It is estimated that over R13 billion is needed for rural water supply and sanitation in South Africa over the next ten years.
| Title | Are we exaggerating the dangers of groundwater pollution from on-site sanitation systems such as pit latrines? |
| Publication Type | Conference Paper |
| Year of Publication | 1997 |
| Authors | Jackson, BM |
| Date Published | 1997-08-01 |
| Publisher | Development Bank of Southern Africa |
| Place Published | Johannesburg, South Africa |
| Keywords | costs, groundwater pollution, nitrates, on-site disposal, pit latrines, sdisan |
| Abstract | It is estimated that over R13 billion is needed for rural water supply and sanitation in South Africa over the next ten years. These estimates are for a basic level of service, but there are those that demand a higher level of service, at much higher cost. They are sometimes unwittingly supported by those who think in terms of protecting goundwater "at all costs". Higher costs mean slower delivery and other unintended consequences such as under-funded operations and maintenance. These in turn can lead to the very environmental degradation that the "defender of the environment" was trying to avoid. This paper looks at the issues around the choice of sanitation system and its impact on groundwater, and asks for an approach which is more rational than emotional, and which will more likely meet the needs of people at least cost to the environment and the exchequer. |
| Notes | Presented at Quarterly meeting of the Geological Society of South Africa Pretoria, 20 August 1997. - 11 ref. |
| Custom 1 | 244, 320 |
