Load Shedding in South Africa

Although South Africa has been challenged by intermittent energy supply over the past years, Cape Grace has been fortunate to date in that our precinct has been minimally affected by load shedding.

In any event, we have a backup generator that will activate our essentials should a power outage occur. This ensures that any inconvenience to guests is negligible. Additionally, most tourist attractions in Cape Town have generators which will allow guests to continue sightseeing and enjoying our beautiful city.

Read more about our FAQs on Load Shedding here.

Energy-Saving Efforts

Energy efficiency

In our endeavour to lessen energy resources, we have switched to LED lights. With large windows throughout the hotel and administrative areas, we continue to encourage the use of natural light and airflow, reducing the need for air-conditioning.

Recycling

Kitchen oil is transformed into biodiesel and our on-site waste-sorting area minimises dumping and landfill contributions. Disused hardware is donated to an E-waste company and environmentally sensitive bulbs and batteries are disposed of responsibly.

As we continue to grow, we look forward to increasing our number of projects, broadening our reach and investment into the environment and communities that surround us.

Ultimately, not only do we want guests to have every indulgence at Cape Grace, but we want to achieve this in the most responsible and sustainable way possible.

The bountiful downpour of the recent past few months had seen our dam levels rise, along with our spirits. With as many as five of the six Western Cape dams having now approached full capacity (the highest they have been in two years), we are well on our way to recovering from the severity of the drought.

 

 

The drought taught us all a valuable lesson in responding to our changing global climate. As a result of remarkable efforts from government, citizens, and the tourism industry, the Western Cape really has transformed into a Sustainable Tourism Destination – leading the charge in promoting and practising water-wise tourism.

In fact, over the past three years, citizens, industry and the tourism sector have dramatically cut consumption of water by almost 60% – a world-beating performance that has not yet been matched by any other major city globally.

We’d also like to remind our guests that tourists make up only 1% of the population at peak season, but contribute to a sector that supports over 300 000 direct and indirect jobs in the Western Cape – all the more reason to consider Cape Town your top travel destination of choice.

As our water-restrictions are loosened, we hope that the positive news serves as further inspiration for every Capetonian and visitor to keep up the momentum, and keep saving water.

It takes a collective effort from us all to cement water-saving behaviour as a permanent way of being.

We continue to look for innovative ways to practise the sustainable use of water, and thank our guests for playing their part by remaining conscious of their own water usage while enjoying the unparalleled natural beauty of Cape Town and South Africa.

We have implemented a number of supportive measures to reduce water consumption.
We have been implementing supportive measures to protect this precious commodity since 2016, and continue to do so in light of the Western Cape’s water crisis. Despite these alterations, we remain confident of delivering an experience commensurate with experiences offered before drought conditions.

• Communication to guests on arrival, requesting assistance.
• Collateral has been placed in all bathrooms, encouraging the reduction of water usage.
• Hand sanitizer is gifted to each guest during the course of their stay, reminding them of the need to conserve water.
• Low-flow showerheads and aerators have been fitted on taps to reduce the flow of running water.
• Pressure reducing valves have been placed on the hot and cold water feeds into each individual room.
• Screens have been placed on all cooling towers to reduce spillage and evaporation.
• Local water-wise plants are visible throughout the hotel and grey water is used to irrigate gardens.
• Bath plugs have been removed in an effort to further reduce water usage. For travelers with little ones, we have Baby Dams – a baby bathing system that dramatically reduces water consumption.
• Water-based treatments have been removed from the Spa.*
• Our swimming pool has been treated with an oil-based liquid called Heatsavr, a liquid pool blanket which is non-toxic and non-harmful to the environment. It acts as a natural oil insulation, minimising evaporation. No municipal water is used to top up the pool.*
• We have installed a ‘Water from Air’ machine – an innovative device which has been designed to produce potable drinking water from the surrounding atmosphere. This high performance unit is a convenient means of providing pure drinking water of the highest quality and taste.
• Our external laundry supplier has invested in a water recycling system that serves to drastically reduce the amount of water they use while rendering their laundry services. This system allows them to re-use and purify between 75 to 80% of their water continuously, thus allowing them to not be dependent on municipal water.**