Water in Mauritius

Mauritius receives about 2000mm of rain fall per year and it is this water that is pumped around the island through piped systems. Given the steep topography of the island and a lack of reservoirs, it is estimated that only 29% of the total rain fall is captured and distributed while the rest goes out to the sea through the fast flowing rivers.

There are six main reservoirs on the island: Mare aux Vacoas, Piton du Milieu, La Nicoliere, additional water from Midlands Dam via La Nicoliere, Port Louis Municipal Dyke Dam and Riviere du Poste. Water is also lifted through 112 boreholes from the main five aquifers on the island. Treatment is through 2 slow sand filtration plants and 5 rapid gravity filtration plants; ground water on the other hand is just chlorinated prior to distribution given its purity. About 22% of the 920 million m3 of water used per year is for domestic use, 32% for the production of energy and 46% for irrigation.

The Central Water Authority (CWA) is the responsible body for the provision, treatment and quality control of water on the island. In order to help in water distribution and administration, the CWA has been decentralised into 6 systems district wise. They are namely the Port Louis water supply system that supplies water to the city and its suburbs (covering an area of 36km2, with the main water sources being the Grand River North West River and the Pierre Fond Tunnel, a filter plant located at Pailles and including 16 reservoirs), the North District water supply system that provides water to the Northern part of the island (covering an area of 337km2, with the main water sources being La Nicoliere, Midlands Dam, Bassin Loulou, Rivalland Spring and Ground Water Abstraction, a filter plant located at La Nicoliere and including 19 reservoirs), the East District water supply system that provides water to the eastern region (covering an area of 232km2, with the main water sources being Piton du Milieu Reservoir and Ground Water Abstraction, a filter plant located at Piton du Milieu and including 13 reservoirs), the South District water supply that supplies water to Savanne and Grand Port (covering an area of 220km2, with the main water sources being Riviere du Poste, Mont Blanc, Bois Cheri Filter, Cluny Borehole, Trois Boutiques Borehole, Nouvelle France Borehole, Gebert Borehole and Cafe Borehole, two filter plants located at Mont Blanc and Riviere du Poste and including 22 reservoirs), the Mare Aux Vacoas (Upper) water supply system that supplies water to Forest Side, Curepipe, Floreal, Vacoas, Mesnil, Highlands, Moka, St Pierre, Nouvelle Decouverte, Alma and Quartier Militaire (covering an area of 220km2, with the main water sources being Mare Aux Vacoas Reservoir and Ground Water Abstraction, a filter plant located at La Marie and including 18 reservoirs) and the Mare Aux Vacoas (Lower) water supply system that supplies water to lower Plaine Wilhems, Quatre Bornes, Beau Basssin, Rose Hill and some parts of Black River (covering an area of 200km2, with the main water sources being the Curepipe Aquifer and including 18 reservoirs).

The water bill to be paid per month is based on the meter reading in each household with the average Mauritian paying about Rs300 per bill. Payments can be done at the CWA offices, CEB offices, post offices either by cash or by cheques (crossed) or simply by direct debit. All payments must be done within 21 days else a surcharge of 10% applies; pensioners on the other hand are allowed 14 more days to pay the bill. Failure to pay the bill within 60 days results in disconnection of the water supply without notice. In case of problem regarding the water distribution, the hotline 170 can be called.