A Warning to the World?

In this New York Magazine article, author Jonah Shepp looks at the water crisis in Cape Town, South Africa:

Cape Town’s Water Crisis Should Be a Warning to the World

Cape Town residents line up to refill water bottles at Newlands Brewery Spring Water Point on

January 30, 2018 in Cape Town, South Africa. Photo: Morgana Wingard/Getty Images

"Cape Town, South Africa, a city of 4 million people, is just weeks away from becoming the world’s first major city to run entirely out of water — but of course, it won’t be the last.

South Africa’s second-largest city after Johannesburg, Cape Town was not an obvious candidate for that dubious distinction. In 2014, its dams were flush with rainwater and its water-conservation strategy was award-winning. Then came the worst drought South Africa had seen in a century, lasting three whole years. Now, the Theewaterskloof Dam, the city’s main reservoir, is at just 13 percent of capacity.

Climate change is obviously a factor in Cape Town’s water crisis, as South Africa faces a hotter and drier future, but it’s not the only one. Politics and misgovernment have played a role as well."



Read full article here: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/02/cape-towns-water-crisis-should-be-a-warning-to-the-world.html