Caroline Gelderblom
As South Africans, we have lived with load shedding in some form or another for 16 years. But the severity and regularity of these rolling blackouts has become debilitating, frustrating people and stalling the economy, and its impacts are permeating every area of our lives.
One of the more serious impacts of load shedding is on South Africa’s water security. Indeed, if it continues at current levels it threatens many industries and in particular the production of irrigated crops (and therefore food security), while poor water quality also poses a direct risk to human and environmental health.
In terms of water supply, electricity is needed to pump water from
