Water poverty mapping and its management applications

Abstract

In recent years it has been widely recognized that water was managed with little regard to efficiency in its utilization and with no or very little effective pollution control. The amount of freshwater on earth will continue to decline because of irresponsible usage, population growth, increasing pollution, etc. The purpose of this paper is to document how water poverty mapping can assist the water management in three towns in South Africa. It should assist with as many as possible of the following aspects: the collection and analysis of all relevant information regarding the availability of water, its various uses, current supply status, future prospects, current water allocation details and the state and processes of water deprivation, and dissemination of information and messages arising from the analysis thereof to all concerned. This research ecommends that water poverty mapping be used as a managing tool by local municipalities, water service providers and governments. All three entities can use water poverty mapping to replace, supplement or validate their water demand predictions so that future supply can be guaranteed. Local municipalities can also use it as part of their master plan, which in turn guides town expansion and infrastructure development.