Implementation of the SDGs Through Greening Household Responses to Water, Energy and Food Shortages in Newlands West, Durban

Abstract

Newlands West, a suburb in Durban has been experiencing water and energy shortages, as well as scarcity in fruit and vegetable food items. Recurrent water and power cuts reflect the challenge of meeting household demand by local authorities. To meet their energy and water demand during water and power cuts, households devised their own coping strategies. More often, there is disregard of the environment as households are more worried about meeting their immediate needs rather than the long-term environmental effects of their coping strategies. This paper establishes the coping strategies employed by households and their willingness to adopt “green” options/coping strategies in Newlands West, Durban. Data was gathered by means of a questionnaire. Most of the respondents confirmed that there were water and energy challenges in the area with many attesting to the fact that water cuts and power outages are becoming more frequent. Coping strategies employed by households include rainwater harvesting and water storage in large containers to meet their water needs, use of generators, gas and portable lighting to mitigate against energy challenges and buying in bulk and growing the food items that are in shortage. In addition, most households expressed interest in adopting green coping strategies. Current strategies are a mix of those strategies with potential to harm the environment and those which build towards sustainability and reduce impacts on the environment. Overall, results show that households can play a crucial role in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through greening their coping strategies in the face of shortages of basic resources. The study recommends further research to establish acceptable and affordable greening options for household coping strategies.