Middle-class must pay extra for water

Middle-class people and the rich should pay more for water, according to academic Mary Galvi.

|||

Durban - Middle-class people and the rich should pay more for water.

This is according to University of Johannesburg academic Mary Galvin, who was speaking at the start of the World Social Science Forum in Durban on Sunday.

Galvin said if the middle class used water more than reasonably, they would have to pay extra for it.

She said this could help curb water usage. However, she was doubtful rich people would change their habits because they could afford increases.

In her talk, “Of Water and Stones: Citizens’ Attempts to Access Water in South Africa’s Liberal Democracy”, she said this was one of the solutions on the table to try to deal with the drought gripping the province.

Other solutions included using dry sanitation, which entailed the removal of human waste without using water as a carrier. The waste can then be used as fertiliser.

Although Durban won awards such as the Stockholm Industry Water Award and a UN award for awareness-raising and education, people still believed the municipality was not doing enough.

Minister of Science and Technology Naledi Pandor, in her speech, lauded some of the achievements made in South Africa and the continent.

These included being at the forefront of research into the origins of humankind, and increasing our understanding of the universe through the Square Kilometre Array radio telescope in the Northern Cape.

“We altered Africa from research subject to future global research leader,” Pandor said.

She also emphasised the importance of collaboration across various disciplines at local, regional and international level.

In conclusion, Pandor said: “We must create this innovation architecture if we are to have justice in knowledge distribution and knowledge creation.”

Daily News