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THE SMART NEWS SOURCE | Feb 11 2012 00:33 | LAST UPDATED Feb 11 2012 00:33 |
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Is there a looming water crisis in South Africa? According to a researcher from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), poor water quality threatens our health and may also derail economic growth. The researcher, Dr Anthony Turton, was to have delivered a presentation at a CSIR conference, but it was withdrawn. The CSIR said the presentation contained certain statements that could not be "sufficiently substantiated". It was also concerned that the presentation -- which contained images of burning victims during this year's xenophobic attacks -- could offend sensitive members of his audience. Turton appears to be a man frustrated. It appears his warnings have fallen on deaf ears, and perhaps this was the reason he chose to present his findings in such a sensational manner. The CSIR were also aggrieved that Turton had spoken to the media, while it would have preferred to keep the matter in-house. All this appears to be petty procedural squabbling. It is hard to know what state of disrepair the country's water infrastructure may be in. Certainly, residents in large metropolitan areas appear to be better off. Among other things, Turton warns that South Africa has lost its dilution capacity, so all pollutants and effluent streams will increasingly need to be treated to ever higher standards before being discharged into communal waters or deposited in landfills. Turton says it is easy to overcome power failures -- such as South Africa experienced earlier this year -- but this will be nothing compared to mass water shortages or pollution.  CONTINUES BELOW It is never easy to be a harbinger of doom.
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