surface water sources are limited in many catchments, as indicated by Reconciliation Strategies, and that infrastructure as well as the costs of construction and maintenance is prohibitive.
South Africa has to prioritise— considering the mix of options available— to supply the huge water demands for equitable allocation aimed at development and economic growth. The country will thus consider other potential sources, which include water re-use; desalination; groundwater utilisation; water conservation and water demand management measures; rainwater harvesting; recovering water from acid mine drainage; and the import of water intensive goods.
The NWRS2 states that these measures will augment the available water resources to support the key developmental objectives of the country. One of the objectives is the equitable allocation of water resources.
Water allocation
The strategy recognises that the manner in which water was allocated in the past was unequal and favoured the white section of the population in South Africa. The NDP and NWA collectively inform the intended means to redress past imbalances in the manner in which water was allocated.
The perspective of equity in the strategy is three dimensional and includes equity in access to water services, equity in access to water resources, and equity in access to the benefits from water resource use through economic, social, and environmental development and management. The strategy intends to achieve these objectives through the use of the Water Allocation Reform Programme and mechanisms proposed, which include water set aside specifically for redress, compulsory licensing, general authorisations, development support, and partnerships to ensure that water is made available to previously disadvantaged groups.
The water resource protection theme emphasises the need to protect our fresh water ecosystems, which are under threat because of pollution from many sources. The need for the determination and preservation of the ecological reserve as well as the classification of river fresh water systems will be a priority. This will assist in determining the nature and the extent of pollution to provide appropriate rehabilitation solutions. The strategy stresses the need for the value of water to be appreciated, and for the attitudes and habits of all citizens to change towards water and to work towards its protection. It is reported that climate change will progressively alter the environment in future and present new challenges. The effects of climate change include higher temperatures, altered rainfall patterns, and increased occurrences of drought and floods. The strategy proposes the development of adequate capacity within the sector and the country for monitoring and effective detection, as well as adaptation to protect water and to ensure sustainable water supplies into the future.
The Reconciliation Strategies project depletion in the water supplies for some water supply systems in the country. In light of the urgency to protect water resources and the adverse effects of climate change, the NWRS2 submits that water conservation and water demand management should be a top priority. Measures are needed to reconcile demand and supply to provide for our goals of a better life for all through job creation and economic growth.
Research published by the Water Research Commission( WRC) in 2013 indicates that non-revenue water( NRW) for urban supply systems over the past six years was at an average of 36.8 %, which is equal to 1.5 billion m 3 / a from a total urban consumption of approximately 4.3 billion m 3 / a.
This research also indicates that in many municipal water supply schemes, the figures are even worse, with NRW in some cases up to 90 %. The irrigation sector, which uses some 60 % of the country’ s water resources, accounts for losses of between 35 % and 45 %. u
“ Over the past 10 years, water consumption of the domestic sector has increased from 22 % to 27 % of the total resource.” tech news industry debate infrastructure municipalities networking
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