It came as a surprise to me that only 0.25% of the water on our planet is available to us. I do know  that it is not evenly distributed and that water is the source of all of life. I've also heard a rumour about the shortage of this resource. It is therefore no surprise that an entire conference was recently dedicated to spreading awareness about the serious trouble our water is in.

With floods causing havoc in several South African provinces earlier this year, it may be hard to believe that the looming water crisis that was debated in Parliament in 2008 remains an issue. Engineering Council of SA vice-president Thoko Majozi warns: 'the maximum consumption that SA's water resources can sustain will be reached in about five years'.