The symbiosis of water
and energy
The scarcity of safe, drinkable water and the backlog in the provision
of sanitation services present prospects for investment, driven by the
energy sector.
By Kim Kemp
D
espite being the thirtieth driest
country in the world, some
South Africans still use water
as though there is no tomorrow, not
helped by the fact that little water
conservation planning has been
put in place nationally to get the
country through the worst drought in
recorded history. With a water deficit
14
of 38-billion cubic metres annually,
thousands of people are living a
torrid existence. This is compounded
by collapsed water infrastructure,
with an additional R30-billion a year
required to bridge the gap in water
services infrastructure. Exacerbating
the situation is ongoing theft and
corruption on both a municipal and
Water Sewage & Effluent January/February 2018
national level, with the country’s
emergency Plan B — underground
water reservoirs — in danger of
rapidly evaporating.
Residents in many rural towns are
wilting under the strain of having
to eke out an existence in an ever-
increasing desert environment. In the
Western Cape, for example, Beaufort
West’s residents are relying on a
Gamka Dam in April 2011. The dam floor
has since turned to a dust bowl as Beaufort
West becomes the first town to reach
ground zero during the relentless drought.