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The main rivers of South Africa are fairly small compared to the large rivers of the world: For example, the discharge of the Nile River alone is about six times higher than the available surface water resources from all South African rivers together. [13] [14]
There are a range of environmental issues in Southern Africa, such as climate change, land, water, deforestation, land degradation, and pollution.The Southern Africa region itself, except for South Africa, [1] produces less carbon emissions but is a recipient of climate change impacts characterized by changes in precipitation, extreme weather events and hot temperatures.
Communal tap (standpost) for drinking water in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa. May 2005. Groundwater plays a key role in sustaining water supplies and livelihoods in sub-Saharan Africa especially due to its widespread availability, generally high quality, and intrinsic ability to buffer episodes of drought and increasing climate variability.
The Cape Town water crisis in South Africa was a multi-year period in 2015–2020 of water shortage in the Western Cape region, most notably affecting the City of Cape Town. Dam water levels began decreasing in 2015 and the Cape Town water crisis peaked during mid-2017 to mid-2018 when water levels hovered between 14 and 29 percent of total dam ...
The main causes of water scarcity in Africa are physical and economic water scarcity, rapid population growth, and the effects of climate change on the water cycle. Water scarcity is the lack of fresh water resources to meet the standard water demand . [ 1 ]
Air pollution in Africa is coming to the forefront and must not be ignored. For example, in South Africa the mercury levels are severe due to coal combustion and gold mining. Mercury is absorbed from the air into the soil and water. [19] The soil allows the crops to absorb the mercury, which humans ingest.
Water quality guidelines for South Africa are grouped according to potential user types (e.g. domestic, industrial) in the 1996 Water Quality Guidelines. [59] Drinking water quality is subject to the South African National Standard (SANS) 241 Drinking Water Specification.
Nutrient pollution caused by Surface runoff of soil and fertilizer during a rain storm Nutrient pollution, a form of water pollution, refers to contamination by excessive inputs of nutrients. It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and coastal waters ), in which excess nutrients, usually nitrogen or phosphorus ...