Plumbing Africa April 2019 | Page 41

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY 39 << Continued from page 37 As was mentioned in the opening of this article: water cannot be created. Therefore, the volume of water we have, is the volume of water we will always have, and we subsequently need to look after it. Alternative sources will only be viable as a supplement to an efficiently run water-demand network. In short, lower consumption generates less waste, resulting in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) not running over their capacity. Government and municipalities save on reticulation cost (that can be used to maintain current infrastructure) and wastewater treatment. The end user saves money. The environment then recovers. This is the foundation and whole objective of #SurplusWater2025 initiative: to get as many companies and people involved as possible from the private sector, institutions, and government, because our water security is everyone’s responsibility — and therefore everyone should be contributing to a collective success. PA The process of the #SurplusWater2025 concept. REFERENCES • Brink, G.J., 2018. Aspects of inefficiencies in water consumption within commercial property in South Africa with a specific focus on toilets. Cape Town: University of Stellenbosch Business School. • FAO, 2016. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. [Online] Available at: http://www.fao.org/nr/water/aquastat/countries_ regions/ZAF/index.stm [Accessed 4 January 2018]. • WWAP (World Water Assessment Programme), 2012. The United Nations World Water Development Report 4: Managing Water under Uncertainty and Risk. Paris: UNESCO. • Statistics South Africa, 2016. Community Survey 2016, Statistical release. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa. • Turton, A., 2012. A South African Perspective on Climate Change, Food Security and Water. New Delhi: University of Free State. April 2019 Volume 25 I Number 2 ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY 39