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Page added on September 11, 2016
Water strategy crucial for long-term sustainability
SOUTH Africa, facing its most serious water crisis in recent history, must urgently adopt a comprehensive long-term water strategy to ensure that the country has enough clean water for the next 100 years. It is imperative that South Africa prioritises a holistic water strategy to stave off catastrophe ahead.
Last year was ground breaking in terms of just how serious the water situation is becoming with drought conditions and extreme heat-waves being experienced over large parts of the country. Even a city such as Johannesburg, with its usual abundance of summer rains, is at risk from climate change and adverse weather conditions.
Now as the long, dry 2016 winter comes to an end and with no rainfall in sight for the coming weeks, the water situation country-wide is reaching critical status. In fact, effective immediately, water restrictions have been increased in the Johannesburg area as the city tries to cut back water supply by a further 15%. In addition, hefty fines have been imposed for any residents who do not abide by these restrictions.
While these restrictions are laudable and short-term solutions such as fixing broken pipes and engendering responsible water consumption practices are imperative, they will not in themselves resolve the crisis in the long term.
In order to ensure long-term sustainability, there are five key areas which need to be addressed immediately.
Several technologies beyond seawater desalination are currently available. In addition, intelligence such as data analytics should also be introduced to enhance water supply.
For example experiments are being conducted with algae farms that are capable of producing clean water, oil, and even livestock feed. In farming, intelligent, context-aware sensors in crop fields can be used to provide farmers with data about when certain areas need water, instead of irrigating the entire farm. There are many other initiatives in process at present but the bottom line is that research on this topic should be an ongoing initiative.
Continuous research will mean that 20 years from now, we might discover new and better ways. In order to survive in the future and to sustain the world population, we don’t have a choice but to engage with technology so that we can intelligently reduce water usage and create more fresh water. Although fresh water is finite, technology can enable us to create abundance in the future.
Rapid population growth, combined with urbanisation, increases the demand for fresh water and other natural resources. Over the past century, water usage has grown at more than twice the rate at which population has increased.
According to a World Wildlife Fund report in 2012, the global population uses 50% more resources than Earth can provide. By 2010 the ecological footprint had already required one and a half planets to sustain business as usual. By the year 2050, the human population could increase from more than 8-billion to more than 11-billion and would need 2.9 planets to support “business as usual”.
Demographers are adamant that family planning is an effective way to slow down population growth and the environmental pressures associated with it, such as water scarcity and food insecurity. Family planning is crucial, especially in the developing world. Earth cannot only sustain 7-billion to 11-billion people.
Education of specifically women in developing countries will also slow down population growth as this tends to delay them starting families, it also spaces out their pregnancies and women then tend to have fewer children.
Both business and government need to be incentivised to not only focus on the short-term profits and political power respectively but on sustainable endeavours for the future, looking at strategies over five to a 100 years ahead.
Society is simply unwilling to reward political and business decision makers for sound practices that keep the long-term future in mind. We need to force ourselves to act with the long term in mind. Corporate governance principles should enforce reward systems that compensate corporates and government institutions for the achievement of long-term sustainable strategies; of course in balance with short-term objectives.
South Africa needs to grasp the concept of complex systems thinking and the numerous stakeholders that make up the system.
Society is a complex system, with numerous stakeholders involved, and the same goes for the water ecosystem. Complex systems consist of numerous components or subsystems, interacting in a local manner with each other, but without considering the effect of their actions on the rest of the system or the other systems with which they are interacting.
Water availability, consumption, population size, farming methods, infrastructure maintenance and the like are all linked which creates a complex system. It is therefore also important to involve stakeholders from the array of different disciplines in an attempt to dissolve the problem — since systemic problems span multiple systems.
It goes without saying that the role players from basically all corners of society should get involved from water and agriculture to academia and even the man on the street.
Demographers are in agreement that education is the key to many of our environmental issues and a strong leverage point to dissolve the complex problem of water shortage.
In addition to current initiatives by the Department of Water and Sanitation, the education system must include subjects on concepts such as foresight development where children are taught to think long term in a sustainable way. If we want to use technology as a medium to create abundance, we need to educate pupils from the current initiatives of government to train plumbers who can fix leaks in the short term; to scientists that can innovate new ways of purifying water or reducing consumption in the long term.
Grant Thornton is currently working on establishing a think tank that will focus on the complexity of the problem, but specifically the promotion of foresight development among young people, business people and politicians.
10 Comments on "Water strategy crucial for long-term sustainability"
Kenz300 on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 10:17 am
Too many people demand too many resources……yet the worlds population grows by 80 million every year…..
How many charities are dealing with the same problems they were dealing with 10 or 20 years ago with no end in sight. Every problem is made worse by the worlds growing population.
If you can not provide for yourself you can not provide for a child.
Having a child you can not provide for only leads to more poverty, suffering and despair.
Birth Control Permanent Methods: Learn About Effectiveness
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/birth_control_permanent_methods/article_em.htm
penury on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 11:54 am
I think what they need to focus on is] where is the money coming from for all the infra-structure? Where is the time coming from that you need to do all this? All the interested parties on board? How about the bordering nations? Another exercise in magical thinking.
Apneaman on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 3:07 pm
Kenz, why so much concern about the 3rd world where you don’t live? Overconsumption by the wealthy is just as or even more of a problem that 3rd world breeding. How many third worlders do you figure are on this site vs 1st worlders?
How about your everyday life? Run into to many overbreeding 3rd worlder vs entitled hypeer consuming 1st worlders during your daily travels?
How logical is it to drone on and on and on about the peoples on the other side of the world when half or more of the problem is your own society and it’s consumer zombies. Not very logical at all. You might as well start advocating environmentalism on fucking Mars for all the good it does.
Don’t you think you should get your own house/country in order first before you start telling everyone else to clean up theirs?
No you don’t. That’s not the American way now is it?
Boat on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 3:42 pm
Ape,
The average US consumer isn’t a hyper consumer. I would say an average 3rd world-er is seriously under consuming. Over population will get culled by climate rich and poor alike. Stand like a man and face adversity with ac and a fridge, oh, and a long list of other stuff. I don’t buy that guilt trip bullshyt.
Apneaman on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 4:18 pm
Boat how is it a guilt trip? Did I not indicate that the overbreeding was a problem as well?
“Overconsumption by the wealthy is just as or even more of a problem that 3rd world breeding”
Again, you read something written in very plain language and come out of it with a completely different meaning.
How the fuck do you get a guilt trip from the simple statement about getting your own house in order before criticizing others?
The reason you come up with so many nonsensical statements is because you keep seeing things that are not there. It’s your indoctrinated ideology again.
Your underconsumption statement is the stupidest fucking thing you have said to date and that’s saying something.
How quickly we forget hey boat! Just a few months ago your city and state were getting ass pounded by record breaking rain totals (more than once) from the new AGW jacked hydrologic cycle which is yet one more consequence of human overconsumption. Yet here you are cheerleading again and parroting all the think tank memes for MORE. Another stupid fucking human who can’t wait to consume himself to extinction. I hope the Africans do consume more and thus bring on the end that much faster. I want to know that everyone knows the end is nigh before I go. Especially oil luving texass retards.
Boat on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 4:51 pm
ape,
I believe it is every humans right to consume energy. I believe it is every humans right to have children. I think those 20 million in refugee camps should have nice homes with watered grass and a picked fence with a shade tree. Just don’t tax me. Don’t preach to me, no children or wife. I have a very low carbon footprint. Blame yourself and other breeders.
makati1 on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 6:20 pm
Ap, American indoctrination is so deep and thorough that they do not/cannot see it in themselves. The US 4% consumes well over 25% of the worlds wealth and resources. They want to blame the other 94% for what they themselves have created and are creating. Their own demise.
A simple EMP from the sun could take out their whole system and leave up to 90% of them dead in the first year. The 3rd world would hardly notice an event like an EMP as few there rely on so many electrical support systems as Americans do. That is why I think the next war will start with a man-made EMP over Kansas. End of the story for the US.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-09-09/why-does-propaganda-work-some-people-want-it
Denial runs deep in America. Few will ever escape their indoctrination this side of death. Many don’t want to. I think Boat, and a few others here, falls into that category.
shortonoil on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 6:50 pm
Humans are now consuming about 2 years of earth resources every single year. Which, sort of, leaves us about 1 plant short. So Boat, unless you have made a deal with the Vogons to acquire for us a couple more planets in the near future your blame game is bulls’t.
Your tiny footprint is 1000 times bigger than the average Roman’s. It is probably a 100 times bigger than was Queen Elizabeth I. It is 10 times bigger than 2/3 of the world’s population today.
A most excellent example of how we got to where we are.
Boat on Sun, 11th Sep 2016 7:11 pm
mak,
A new study shows that more affluent households have a greenhouse gas effect from travel and transport that is 250 times greater than individuals in the lowest economic classes of society.
http://sciencenordic.com/well-heeled-leave-biggest-carbon-footprint
Your dumb ass doesn’t even know who to blame.
Apneaman on Mon, 12th Sep 2016 10:50 am
India got water – record breaking courtesy the new abnormal AGW jacked hydrological cycle.
India Ganges floods ‘break previous records’
“The monsoon floods in India’s Ganges river this year have broken previous records, officials have told the BBC.
They said water levels reached unprecedented levels at four locations in northern India.
The highest record was in Patna, the state capital of Bihar where flood waters reached 50.52m (166ft) on 26 August, up from 50.27m in 1994.
Floods across India this year have killed more than 150 people and displaced thousands.
‘Unprecedented’
“We have also recorded unprecedented flood levels at Hathidah and Bhagalpur of Bihar state and Balliya of Uttar Pradesh,” chief of India’s Central Water Commission GS Jha said.
“In all these four places, the floods crossed the previous highest flood level and they all were unprecedented.”
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-37217679
Unprecedented – get use to it.