Access to clean drinking water remains a luxury for many people living in the Eastern Cape.
“All sorts of diseases and germs live in this water we drink, but we’re desperate.
We’ve been living like this for years.
We keep hearing about this listeria, but we don’t know how else to survive.” Ndeleni and other community members took the Saturday Dispatch to the stream they draw their water from.
It appears to be run-off that flows from a train goods shed a short distance away.
Buyisile Kosani said he drinks the dirty water, because walking to town to access taps from a garage was too much for him.
“I didn’t know about this, and now we’re worried because the water we drink comes from a river we rely on.
“Cows, donkeys and horses also graze there.
“Before this tank, we didn’t have water for years.
We’re trying to survive”, she said.

KALAMAZOO, MI — A precautionary boil water advisory is being issued for municipal drinking water customers living in the Kendall Avenue area.
The city of Kalamazoo’s Department of Public Services scheduled a water infrastructure repair for 8 a.m. Monday, Feb. 5.
All water intended for drinking within the surrounding area should be boiled due to a temporary pressure loss that will occur during the repair.
The advisory is precautionary.
There have not been any confirmed tests showing bacteria present in the water main at the location of the break.
According to the city, the affected area is between the northern boundary of Santos Street and southern boundary of Howard Street, both sides of street.
Initial sampling results will be available within 24 hours and the final set within 48 hours, according to a press release.
The city expects the advisory will be lifted within 72 hours.
A boil water advisory warns residents their drinking water might be contaminated.
When a complete loss of pressure occurs in a significant part of the water system, there is the possibility for contaminants to enter into the water main while the repair is being completed.

The study by University of Otago, Wellington public health researchers published in the New Zealand Medical Journal found only 20 per cent of playgrounds surveyed had a functioning water fountain.
Study authors Nick Wilson and George Thomson randomly selected 54 playgrounds from 17 local government areas in the lower North Island and found just 11 had working fountains within 100 metres of the playground equipment.
*Christchurch drinking water to be chlorinated for a year as councillors approve plan to keep it safe *Bid to ban sugary drinks from schools hits hurdles An earlier study by Wilson and Thomson of playgrounds in Wellington found only 6 per cent had a functioning water fountain.
Over one third of children (2 – 14 years old) were obese or overweight according to the most recent New Zealand Health Survey.
While there was no scientific evidence water fountains could reduce obesity, anecdotally people used fountains when they were available and noticed if they were not, he said.
The authors called on the government to impose minimum mandatory requirements for drinking fountains and extend access to malls, beaches and public parks.
Maintenance, including ensuring drinking fountains appeared clean, was important to increase public confidence in the supply of safe drinking water, particularly in light of the recent contamination crisis in Havelock North.
Some fountains in the study had grass growing out of them or green "sludgy" build up around the nozzle.
Publicly available drinking water, though free, had to compete with a huge increase of sugary drinks for sale.
– Stuff

The study by University of Otago, Wellington public health researchers found only 20 per cent of playgrounds surveyed had a functioning water fountain.
Study authors randomly selected 54 playgrounds from 17 local government areas in the lower North Island and found just 11 had working fountains within 100 metres of the playground equipment.
"Having people drinking more water instead of sugary drinks is good for the health system and the costs it has to bear – so it just seems like councils and the central government are way behind on this issue," Wilson said.
Over one third of children (2 – 14 years old) were obese or overweight according to the most recent New Zealand Health Survey.
While there was no scientific evidence water fountains could reduce obesity, anecdotally people used fountains when they were available and noticed if they were not, he said.
The authors called on the government to impose minimum mandatory requirements for drinking fountains and extend access to malls, beaches and public parks.
Maintenance, including ensuring drinking fountains appeared clean, was important to increase public confidence in the supply of safe drinking water, particularly in light of the recent contamination crisis in Havelock North.
Some fountains in the study had grass growing out of them or green "sludgy" build up around the nozzle.
Publicly available drinking water, though free, had to compete with a huge increase of sugary drinks for sale.
– Stuff

It has attracted scrutiny from scientists and city managers worldwide who also face the dual challenge of ballooning populations and shrinking resources.
This would be the world’s first major city to go dry.
“There are a lot of people who have been in denial and now they suddenly realise this is for real,” said Shirley Curry, who waited to fill a plastic container with spring water from one of several taps in the Newlands suburb.
Mayor Patricia de Lille threatened to fine those who use too much water.
The spectacle of people scrounging for water could become more common as “Day Zero” approaches in Cape Town, whose natural beauty has made it a coveted spot for international visitors.
Swim in ocean, not pools Cape Town’s leaders have instructed residents to use only 50 litres of water daily from February 1, down from the current 87-litre limit.
If “Day Zero” arrives, many people would have to go to collection points for a daily ration of 25 litres.
Communal taps in poor areas known as informal settlements likely would run to avoid the threat of disease.
Some central and downtown areas could be exempt from the cut-off for the sake of tourism and business.
The average level of reservoirs that are Cape Town’s main source of water is currently about 27 per cent, but the final 10 per cent is considered unusable because of mud, weeds and debris at the bottom.

The Kyrgyz government plans to lay on a drinking water supply system in 653 villages, which requires about $ 432 mln, Deputy Prime Minister, Daiyr Kenekeev said at a meeting of the parliamentary faction Respublika Ata Jurt, Kabar reports.
Concerning the issue of providing drinking water in the regions, Kenekeev stressed that in 267 out of 1813 villages, water pipes were laid on back in 1950-1960 and in 386 villages there is no water supply system at all.
"In order to provide the population with drinking water, the Government has adopted a Strategy for Development of Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Systems in the populated localities of the Kyrgyz Republic until 2026," Kenekeev stressed.
The special report of the Ombudsman Institute says that currently about 1 mln people do not have access to clean drinking water in Kyrgyzstan.
This is taking into consideration the fact that Kyrgyzstan is one of the richest countries in water resources of post-Soviet Central Asia.
Earlier, Deputy Parhat Tulendybayev at a meeting of the Parliament said that 725 villages still do not have access to clean drinking water in Kyrgyzstan.
—

It doesn’t just disappear," said Joe Grande, the water-quality manager in Madison, Wis. • Road salt is polluting our water: Here’s what we can do to fix it Madison is one of the more notable cases of drinking water contamination by sodium chloride.
Most people start tasting salt in water once it reaches concentrations of 250 milligrams per liter.
Even before that point, though, water can start to taste off.
The water, Fitzpatrick said, "does taste a little saltier, but it’s not like you would drink it and say, ‘Oh my gosh that’s super salty.’"
• ‘Dead fish or dead people?’
The challenges of curbing road salt use Madison has tried alternative deicers like cheese brine and beet juice, Grande said, but the level of organic compounds in those solutions create such an oxygen demand when they run off into lakes that they risk killing fish.
And there’s no way to clean up salt-contaminated water, aside from reverse osmosis.
In Minnesota, we’re safe from drinking salty water for the near future.
However, Brooke Asleson, water pollution prevention coordinator for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, said they’re deep enough that the chloride contamination already found in some of the state’s surface water hasn’t reached them yet.
While there is an increasing trend in chloride levels in these aquifers, they’re not close to affecting how the water tastes, Asleson said.

When we toss down the road salt that’s ubiquitous with icy, snowy winters in the North, the salt doesn’t just disappear after it clears up the roads and sidewalks. In fact, it’s starting to get into drinking water in places across the Midwest and New England — posing an emerging threat to water supplies and a health risk for people on sodium-restricted diets or with high blood pressure. “The salt doesn’t just evaporate, it doesn’t break down. Once it’s applied in the environment, it’s got nowhere to go. It goes into the soil, or it goes into the lakes. It doesn’t just disappear,” said Joe Grande, the water-quality manager in Madison, Wis. • Road salt is polluting our water: Here’s what we can do to fix it Madison is one of the more notable cases of drinking water contamination by sodium chloride. Other instances have been reported in places like Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and parts of New Jersey — including one extreme case in the city of Brick, chlorides damaged lead water pipes, causing the toxic metal to leach into drinking water. Most people start tasting salt in water once it reaches concentrations of 250 milligrams per liter. Even before that point, though, water can start to taste off. Off-tasting water, and no good way off salt Faith Fitzpatrick lives in Madison’s Spring Harbor neighborhood. Her well has been among the hardest hit by road salt pollution. Some of her neighbors with low-salt diets have installed filtering systems in their homes….

Revised European legislation proposed by the European Commission on Thursday will improve the quality of drinking water and access to it as well as provide better information to citizens.
The right to access essential services of good quality, including water, is one of the principles of the European Pillar of Social Rights unanimously endorsed by Heads of State or Government at the Gothenburg Summit.
This will be contributing to the environmental goals of reducing unnecessary plastic use and limiting the EU’s carbon footprint, as well as to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Thanks to increased transparency it will also empower consumers and push them towards more sustainable choices, for example using tap water.” Most people living in the EU enjoy very good access to high quality drinking water.
This results from long standing EU legislation protecting Europeans ensuring that they have access to high quality drinking water.
These additions take account of the latest scientific knowledge and recommendations of the World Health Organisation.
Another important change in the legislation will give the public easy, user-friendly – including online – access to information about the quality and supply of drinking water in their living area, improving confidence in tap water.
With improved confidence in tap water, citizens can also contribute to reducing plastic waste from bottled water, including marine litter.
Better management of drinking water from Member States will avoid unnecessary loss of water and contribute to lowering the CO2 footprint.
The new risk-based approach to safety will help to carry out safety checks in a more targeted manner where risks are higher.

Revised European legislation proposed by the European Commission on Thursday will improve the quality of drinking water and access to it as well as provide better information to citizens. The right to access essential services of good quality, including water, is one of the principles of the European Pillar of Social Rights unanimously endorsed by Heads of State or Government at the Gothenburg Summit. Thursday’s legislative proposal aims to guarantee this right and thereby responds to the first-ever successful European Citizens’ Initiative, “Right2Water”, that gathered 1.6 million signatures in support of improving access to safe drinking water for all Europeans. In addition this proposal seeks to empower consumers ensuring that water suppliers provide consumers with clearer information on water consumption, on the cost structure as well as on the price per litre allowing a comparison with the price of bottled water. This will be contributing to the environmental goals of reducing unnecessary plastic use and limiting the EU’s carbon footprint, as well as to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. First Vice-President Frans Timmermans said, “Citizens have made their voice loud and clear through the European Citizens’ Initiative, calling for action to have a guaranteed access to safe drinking water. We have heard and heeded their call and carried out a thorough analysis of our existing legislation. Today we are therefore proposing to modernise our EU law, improving the quality of drinking water and increasing the access of citizens…