Water Resources in South Africa

Abstract

Issues to do with water, its quality, quantity and availability, underpin all areas of life and environment in South Africa. This chapter identifies the key areas in which water issues are relevant for physical and human environments in South Africa, and identifies and discusses the interlinkages between these different areas. This analysis shows that although there is a good understanding of water systems within the physical environment (hydrological cycle) and within the human environment (water supply, treatment and management), there is a lack of understanding in two key areas. First, water is involved in all types of activities contributing to economic and sustainable development, in both direct and indirect ways, but the nature of these relationships is not well understood. Second, the interlinkages between water usage in physical and human environments, in particular with respect to differing levels of water quality required for different activities, are not well understood or managed. A better and more integrated understanding of water systems in their totality is required in order to manage water resources more effectively in South Africa over coming decades, against a background of increased water scarcity and decreased water quality caused mainly by climate change and urbanisation.