Be water wise and ensure there is water for all
Water is one of our resources that is not renewable, but it is also one that is used in the most wasteful manner in our country.
National Water Week is celebrated from March 20 to 26 this year, and according to the Department of Water and Sanitation this campaign aims to educate the public about their responsibility towards water conservation as well as to raise awareness around the need to protect and conserve South Africa’s water resources.
South Africa is known as a water scarce country and it is the responsibility of the citizens to step up to the plate and help save our water, one drop at a time. If everyone does his or her part, this resource can be around for many more years, ensuring our children’s children will also know what it is.
World Water Day is also commemorated on March 22, and this year’s focus is groundwater, an invisible resource with an impact visible everywhere.
Life would not be possible without groundwater as it supplies a large proportion of the water we use for drinking, sanitation, food production and industrial processes, and is also critically important to the healthy functioning of ecosystems, such as wetlands and rivers. If this resource is not protected from overexploitation and pollution, it can lead to its depletion, extra costs to process it, and sometimes even preventing its use.
To help you become water wise, here are some tips to follow:
• Do not leave taps dripping.
• Up to 400 litres of water can be saved weekly by taking a five-minute shower instead of a bath.
• If you prefer to take a bath instead of showering do not fill it to the brim.
• Put a two litre bottle filled with sand in your toilet cistern – toilet flush water consumption can be reduced by up to 20%.
• 100 000 litres of water can be saved in one year by fixing a leaking toilet.
• Use grey water (from baths, washing machines and other safe sources) for your plants and to flush the toilet.
• Focus on planting indigenous plants in your garden and make sure to remove invasive alien plants on your property.
• Store rainwater in tanks to use in your garden.
• Cover your swimming pool to reduce evaporation – filling pools is not allowed when water restrictions are in force.
• Use a rake, broom or leaf-blower to remove dry matter from your driveway. Do not use a hose – it can waste up to 30 litres of water per minute.
Until next week, stay safe, look out for each other and be a water-saving hero!
