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Conceptualizing Sustainability: the Case of Johannesburg and Water

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Conceptualizing Sustainability: the Case of Johannesburg and Water Conceptualizing Sustainability: the Case of Johannesburg and Water Brian Charles Boshoff Dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy In Environmental Design and Planning Max O. Stephenson (Chair) Bruce E. Goldstein Sonia A. Hirt Kris F. Wernstedt September 10 2010 Blacksburg, Virginia Keywords: Sustainability, Sustainable Development, Conceptualization, Water, Johannesburg. Copyright Conceptualizing Sustainability: The Case of Johannesburg and Water Brian Charles Boshoff ABSTRACT Johannesburg, South Africa has stated ambitions of becoming a ―sustainable city‖ and a ―world-class African city.‖ Many factors may contribute to the realization of these aims. One is a ―sustainable‖ water supply, since water is fundamental to life and to economic activity. But South Africa (SA) is a ―water-stressed‖ countryindeed, globally, it is one of the twenty most water-deficient countries and Gauteng province (where Johannesburg is located) may run out of water by 2015. Many demand and supply factors conspire to affect adversely the ―sustainability‖ of water and any ―sustainable development‖ trajectory in SA. Accordingly, I survey the literature on ―sustainability‖ and ―sustainable development‖ (S/SD) to see if it might offer some way out of SA‘s water dilemma. This is a vast, complex and contested body of literature, but overall, S/SD appears to be ―common cause.‖ But this does not necessarily mean that S/SD concepts are either well understood or integrated, especially as applied to the water sector in SA. I suggest that a comprehensive understanding of what might be contemplated by S/SD concepts as regards the water sector is lacking, so I seek to determine how the concepts of S/SD ―play out‖, how they can be translated and understood, and what import selected S/SD concepts may have in terms of the water sector in Johannesburg. This is accomplished by means of a broad literature review and by conducting interviews with mostly senior personnel in Johannesburg who are responsible for water and sustainability public policy and issues in Johannesburg and in SA. This research describes several major ramifications of water and sustainability in Johannesburg and contributes empirically, by examining the intersection of S/SD, water and Johannesburg and theoretically, by developing a heuristic model (HM), so that understanding of S/SD (especially as it relates to water in SA) can be crystallized and provide a platform for further debate, contestation, interpretation and implementation. The lexicon emerging from the HM will help leaders to balance the competing claims and tensions during conception and implementation of relevant water policies. The model depicts the interplay of sustainability premises with actual conditions in an important developing nation. iii Acknowledgements I would like to thank my parents and my long-suffering family: Paula, Emma, Virginia and Peter. Also, thanks to my wider family, friends, fellow musicians and to colleagues and support staff at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg and at Virginia Tech, (especially Krystal Wright, Rhonda Carner, Karen Boone and Gwen Ewing), for all their support in various ways. Special thanks to the Eyestone family for their friendship and Blacksburg hospitality. I am also most grateful to Paul Sulter for editorial assistance, to the Fulbright program, to my committee members: Bruce Goldstein, Sonia Hirt and Kris Wernstedt. Special thanks to my supervisor, Max Stephenson – the match that hopefully wasn‘t actually consumed kindling whatever flame has finally flickered… iv Table of Contents Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ iii Chapter one. Introduction ....................................................................................................1 Chapter two. Methods .......................................................................................................12 Chapter three. Literature Review; S/SD – Axiology, Principles, Themes and Metaphors ....................................................................................................................19 Chapter four. Water in SA and Johannesburg ..................................................................51 Chapter five. SA and Johannesburg – Case Study Description………………………….65 Chapter six. Water, Sustainability and Johannesburg (WSJ) – Case Discussion and Analysis………………………………………………………….111 Chapter seven. Conclusions .............................................................................................133 Bibliography ....................................................................................................................138 Appendix A. Interview questionnaire .............................................................................174 Appendix B. Johannesburg by the numbers ....................................................................187 v List of figures Figure 1. Water scarcity in southern African countries ......................................................2 Map 1. Mean annual precipitation in the southern African region .....................................3 Figure 2. Predicted changes in precipitation in Africa by the end of the 21st century .......4 Figure 3. Sustainability depicted in terms of intersecting circles .......................................9 Figure 4. City of Johannesburg Governance model..........................................................88 Figure 5. Inter-basin transfer schemes into the Vaal River Basin ....................................98 Figure 6. Heuristic model relating the S/SD Principles, Themes and Metaphors and the ―5 Es‖ .................................................................................................................128 List of Tables Table 1. Interviewees and their institutions ...................................................................... 14 Table 2. Sectoral contributions to Johannesburg‘s economy.............................................84 Table 3. Johannesburg‘s population composition and growth rate...................................85 Table 4. Johannesburg‘s sustainable development targets ................................................91 Table 5. Johannesburg‘s environmental targets .................................................................92 Table 6. Johannesburg‘s financial targets ..........................................................................93 vi List of abbreviations and acronyms ANC African National Congress COSATU Congress of SA Trade Unions CSD Commission on Sustainable Development CSIR Council for Scientific and Industrial Research DEAT Department of Environment Affairs and Tourism DWAF Department of Water Affairs and Forestry EF Ecological footprint GEAR Growth, Employment and Redistribution Program GEM Group for Environmental Monitoring GJMC Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Council IEM Integrated Environmental Management Joburg Johannesburg MIC Microbially Influenced/Induced Corrosion NEDLAC National Economic, Development and Labor Council PTM Principles, themes and metaphors wrt sustainability / sustainable development RDP Reconstruction and Development Program SA South Africa SACN South African Cities Network SANCPR South Africa‘s National Country Profile Report S/SD Sustainability/ Sustainable Development UFW Unaccounted for water UM Urban metabolism WSJ Water, sustainability and Johannesburg vii Chapter One. Introduction. (In terms of) ―Sustainability, over the past few decades we have increasingly come to understand the interdependence between humankind and ecosystems, and that our activities often affect the quality and quantity of available water. We have also increasingly recognized our obligation to protect the natural environment, while at the same time promoting development that will meet the needs of not only current generations, but of future generations as well… perhaps the most important challenge facing our water managers … is the need to introduce equity in resource distribution. Too many of our people are poor. The goals of sustainability and efficiency cannot be divorced from this. …‖ (South Africa: Department of Water Affairs and Forestry 2004 National Water Resources Strategy. Introduction by Buyelwa Sonjica, Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry (2004). Johannesburg, South Africa has ambitions of becoming a ―sustainable city‖ and a ―world- class African city‖ (Joburg 2030). Many factors may shape the realization of these aims, such as good governance and increased development, but the ramifications of a ―sustainable‖ water supply is likely to underpin all of them. Besides the obvious need for water in terms of physical survival and development (in its widest sense), water also symbolises relationships, and the natural cycles of birth, death and rebirth (Croxon 2003: 299) and it is ―the earth‘s blood‖ (Lanz et al. 2006). In fact, the earth1 is often termed the ―blue planet,‖ since it consists mostly of water–the oceans make up about 97 percent of all water; ice caps and glaciers 2 percent; groundwater about 0.5 percent; lakes, biota, rivers, soil moisture and atmospheric water vapour 0,001 percent. Freshwater constitutes only about 3 percent of total water, but much of this is locked up in ice caps, glaciers or deep underground. Only about 0.003 percent of total water is readily available freshwater. Water is a vital
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