Life orientation

Introduction

- Poor access to clean water means an individual or community is unable to obtain or is

not provided water that can be safely consumed without risking disease.
- There are many possible underlying factors that lead to limited availability of clean
water. Water pollution is a large factor. This is because in many areas without proper
waste management systems, sewage systems, these contaminants can fall into the
water supply. This also happens in industrial areas with waste dumping that is not
properly prosecuted. This could contaminate entire rivers or streams, and even
underground water systems. With these bodies of water contaminated there is no way to
consume it without getting sick. Communities may have no other way to access water
aside from these systems due to a lack of service delivery which is another factor. Many
municipalities that are supposed to provide water from external sources or ensure the
water supply network is functioning and clean. They may mismanage these resources
and or not provide maintenance, leading to contaminants entering the network, the
network not reaching homes or towns, and water not being brought in externally to make
up for any deficits they may have. Water can also be lost due to breaks or leaks in the
system that waste scare water resources.
- Electricity is often poorly supplied. Not only does this occur with loadshedding which
provides a consistent time where power is not delivered, but I have personally had days
where power was lost due to substation damage or problems with powerline supply, and
many others have experienced the same.
Waste removal services are also inconsistent and poorly delivered. Many times they do
not come on time or at all, leading to a build up of waste in the streets and at home,
which is overall unhygienic and unsanitary. I have personal experiences where they
came and knocked over dustbins or left waste at the bottom of dustbins, leading it to rot
and forcing us to personally take it to a landfill.

Activity 2

- Poor access to clean water is regarded as a humans right violation because in section
27 of the Bill of Rights for the South African constitution it explicitly says everyone has
the right to sufficient food and water. Unclean water is insufficient as it cannot be
consumed, and so this lack of a service deliver is impeaching on something people are
entitled to as it is necessary to live.
- The National water act of 1998 was intended to help reform laws relating to water
resources. It’s primary objective was to ensure water was used sustainably and that
everyone had access to safe drinking water. It requires the government to regulate water
allocation and protect water quality. The purpose was to ensure water as distributed
fairly, everyone had access to clean water and that water consumption occurred at
sustainable rates to protect it for future generations.
- Unequal access to clean and safe water can lead to a variety of problems in the
community. A major one is the spread of disease. As people are forced to drink from
contaminated sources, cholera and diarrhoea can easily be spread. This conflicts with
their right to healthy living and a safe environment. This can be combatted by providing
 proper sanitation methods such as toilets so that the water is less polluted, and a
consistent supply of clean water, so that they have an alternative to the contaminated
sources.
Food insecurity can also occur. Many individuals rely on subsistence farming through
crops and livestock to feed their family, without consistent water supply they cannot
sustainably farm these. This must be combatted as access to food and nutrition is a
human right. Solutions include providing programs to educate in sustainable farming
practices to minimise water waste, and to provide a constant supply of clean water.
A lack of water can also impact the local economy. This can come in part due to a lack
of agriculture, reducing what people can grow and sell. A lack of water can also affect
economic activities such as restaurants and manufacturing, which are all dependent on
water to function. Without water, these will be unable to continue, leading to
unemployment and economic downturn. This can be prevented by providing alternative
forms of employment in government programs, or providing a supply of water.
- 1.Government policies can play a large role in addressing issues of water accessibility.
Policies that restrict pollution, industrial waste and sewage dumping, can all contribute
to the health of water sources. With healthier and cleaner water sources, underground
water reserves will also be less polluted, and so communities will be able to source their
own water without having to rely on supply from elsewhere. Other policies could include
water restrictions and limitations. This can limit the amount of water each household is
allowed, allowing the limited water resources to be distributed more evenly, rather than
allowing the rich to waste water resources and forcing the poorer to live without. This
has shown to be effective in areas experiencing droughts such as Cape town.
- 2.Government structures play a major role in water accessibility. Certain structures
already exist such as the department of water and sanitation, they are ultimately
responsible for ensuring infrastructure is properly put in place, and addressing any
problems that may occur. They are also responsible for finding new rural areas in need
of water resources and infrastructure such as piping and water towers, and then working
on projects to put these in place. Government structures can also be useful in ensuring
municipalities are not mismanaging water resources. The government can do regular
check-ups on municipalities to ensure they are fulfilling their duties about water
availability and infrastructure, if this is not the case then the government must put a
functioning municipality in charge to ensure water is properly distributed to everyone.

Activity 3

- There is a lack of safely managed drinking water, safely managed sanitation services,
many areas still lack basic services, and there is a lack of hand washing facilities in
homes.
- There is better infrastructure in the cities. This allows for response and maintenance
teams to be able to reach locations faster as they have tar roads, bridges etc. that allow
them to go directly to where they need to. In rural areas, there is far less infrastructure
and far more dirt roads, which they are unable to drive as fast on. Cities also tend to
have more resources and a higher concentration of these resources. As they need to
tend to more people, they are required to have more resources so that they can provide
service for all the people. Having more of these resources allows them to respond faster,
 especially when some of their resources are already in use. For examples, a rural area
may only have one ambulance, but a city may have 10.
- Wealth and poverty plays a large role in access to clean water. Many wealthier
households and communities can afford to either pay high prices for water, or privately
import their own if the municipality is not providing it. They can also afford to install
boreholes and tank systems to become self-sufficient. Poorer households on the other
hand are reliant on free water sources like community wells and on cheap water
provided by the municipality, and so if the municipality is poorly managed, or the local
water is polluted, they will not have access. Their geographical location also has an
impact, many people are unable to choose where they live due to their employment,
heritage, or family. In these areas they live, water may be scarce, and the municipality
may be unable to properly provide, and so they will live without access to water.
- Infrastructure such as water networks are invaluable in both rural and urban areas.
Cities and villages can be big and spread out, and so it is necessary to pipe water to
many access points around the area so that people aren’t required to walk far distances
to access this water. Infrastructure such as water towers and dams are also valuable in
both urban and rural areas. These allow for water to be stored during droughts and
periods when the water source is inconsistent, allowing for constant access to water.
- The consumption of contaminated water has a direct impact on food security. If the
water is used as irrigation, this polluted water can be harmful to the plants, killing crops
and or reducing overall yield. This will make every harvest smaller than it could be,
reducing the overall amount of food they have. Overtime this lack of food can build up
until they are unable to feed themselves. Contaminated water can also kill or poison
livestock if they are forced to drink it. This can kill future generations of the animals or
current generations, this leads to less livestock able to breed and sometimes inedible
food, thus wasting the food, and again reducing food security. Lastly, when the humans
consume this contaminated water, they can become sick and weak. When they are sick
and weak they are less able to work, if many individuals in a community are sick, then
they will work far slower on their crops or not at all, this can lead to the overall crop yield
decreasing as no weeds are being pulled out, crops water etc. Overtime, this will reduce
the amount of food they have and reduce their food security if they never have enough
labour.
- Local government is obliged to develop and maintain infrastructure, this includes water
services such as water towers and the water network that pipes and provides water to
the community. Without these resources, individuals will have to travel far to access
water resources or will not have a consistent supply of water due to a lack of storage.
There are no other entities capable of providing this infrastructure and so the local
government must. Local government is also responsible for ensuring the safety and
health of water in the area. This is done by implementing policies and procedures that
protect water resources, and by prosecuting any companies or individuals that go
against this legislation and continue to pollute water resources. They must also ensure
the safety of the water by ensuring landfills and sewage systems do not interact with it .
This allows the water resources to be drinkable and prevents the spread of disease to
the community.

Activity 4

- Social media can be used to positively report on service delivery by posting any issues
that may have occurred with service delivery. Raising awareness on this poor service
 delivery by posting it can bring it to attention to the local government so it can be
properly address. One should not degrade anyone in this process or bring them down.
Social media can also be used to provide constructive feedback to the government, it
can be used as a platform for the community to voice what they need the services to be,
so that the local government can best cater the service and continuously improve it to
best benefit the community.
- Social media can be faked. People can post instances that did not happen to gain
sympathy of others and put the government in a bad light. This can by done by posting
staged videos, fake comments, or fake stories. They can do this, so the government is
gives them special attention to adhere to their problem or purely for attention. This
unreputable news puts attention onto problems that may not exist and distracts from
the real problems. There can also be a spread of misinformation, where individuals are
improperly communicating how the service deliveries are. This can lead to the
government being unable to act on what the community may want as they are unsure of
what is best for them, this can also create distrust as both the community and the
government is unable to trust what is spread on social media, leading to all the benefits
of social media to be non-existent.

Activity 5
- Educational campaigns can take place in schools or invite members of the public to
join. These can highlight the issue of contaminated water and tell the community what
to do to best protect themselves from it. Social media campaigns can also be beneficial
as they are released to the whole community. They can show in these campaigns the
harms of contaminated water and as most people are on social media, they will see
these when they go online. Lastly, they can create community projects whereby they
invite the community to go directly work on the problem. This could be a river-clean-up
for example. This allows them to first hand see the dangers of contaminated water
whilst directly combatting the problem.
- Transparency by the government can be vital. If the government has more transparency,
releases all meetings, policies, budgets and decisions even on a local level then the
general public will be able to see their shortcomings or lack of priorities. This allows the
public to hold these officials accountable and re-elect different parties or members. The
government can also send inspectors to these areas to ensure that problems are being
addressed, if this is not the case then they can change the government officials in
charge of the project.

Sources:

Claudette (2021). What Causes a Lack Of Clean Water? [online] OASENSE.

Available at: https://www.oasense.com/post/what-causes-a-lack-of-clean-water.
[Accessed 13 May 2024].
Gomez, M., Perdiguero, J. and Sanz, A. (2019). Socioeconomic Factors Affecting
Water Access in Rural Areas of Low and Middle Income Countries. [online] MDPI.
Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/11/2/202 [Accessed 13 May
2024].
www.guinnesshomes.co.uk. (2023). Countryside vs City Living - Pros and Cons |
Guinness Homes. [online] Available at:
https://www.guinnesshomes.co.uk/blog/area-guides/countryside-vs-city-living-
guide/.
Helen Suzman Foundation. (2019). Understanding water issues and challenges II:
Municipalities and the delivery of water services. [online] Available at:
https://hsf.org.za/publications/hsf-briefs/understanding-water-issues-and-
challenges-ii-municipalities-and-the-delivery-of-water-
services#:~:text=Municipalities%20are%20tasked%20with%20developing.