Johannesburg - Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa says South Africa's water supplies are under increased pressure and has urged every person to strive to save this scarce resource.
Speaking at the business briefing organised by the New Age and SABC on Monday morning, Molewa said it was not an exaggeration to conclude that a large number people wasted water that could have been saved on a daily basis.
Government had not failed in its responsibility to provide safe and clean water to its citizens.
"Climate change causes complexity in water resources management due to the unpredictability in weather patterns. The economic and political challenges that this presents are very real...we must always be innovative in our water resource management," she said.
Experts say South Africa could start having critical water shortages as early as 2020. While acknowledging the challenge, Molewa said government was embarking on several long term projects to bring water to South Africans.
These include, among others, the signing of the Lesotho Highland Water Programme which will alleviate water shortages in Gauteng. The construction of De Hoop Dam is due for completion in 2013 and is expected to bring water to people in the greater Sekhukhune District of Limpopo.
The department had also begun with the construction of the Moloko Project which forms part of the developments in the Waterberg area as announced by President Jacob Zuma in his State of the Nation Address earlier this year. The project is aimed at supporting Eskom and mining activities around the Medupi and Matimba Power Stations and will be commissioned by end of 2013 in line with Eskom's build programme.
"So we are doing something to bring water to South Africans but we should be serious in our messages that we must save as much as we can," said Molewa.
On the green economy, which the government has identified as one of the five priorities in the National Strategy for Sustainable Development, she said her department will be working with the private sector and social partners to ensure South Africa moved away from a high carbon emissions economy.
Government plans to create up to 300 000 jobs in the green economy with National Treasury allocating about R800 million to roll out green projects across the country in the next three years.
Last year, Cabinet approved the country's national climate change response policy which spells out South Africa's approach to the global challenge of climate change. The policy highlights the need for a shift towards a low-carbon economy.
Molewa said the jobs will come from initiatives such as the management of land fill sites, manufacturing of climate friendly products, food production and recycling.
A green fund, established by government, would further create partnerships to attract both donor and private sector contributions to fund various projects linked to the strategy.
"The plan is to minimise waste and while doing so we at the same time create jobs and fight poverty," said Molewa.
Asked about her thoughts on the widely reported acid mine drainage (AMD) threat in Gauteng and how it will impact on the country's water resources, Molewa suggested that the issue had been exaggerated.
She described media reports that claimed dangerous poisonous acid water would soon find its way to the streets of Johannesburg as sensational.
"We want to dispel that myth, there is nothing of the sort. We do know that there have been challenges...but we have worked on a programme to reduce the risks. We have immediate solutions to ensure that we reduce the problems that are environmentally critical but we also have long term solutions that will ensure that the problems are eliminated," she said.
AMD is acidic water, usually containing high concentrations of metals, sulphides, and salts as a consequence of mining activity. Its major sources include drainage from underground mine shafts, runoff and discharge from open pits and mine waste dumps.
On Monday, Molewa said the department was making extreme progress in treating the water on the Western basin. Authorities would soon evaluate tenders for the central basin and work there should be getting under way soon.
Although the Treasury allocated R433 million to the department to address the AMD problem, funds were reportedly still scarce with the Trans Caledon Tunnel Authority saying it would require up to R900 million.
