Rain has
been falling across the country this month (there is nothing better than
falling asleep to this sound!) The heart responds with gratitude but also with concern
when remembering places in the country where it hasn’t rained for more than
four years.
WWF SA has
a slogan of “Water doesn’t come from a tap”, which should be made visible in
every home and classroom. Social awareness of the importance of water has been
growing, but it stills happens that water flows in a street, usually from a
leak, or infuriatingly from an unattended sprinkler.
The Wise
Wayz Water Care (WWWC) project near Durban holds pointers for how to get the
community involved in looking after water and the environment: people
from the Folweni and Ezimbokodweni communities keep a 30 km stretch of the
eZimbokodweni River catchment area clear.
It began in
2015 with 130 volunteers, and support grew from the whole community. And then
it went beyond this to AECI and other business, tribal authority, municipal and
provincial government. The support has included skills development, career path
opportunities in the Green Economy and economic activity.
The community
keeps its eyes on the river with invasive alien plant identification and
control, routine river health monitoring, community education, and affordable
plumbing for/by the community. Agricultural and craft co-operatives have been
founded along with community food gardens.
A prime achievement
is a restored wetland. Before and after photos show the movement from a
waist-high jungle to a clear stream of water with ordered, tidy banks on the
side.
Apart from economic
spinoffs, the vastly improved environment and the concomitant sense of pride in
it are good news for people concerned about our water and environment.
Watch the YouTube video.
