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20 Apr 2018 | By Sun International

Making every drop count at The Table Bay

At The Table Bay, the efficient use of natural resources is central to our operations.

In a dry country such as South Africa, water is especially important, and we invest in saving every drop by putting advanced water saving measures in place to limit our consumption and recycle water.

For the past three years, certain regions of the Western Cape have experienced extreme drought, causing us to be even more aware of our relationship with water.

“Below average rainfall over a number of years has forced everyone who lives in or visits Cape Town to rethink their water usage behaviours”
– WESGRO Cape Town & Western Cape: Tourism, Trade and Investment.

While we need to adhere to water restrictions, we have assurance that the central business district in which we operate will continue to have access to water.

How our guests can help us

Guests can help us to save water in ways that will not compromise on their experience.

Read the notices in rooms and bathrooms containing easy tips for reducing water consumption.

What we are doing

  • Removing bath plugs to encourage our guests to have short showers.
  • Topping up our swimming pool with treated and filtered recycled water.
  • Using grey water sources to top up and fill the Jacuzzi.  
  • We have turned our water feature fountains use grey water to maintain our feature palms.
  • We have used indigenous water-wise plants in our gardens and have replaced water-dependent flowering plants with succulents which require less water.
  • Our irrigation system at the main entrance has been replaced with a drip system, reducing water consumption by up to 60%.
  • Two storage tanks harvest grey water from the air-conditioning system. This water source serves the irrigation system and staff change rooms.
  • Water based air-conditioning systems are being adapted to reduce water loss.
  • Non-potable water is used for cleaning wherever viable.
  • Installing real time water meters to monitor and record the savings on initiatives that have been implemented.

 

Smaller initiatives from the team include:

  • Collecting melted ice-bucket water during service in our restaurants and hotel floors. This forms part of our non-potable water collection.
  • Fitting water restrictors to all taps in the building.
  • Placing waterless hand sanitisers in all public and staff bathrooms.
  • Using waterless chemicals to clean guest facilities.
  • Installing water efficient shower heads in guest showers.
  • Isolating staff showers.  Only one hand basin tap is operational in our staff facility.
  • Showers and the steam room in the guest Spa area have been isolated, and only one hand basin tap is operational.
  • Window washers and public area attendants use grey water for cleaning purposes.
  • 25% of taps in kitchen area have been isolated.
  • Implementing training and awareness programmes to ensure that our team is water conscious and applies water smart behaviours in their daily tasks and at home.

We won’t stop there…

We will constantly review our initiatives and water usage to ensure we can continue to contribute to addressing the City of Cape Town’s challenge and water savings requirements.

Our target is to reduce the hotel’s water consumption by 40%.

We are currently investigating:

  • Harvesting of condensate water from the fan coil units in the rooms and rainwater harvesting from the down pipes.
  • Converting old boiler tanks to bulk water storage tanks for the water harvesting project.
“In the event of what the City of Cape Town refers to as ‘Day Zero’ there will be available water for tourists and locals’ critical needs. ‘Day Zero, when the City of Cape Town will cut the regular flow of water, is a projected date that is entirely dependent on current rates of water consumption: if all stakeholders adhere to the required water savings target, ‘Day Zero’ can be avoided. Much like a local, tourists need to treat this scarce resource with the utmost respect”
– WESGRO Cape Town & Western Cape: Tourism, Trade and Investment

Day Zero – what will we do …

While we have been assured that our water supply will not be cut off, we are nevertheless formalising a Business Continuity Plan which includes items such as the assessment of vital/non-vital back of house operating systems, critical water needs, security and emergency response. Contingencies include:
• A guaranteed supply of bottled drinking water.
• A 250KL to 300KL desalination plant.

“South Africa is a semi-arid country, making water a scarce and precious resource. The current water shortage in the Western Cape makes the situation particularly precarious. With building a sustainable community and environment close to our heart, water saving is a priority. We urge our guests to join us in our efforts to save water while visiting the beautiful Cape. Collaboratively, every little bit helps”
– Selby, General Manager: The Table Bay

Facts about visiting the region …

  • The tourism industry is incredibly important to Cape Town and the Western Cape.
  • Your visit to our beautiful City sustains around 300,000 jobs, and contributes around R40 billion to the region's economy.
  • The tourism footprint in the Western Cape is only one percent of the population, so don't feel you need to cancel a trip because you don't want to burden us during the drought.
  • Restaurants and places of entertainment will continue to operate, with the exception of some water-based recreational activities.
  • Our naturally beautiful and glamorous City really wants you to visit us during this time.
  • Keep in mind that some of the areas you will likely be visiting are not in as severe a grip of drought as the City and its immediate surrounds. Areas such as Hermanus, and the beautiful Garden Route are not as severely affected by the drought.
  • South Africa is a water-scare region, as are many parts of the world, where first-class tourist facilities operate. Visit us, support us by 'saving water like a local' and we can guarantee that we will make sure your visit is the memorable one you expect.