#WaterWeek: treat water as a precious scarce resource

As the country observes Water Week between March 15 and 22, citizens are urged to conserve this scarce resource to help prevent a possible water crisis.
The main objective of the campaign is to remind all South Africans of their responsibility to conserve water, and most of all to highlight the value of water and the need for sustainable water management systems in the country.
The campaign always precedes World Water Day, which is annually marked on March 22, since 1993. This year’s theme is “Valuing Water”.
The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) said, in a statement, as the country celebrates National Water Week and World Water Day, the department would like to reiterate its commitment to enhancing its delivery of water to all.
“While we do so, we urge you to use water sparingly. We are a water-scarce country, which is ranked in the top 30 of the world’s driest countries,” said the DWS.
The department pointed out that it has a special focus for the week with activities that build up to World Water Day.
“The focus is about taking action to tackle the global water crisis and achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG6): clean water and sanitation for all by 2030.”
Like DWS’ Facebook page to keep track of its National Water Week activities.

Conserve water, conserve life

The DWS’ call for water conservation has also been reiterated by climate and environmental activist Christine Coomans from Brakpan.
“It’s no surprise that we are ranked the 30th-driest country in the world, and we are running out of water.
“South Africa is a water-scarce country, experiencing constant droughts, heatwaves and man-made pollution that affects our water supply.
“Rainfall has become more unpredictable, and drought periods continue to become longer, limiting the water resources that we currently need even further. This is also due to the impact of climate change.
“To help combat this and raise awareness of our water and sanitation crisis, the DWS launched the National Water Week initiative in 2014. And in line with the campaign, I challenge residents across the country to become the Ultimate Water Warriors,” said Coomans.
Explaining the value of water, and why we should conserve it, Coomans said clean and safe water is a limited resource, and due to the severe droughts in the world, the limited supply of fresh water is becoming one of our most precious resources.
“Every person on earth needs water to survive. Without it, many of us would get sick, starve and even die.
“Water is also a bare necessity for all beings to survive, from plants, animals and all other ecosystems.
“With a growing population, our existing water infrastructure is becoming unbalanced, with rural communities and small towns being hit the hardest,” she said.
Coomans warned if we don’t conserve water now, our water demand might exceed the amount of available water in our country, and as a result, small communities will suffer the most.
“This means we must use and share our water more effectively, refrain from polluting our water sources and damaging water quality, and improve our water management systems,” said Coomans.

Challenges faced
Coomans stated water security, including both safe water supply and protection from water-related disasters, is a critical challenge for cities, especially in South Africa where climate change and urbanisation are projected to occur faster than in most other places.
“Our declining water supply and growing demand are not unique to Cape Town, but the rate of the declining water supply alongside the consumption demand has made our water scarcity situation extreme on a national scale.
“Our water infrastructure is collapsing, with rural and low-income areas being catered to the least. There, leaks and flooding occur more often due to blocked storm drains and the lack of maintenance, thus leading to more water loss.
“Pollution of water also occurs more often, as seen with the recent Vaal River disaster. The lack of action from the government and citizens has made the situation even worse.
“Many people still refuse to accept that we are heading towards a state of disaster, both climate and water-wise, which is dangerous to any campaign aimed at conserving our natural resources,” she said.

Also Read: Teach your kids to save water

Coomans shared the following tips on how we can best conserve water:

Don’t be a drip
A dripping tap can waste more than 5 500 litres of water a year. So check the inside and outside of your home for leaks, as this will save water and lower your bill.
Turn off your tap
A running tap wastes more than six litres of water a minute, so turn off the tap while brushing your teeth, shaving, and washing your face. Challenge yourself to use a small bowl or cup of water to brush your teeth instead of the tap.
Save six hours a year
Taking one minute less in the shower saves at least 2 500 litres a year. If you don’t have a shower and have to bathe, don’t fill the bath to the top. Rather only use enough water to wipe yourself down and rinse off, and then use this water for watering your garden. If you have a shower, finish at least within four minutes.
Double the dishes, half the water
Using the same sink of water to wash dishes twice a day rather than having the hot tap running whenever you need clean dishes could save money on your energy and water bills. If you need to rinse utensils or wash vegetables, fill the sink a bit with cold water, and if possible and don’t leave the tap running. When you’re done with this water, throw it over your garden if you have one. Plants love it!
Let the laundry pile
Nearly 22 per cent of indoor home water use comes from using a dishwasher and washing machines. Remind yourself to fill it up, and don’t just use it for a few pieces of clothing at a time.
Spend time with your towel
When you use a towel once and throw it in the wash right after, you are wasting water and causing unnecessary laundry. Challenge yourself to reuse a towel for a few days before switching to another one.
It’s soup time
Collect water used from boiling vegetables, and once it has cooled you can use it to water plants.
Saved
Following these water-saving challenges for seven days can help you save over 10 000 litres of water.

Also Read: Rainwater harvesting has many benefits