Municipality has double standards

IT was with shock and horror that I read in your 26 February publication that the municipality has imposed such harsh restrictions and fines on street vendors, but choose to ignore the street car wash right in front of their doorstep.

It angers me that us rate payers have been warned that if our water consumption does not reduce drastically, we will face water restrictions and even fines.

We are not even allowed to water gardens, wash cars and fill our pools.

However, the car wash at ’14’ is allowed to operate (illegally).

Their officials have the audacity to paste fines on our vehicles without us being present, but will walk and drive past the people who are wasting our drinking water literally down the drain.

The very same scenario plays out day after day in Mzingazi, Empangeni and eSikhaleni.

I have tried in vain to reach someone, anyone, at the municipality that will at least listen to my complaint, let alone take some sort of action, but their switchboard operator can only transfer you from pillar to post.

I get the impression that they are not serious about saving whatever little water is left.

Please stop this water wastage. Start imposing fines on the motorists whose cars are being washed there.

GUS SUBBAN

Response from the Communications Department of the City of uMhlathuze

The City acknowledges efforts from ordinary responsible citizens such as you Gus in the drive to save drinkable water.

The City also further encourages such behaviour and strongly discourages any form of water wastage.

The Council also understands that some businesses, formal or informal, require water to operate, such as car washes, laundries, etc.

We do reach out to those businesses to encourage them to use minimal necessary water and, where possible, do not waste water but recycle it. The car washes in question do pay for the water they use and actually have water meters at their station.

They pay the City as a group. It is therefore not accurate to say that they do not pay for the water they use to wash cars in town.

We do however, suggest that if anyone has proof that there is a car wash that operates without any permission in any suburb or town, they be reported to the city.

Whether that operator steals water from the City or from any water source without the permission of the registered water meter – this is regarded as illegal.