money to purchase water treatment chemicals.

There are groeing calls by environmentalists to ban urban agriculture on inappropriate places and that resources should be availed to rehabilitate sewage works in all local authorities that pollute the Manyame River, Harare included.