The Southern Africa region is a dry area where access to clean drinking water is not something the majority of people can take for granted.  As the population grows and tourism to this area increases the pressure on the water supply will continue to put strain on the region’s natural resources. 

Of the 70% of water on the earth’s surface only 2.6% of that water is suitable for human consumption, and lets not forget that wildlife also needs to drink from this water suppply. 

This puts into perspective the urgency of the need to find water solutions.

Fortunately Namibia can boast water conservation success stories.  In a country where there is very little water, a lot of sunshine and a very long coastline, solar desalination is a wonderful option.  This is the process of taking salt water or water otherwise unfit for human consumption and turning it into clean and fresh water. 

With initiatives like this luxury accommodation in Namibia can remain luxurious without visitors needing to bring along their own water from their home countries.

Of course it is important that the process of water desalination does not have its own knock on negative effects on other aspects of the environment. Solar desalination uses no fossil fuels and no CO2 emissions during its process.

The process relies on the heat from the sun or heat from industry to raise the temperature of the water enough for evaporation to begin, but not to reach boiling point.  This simple, natural process of collecting evaporated water provides Namibia with up to 4 000 litres of drinking water a day.  This is just from one solar desalination plant.

It is not necessarily only sea water that can be purified and turned into fresh drinking water. A great deal of the water we use becomes polluted through agriculture, industry and even normal household use. The solar desalination process will also clean brackish water, poisoned or contaminated water and waste water.

Water scarcity is fast becoming a global reality irrespective of where you may live. In countries like Namibia that scarcity is felt much faster and with more urgency. 

There is more to Namibia than just safaris and luxury accommodation, this is also a country that is forward thinking when it comes to conservation and natural resources, something we all should aspire to. 

Water conservation is also something that must start with the individual – we would love to hear about how and your tricks to conserving water in your daily life.

Disclaimer
Please Note: The details shared herein were correct at the time of publishing. However, with time some of this information may change. We recommend confirming information with suppliers prior to making final travel arrangements. If you do happen to find an issue with any information we’ve shared here, please feel free to contact us so that we can make the relevant changes.