The complications involved in this dilemma are not new to cities like cape town. City of cape town water outlook 2018 summary government. Cape town has recently enjoyed a booming real estate and construction market, because of the 2010 fifa world cup as well as many people buying summer homes in the city or relocating there permanently. Kwazulunatal is also overexploiting about 50% of the rivers in its main catchment pongola. Jan van riebeeck in 1652 the dutch east india company, yielding to repeated petitions and recommendations from their ships officers, at last decided to establish a. From showering in buckets to special pee spray, heres how theyre coping. Cape town, one of the worlds favorite tourist cities, can count on its clout to draw attention to its water woesother south african cities cant. Likewise, supply will be affected by changes in demand. Allie, a bbc correspondent, related his wifes experience with the shrinking supply of water, caused by an historic threeyear drought. Western cape water supply system strategy 2015 breakdown of water users in the berg river management area different users are under different levels of water restriction october 2017.
Facts and myths about cape towns water crisis groundup. A comprehensive history of the water supply of cape town was researched for the book rivers and wetlands of cape town1, where it was demonstrated that. Limited supply through manual valve closing in reticulation subdistricts and. Cape town wcwdm strategy, final draft, april 07 7 document overview and purposedocument overview and purpose the aim of this document is to describe, motivate and illustrate the need for a revised, more comprehensive water conservation and water demand management wcwdm policy and strategy for the city of cape town. Its just a matter of catching the water off table mountain. This is a public summary of the city of cape towns. Comparing developments in water supply, sanitation and.
Cape town, south africa, will likely run out of water by. How clean water is supplied to a house and how waste water is removed. Water shortage in south africa south african tours and. Read the latest water outlook reports and publications for detailed information on the impact of augmentation projects, rainfall and water use on the city of cape town. One reason for such confidence can be attributed to the citys endeavours in leakage control, in 2016 only 9% of water was lost through system leakages in cape town. A lot of ideas about how to bring more water to cape town have come. Apartheid policies distorted the provision of water supply services and generated a biased approach to water resource management. This can only be done if you and every other capetonian and visitor to cape town unites in the effort to spare our mother city from water rationing. Cape town a city once at the forefront of africas green movement imposed further water restrictions thursday as it prepares for the day the taps run dry. This chapter describes how the growth in water demand has been successfully managed in cape town since the introduction of a comprehensive programme of water demand management wdm from around 2000.
Cape town s water crisis is likely to have far reaching consequences, not only on the local economy, but for national gdp as well with further downgrades looming. Cape town warned it could lose clean water supply by april. Cape town population 2020 demographics, maps, graphs. In a waterscarce system where constraints are imposed. In cape town, south africa, theyre calling it day zero the day when the taps run dry.
But the drought is not yet over, and the western capes longterm rainfall average appears to be declining, probably due to climate change. Cape town was a 1 in 590year event based on historical rainfall records. Water resource management and climate change in south africa 3. Jan 24, 2018 in cape town, south africa, theyre calling it day zero the day when the taps run dry. Water value chain of the city of cape town municipality water demand and supply history strategic goals of water demand management strategy city of cape towns overall water balance demand management interventions annual savings achieved against projected conservation programmes 2. This is a public summary of the city of cape towns critical. By you helping to save water, weve had less demand on our water supply, and together weve managed to avoid day zero. What do longterm data reveal about cape towns water shortage. But its just one of many cities around the world facing a future. Critical water shortages disaster plan public summary this is a public summary of the city of cape town s critical water shortages disaster plan. Perhaps a hundred years from now, history books about cape town s 2018 water crisis will include photos of people queuing for water at the newlands spring. Summer, which runs from december through march, is warm and dry, with up to 14 hours of sun each day. The selection of cape town supplies the opportunity to address.
Located on the shore of table bay, cape town is famous around the world for its beautiful harbor and is considered one of the best places in the world to visit. Extreme water restrictions have been put in place in the city of cape town and neighbouring towns, and water is being rationed via pressure reduction and other demandside management interventions. How cape town was saved from running out of water world. The current system is heavily dependent on rainfall. Cape town rewards spontaneity with delights around every bend. By the 1850s, the first major interventions had been built in the form of two reservoirs, still in. It explains the disaster plan but does not provide operational details, which are sensitive in a disaster scenario. The city of cape town s water and sanitation department has released the water outlook 2018 report. Pdf experiences and lessons in managing water from cape town. Town s water supply forms part of the western cape water supply system wcwss, which is an. In cape town, bigcity life on very little water the atlantic. Cape town 2020 touring the africa adventure company. Jul 10, 2018 cape town, where i was born, is the first major city to face a water crisis of epic proportions.
Water crisis threatens not only cape, but sa economy fin24. Return to the city via the old cape malay quarter for a walk through the company gardens, a fresh produce garden for visiting ships from the mid 17th century and home to the cultural history museum, houses of parliament, national gallery, south africa museum and cape towns jewish campus. Climate change is a concern that could be better integrated into water planning as outlined in ray and browns 2015 book. The improvement of water conservation, water quality and wateruse ef. A publication of the water research commission of south africa. This is why government, national and local, is planning to supply the city with new sources of water. The summary contains details on the current water system status including the latest water system figures, recent water consumption trends, as well as the key risks to maintaining water levels. South africas cape town is set to run out of water in april the south african city of cape town is running out of water. Latest western cape dam levels western cape government. Western cape needs halfabillion rand for water crisis. Screenshot of the cape town water map website dark green dots represent residential properties that are. Since 2009, the western cape, of which cape town is the capital, has been governed by the democratic alliance da, the official opposition to the african national congress anc. For a few months in late 2017 and early 2018, it looked like cape town would run out of water. Bigcity life on very little water in cape town, people are restricted to just a fraction of the typical amount of water.
Whats actually behind cape towns water crisis the atlantic. Below you will find some tips on how you can save water during your stay in south africa, so you help the local community and their future water supply. The mechanics of a drain air pressure, water seals and gradient. Cape town is one of several cities to see its water supply fail in the past decade. Such a strategy should include diversity of water sources, equity of. The western cape water supply system wcwss is a complex water supply system in the western cape region of south africa, comprising an interlinked system of six main dams, pipelines, tunnels and distribution networks, and a number of minor dams, some owned and operated by the department of water and sanitation and some by the city of cape town. Feb 01, 2018 the city of cape towns water and sanitation department has released the water outlook 2018 report. History of water and sanitation in south africa south africa is a country that continuously struggles to provide basic water and sanitation services to its citizens. Pdf as the drought in cape town intensified in 20172018 and then. Cape towns crisis speaks to the risk of relying on historical water resource. Barriers and enablers to responding to the cape town drought. Cape town is experiencing the worst drought in recorded history and according to the city, dam levels are currently at their lowest in 19 years.
Cape town s water crisis has the potential to spark political fights in the runup to national elections in 2019. Western cape water supply system reconciliation strategy study. Slavery at the cape oxford research encyclopedia of. City will invest in alternative sources of water, rainfed dams will still supply over. Cape town is the second most populous city in south africa behind johannesburg, and it is the provincial capital of the western cape. Cape town s government ramped up water tariffs and enforcement of prohibitions on heavy users, prohibiting use of municipal water. One citys response to a recordbreaking drought pdf. Here we explain what cape towns water supply will probably look like in future. Cape town told to cut water use or face losing supply by. A considerable amount of work has been done by national, provincial and local government over the. We need to keep saving to give our winter rains a chance to fill our dams. What do longterm data reveal about cape towns water. Catching the water off table mountain is not a trivial measure.
Cape town residents become guinea pigs for the world with. Jan 18, 2018 what national government is doing about cape towns water crisis. Inspection guidelines for plumbing and drains module at a glance. Cape town gets its water from a system of dams that supply agriculture and other urban areas. Cape town water outlook 2018 water institute of southern. While dam water levels had been declining since 2015, the cape town water crisis peaked during mid2017 to mid2018 when water levels hovered between 15 and 30 per cent of total dam capacity. More than four million residents could lose piped water to their homes unless consumption is reduced by april. Evaporation evaporation is the process where liquid water changes to water vapour, which is an invisible gas. The western cape water supply system relies almost entirely on rainfall, which is. The demand for water has also steadily increased every year due to the provinces rapidly growing population and economy. Water services and the cape town urban water cycle page 5 of 41 1. And how did capetonians reduce their water consumption. May 21, 2017 clive justus, then cape town mayoral committee member for utility services, took issue with the comments by the national department of water affairs, published in the cape times in july 2009, that.
One reason for such confidence can be attributed to the citys endeavours in leakage control, in 2016 only 9% of water was lost through system leakages in cape town, the national south african. This is not the first time cape town has faced a severe water shortage and has put extreme measures in place to stretch its water supply. Why cape town is running out of water, and whos next the south african city plans to shut off the taps to 4 million people. How cape town beat the worst drought in its history. The legendary cape doctor has diminished in recent years, but the strong southeasterly wind helps to keep the area dry. Principles and objectives of the critical water shortages disaster plan the critical water shortages disaster plan for the city of cape town is based on the. A view of water augmentation progress during the hydrological year, 1 nov 2017 31 october 2018. This, as well as unpredictable climate change, has added significant. Why cape town is running out of water, and the cities that. These socalled post office stones are still found in excavations and there is an interesting collection of them in the south african museum in the companys gardens in cape town. Map of the major dams in the cape town water supply system. The causes and impact of water shortage on the households. Through this process, using both automatic pressure reduction valves as well as manual. Cape town told to cut water use or face losing supply by 12 april.
The reality though is that spring water, at least in the nearterm, can only provide a small amount of water to the city. Water history is a relatively new field of investigation in south africa. Integrated water resource planning study identification and categorization of large water users in the cape metropolitan area. A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of magister scientiae msc in the faculty of science, earth sciences department, university of the western cape.
Slavery was a mainstay of the labor force of the cape colony between its foundation by the dutch east india company voc in 1652 and abolition in 1834, by which date the cape was under british rule. Cape towns day zero water shortage fear spreads in south. A comprehensive history of the water supply of cape town was researched for the book rivers and wetlands of cape town 1, where it was demonstrated that the growing population of cape town had to constantly develop new solutions for water supply. This complex system is managed by the national department of water and sanitation. Service requestsreport a fault c3 browse our sections. Cape town s clean water supply could run out as early as april, officials have warned. It is water vapour that gives air its humidity, and air with a high humidity has lots of water vapour in it which can make it feel sticky and uncomfortable. Looking back on cape towns drought and day zero citylab.
Six firstround matches, one secondround match, one quarter final and one semifinal. Experiences and lessons in managing water from cape town. In 2014 and 2015, parts of sao paulo in brazil received water for only two days a week. The water supply in cape town is on everyones lips. Jul 06, 2018 c ape town will not run out of water this year or next, the south african tourist board has said the popular holiday destination came within weeks of day zero when the taps would be turned off. Topic you will learn elements of the water supply to a house about the mains stop. Because water supply and demand now interact in the model in a dynamic way over time, water demand can be either constrained or enabled by available supply. What were the first signs of a looming water crisis in cape town. Feb 28, 2018 but the drought is not yet over, and the western capes longterm rainfall average appears to be declining, probably due to climate change.
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