WATER QUALITY IN THE CONTEXT OF CATCHMENT MANAGEMENT
AGENCIES (CMAS)
A presentation on behalf of SAWC by Patrick Dowling Wessa
4 June 2008
•19 countrywide
•Allocations
•Water right maintenance
•Licencing
•Multi-stakeholder
•Tariffing
•Emerging farmer support
•Activity monitoring
•IWRM
•Food security
NEWSPAPER HEADLINES FROM PRESS CUTTINGS
SEWERAGE SHAPES UP AS THE NEXT CRISIS
WE ARE ALREADY PAYING THE PRICE OF DESTROYING WETLANDS
THE FIRST WATER WAR IS ALREADY UNDER WAY
NEW WATER STRATEGY SECURES SUPPLY TILL 2030
SHOCK FINDING ON CAPE WATER
HEALTHY WETLANDS HEALTHY PEOPLE
WORLD SEWERAGE A FESTERING PROBLEM
WATERLESS TOILET FIXES WASTE
SEWAGE OVERFLOWS THREATEN SA FRUIT EXPORTS
SA’S WATER COULD RUN OUT BY 2525
SA CONTRIBUTING TO GLOBAL STATS
2 Million tons of waste (sewerage, acids, sludge, heavy metals, pesticides,
fertilisers, solvents, nitrates)dumped into water systems every day around the
world = 12000 cu Km of polluted water
WATER DESALINATION USES TOO MUCH ENERGY – WWF
THE BIG STINK - RAW SEWERAGE IN MINERTON
PLAN TO SAVE BEST WATER FOR DRINKING
MDG SCORE CARD
Soc and biophysical goals specifically
•Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the
rate of loss•Reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable
access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
Goals in general•Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger •* Goal 2:
Achieve universal primary education •* Goal 3: Promote gender equality and
empower women •* Goal 4: Reduce child mortality •* Goal 5: Improve
maternal health •* Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases •*
Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability •* Goal 8: Develop a Global
Partnership for Development
Municipality water infrastructure problem examples
•Delmas
•Okanhamba
•Etekwini
•Boil water FS
•Stellenbosch
•Cape Town (Potsdam)
SAWC asks you:
•Not to allow the CMA formation processes to be stalled
•To help implement our excellent water laws
•To support the idea that good quality water and healthy aquatic ecosystems
are essential to achieve the MDGs
•To realise we have no spare rivers and wetlands to write off
•To help forestall more health emergencies by treating municipal water and
waste water treatment as urgent priorities
•To promote water demand management and equitable share above the
building of new infrastructure
•To note carefully the SA Environment Outlook Report comments on
freshwater flow decreases, water quality deterioration, salinity increases etc
(p28 of summary)
•To make the links between water quality and sustainable development
•Especially wrt to health and food security
Do the right thing and
•Have a happy word Environment Day tomorrow (CO2 – kick the habit)
•Because it’s a matter of survival