The 24th September was Heritage Day, now called National Braai Day and September is Heritage Month. But do we know what we celebrate and why we celebrate this day, as we happily congregate around braai-fires waving the South African flag?
Brought about by Nelson Mandela in 1995, Heritage Day was conceived for South Africans to celebrate and conserve our culture, traditions, diversity of beliefs and our land, all in the wider context of a nation that belongs to its people.
But what is our heritage?
Surely our HERITAGE cannot be confined only to our traditions, food, clothes or mountains? What are we doing to conserve those things that make it possible to celebrate our heritage, that sustain our heritage.
In the face of one of the worst droughts in living memory, our taps are running dry, our streams and rivers have dried up, our reservoirs are at an all- time low. Livestock are dying and crops have failed. No water! Surely water is an integral part of our heritage? Surely water should also be high on the heritage conservation list together with food, clothes, tradition and land?
On Heritage Day we celebrate who we are, what we are and what we have as a nation. All of which all directly dependant on WATER in one way or another.
Without water, there will simply be no heritage to celebrate!
So let’s celebrate rain! Let’s celebrate our dams, our rivers, our streams and waterfalls! Let’s celebrate water conservation. Our celebration of Heritage Day in the future, depends on it!
Footnote: I’m all for National Braai (Heritage) Day and what it stands for. I encourage all South Africans to embrace it! But are your aware of the staggering amounts virtual water (the water required to CREATE the goods we consume) required for a braai?
Here are some examples: 1 kg beef – 15,400 litres, 1 kg chicken – 3700 litres, 1 beer – 75 litres, 1 glass of wine – 120 litres, 1kg potatoes -500 litres, SLICE of bread – 40 litres. And I haven’t touched on the salads… Go figure!
Rainbow Reservoirs is committed to water conservation, rainwater harvesting and bulk emergency water storage. Manufacturer, supplier and installer of Zincalume steel water storage tanks throughout South Africa. Commercial, industrial, mining, agriculture, food processing, community water tanks, fire tanks, fire-fighting tanks and fire protection tanks, flocculation tanks, sewage treatment tanks, raw water tanks. 9500 to over 2 million litres.