Speaker, the former Minister misconstrued our wake-up call to her and this House that South Africa is facing the greatest water crisis in its history. It is a point that is worth repeating. Our country has run out of water. As a result of that, we are overdamming and endangering the ecology of our river system. This in turn threatens the sustainability of our water supplies. On top of that, we are allowing pollutants and toxins to be poured into our rivers. [Interjections.]
Hon members, order! Let the speaker be heard. Continue, hon member.
On top of that we are allowing pollutants and toxins to be poured into our rivers in ever-increasing amounts. Unfortunately, this water cannot be cleaned. Our resources are thin and our technology is hopelessly outdated. The presence of heavy metals, ecobacteria, pink worms and amoeba, etc, is a serious compromise of our water quality. It has become unusable.
Meanwhile, climate change is accelerating alarmingly. Witness the destructive floods in China, Pakistan, Poland and elsewhere. This year drought ravaged Russia and China, and China regards this as the worst in the millennium. We must reduce water consumption and wastage. Thank you. [Time expired.]