From Thursday 01 February, Cape Town will be issued with level 6B water restrictions as day zero makes its inevitable approach to the Mother City.

With the taps set to be shutdown across the region once the dam levels are at a sparse 13%, people in the municipality are left shocked and confused as to what happens next. They are already reeling from the news that they must now only use 50 litres of water per day, after pushing hard to save water for months.

How long will level 6B water restrictions be in force for?

It could be another five months before the city even considers lifting these restrictions, too. Capetonians are very much in the midst of their water shortage endgame.

But what else does this mean for Cape Town? We look at the key points that come with the restrictions, and what citizens are required to do during these testing times:

What level 6B water restrictions means for Cape Town:

1) Agricultural users must reduce consumption by 60%, compared to usage levels from 2015.

2) Borehole water use is discouraged, as it takes away vital resources for groundwater reclamation projects.

3) Cape Town’s daily water usage target has dropped to 450 million litres a day.

4) Day zero is now ‘likely’ to happen, scheduled for 16 April 2018.

5) Over 200 water collection points will be set up in the municipality in preparation for the taps being shut off. Residents will have to queue up to receive an allocation of 25 litres of water per person, per day.

6) No filling up of any pools whatsoever. That includes portable (inflatable) ones.

7) Washing cars with municipal drinking water is strictly forbidden. Greywater and collected rainwater are the only sources allowed.

8) Heavy water consumers will face penalties. Households using more than 6,000 litres a month can expect to face punitive measures.

9) In fact, here is the complete table of costs and chargers water guzzlers will face:

New punitive tariffs for those exceeding water usage. Dams are at 28.6 %. 16% percent of that is useable. Drought levy to be dropped. @eNCA #WaterCrisis pic.twitter.com/m7JsLfSK9K — Annika Larsen (@AnnikaLarsen1) January 18, 2018

10) The target of 50 litres per day, per person will be in effect for 150 days from February 01 onwards. This will be reassessed on 27 June 2018, when potential restrictions could be lifted.