Editor Kirsten Kelly
EDITOR’S COMMENT
kirsten.kelly@3smedia.co.za Managing Editor Alastair Currie Editorial Coordinator Ziyanda Majodina Head of Design Beren Bauermeister Designer Janine Schacherl Chief Sub-editor Tristan Snijders Contributors Lester Goldman, Neil Macleod, Malango Mughogho, Dan Naidoo, Dineo Phoshoko, Zaid Railoun, Anusha Rajkaran, Yazeed van Wyk Production & Client Liaison Manager Antois-Leigh Nepgen Distribution Manager Nomsa Masina Distribution Coordinator Asha Pursotham Group Sales Manager Chilomia Van Wijk Bookkeeper Tonya Hebenton Advertising Sales Hanlie Fintelman c +27 (0)67 756 3132 Hanlie.Fintelman@3smedia.co.za
Publisher Jacques Breytenbach 3S Media Production Park, 83 Heidelberg Road, City Deep Johannesburg South, 2136 PO Box 92026, Norwood 2117 Tel: +27 (0)11 233 2600 www.3smedia.co.za
ISSN: 1990 - 8857 Annual subscription: R330 (SA rate) subs@3smedia.co.za Copyright 2022. All rights reserved. All material herein is
copyright protected. The views of contributors do not necessarily reflect those of WISA or the publishers.
WISA’s Vision
Inspiring passion for water
WISA Contacts: HEAD OFFICE Tel: 086 111 9472(WISA) Fax: +27 (0)11 315 1258 Physical address: 1st Floor, Building 5, Constantia Park, 546 16th Road, Randjiespark Ext 7, Midrand Website: www.wisa.org.za BRANCHES Central Branch (Free State, Northern Cape, North West) Chairperson: Dr Leana Esterhuizen Company: Central University of Technology Tel: +27 (0)51 507 3850 Email: lesterhu@cut.ac.za Eastern Cape: Branch Contact: Dan Abrahams Company: Aurecon Tel: +27 (0)41 503 3929 Cell: +27 (0) 81 289 1624 Email: Dan.Abraham@aurecongroup.com Gauteng Branch Lead: Zoe Gebhardt Cell: +27 (0)82 3580876 Email: zoe.gebhardt@gmail.com KwaZulu-Natal Chairperson: Lindelani Sibiya Company: Umgeni Water Cell: +27 (0)82 928 1081 Email: lindelani.sibiya@umgeni.co.za Limpopo Chairperson: Mpho Chokolo Company: Lepelle Northern Water Cell: +27 (0)72 310 7576 Email: mphoc@lepelle.co.za Mpumalanga Chairperson: Lihle Mbatha (Acting) Company: Inkomati-Usuthu Catchment Management Agency Tel: +27 (0)13 753 9000 Email: mbathat@iucma.co.za Western Cape Chairperson: Natasia van Binsbergen Company: AL Abbott & Associates Tel: +27 (0)21 448 6340 Cell: +27 (0)83 326 3887 Email: natasia@alabbott.co.za
Why are South Africans so resilient? Load-shedding, ‘Day Zero’, dead schoolchildren in a tavern and endless corruption – it’s been a rough couple of weeks for South Africans. But, our country keeps ticking over... why have we not imploded yet?
H
aving recently followed a Reddit post on the subject, I was amused, impressed and appalled by answers to this question: •S outh Africa’s downward curve has been gradual, giving us time to adapt. Its very similar to an old car that goes to the mechanic for a quick spanner-beating every few days, and that, somehow, miraculously keeps us puttering along. •T here is always a ‘Plan B’. The private sector is used to stepping in every time that the public sector fails. •H ard times make hard people. Adapt or apply for a UK passport. • Most South Africans have no other choice. There is no safety net from government and they must keep on going. •S outh Africans are awesome. We laugh at our problems and then we solve them. •W e developed some self-sufficiency from the apartheid era. •W e offer strong commodities, are the gateway to the rest of Africa and have a stable financial system. •W e survived apartheid; we will survive anything. •S olid foundations take a long time to annihilate. Whatever the reason, we are a resilient country. And in times of hopelessness, I always turn to one of my favourite quotes by Fred Rogers: “When I was a child and saw scary things on the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the
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helpers. You will always find people who are helping’.” We only have to look at Gqeberha with the volunteer associations, private companies and citizens working together to coordinate water tankers, fix leaks and treat water. Or at Parys this month when the town was without water and electricity for five days. People with boreholes were sharing their water, private citizens were transporting water to vulnerable people like the elderly and schools, while others cooked food on gas stoves and distributed it. In addition to our resourceful and resilient citizens, we also have some very talented and dedicated people working at various water boards, municipalities and the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS). In this issue, I interview Anet Muir, chief director: Water Use Compliance, Monitoring and Enforcement at the DWS (page 34), as well as Sipho Mosai, chief executive of Rand Water, on the Zandspruit Station 5A project (page 44), and look into a pressure management approach at the City of Cape Town (page 31). There are times when it feels like our resilience is running thin. But South Africans will always fight on. You just have to read this magazine to see it; it is filled to the brim with solutions, projects, ideas and research on how to attack the water crisis.
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July/August 2022 • ISSN 1990-8857 • R55.00 (incl. VAT) • Vol. 17 No. 04
COVER OPPORTUNITY In each issue, Water&Sanitation Africa offers companies the opportunity to get to the front of the line by placing a company, product or service on the front cover of the magazine. Buying this position will afford the advertiser the cover story and maximum exposure. For more information, contact Hanlie Fintelman on +27 (0)67 756 3132, or email Hanlie.Fintelman@3smedia.co.za. J UL/A U G 2022
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