Cape Town are 80 days from running out of water

Rhys Essien

A city of four million people.The reservoir is almost dry and water rationing is now in full force.Things could be about to get nasty.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-42787773

Wanderer78

is fresh water the basis for the next world war?

wexie

Be interesting to see what will happen there indeed. Read a few articles on this now and have seen very little information on what they are planning to do.

Pac1Man

More water.

Rhys Essien

I would think so.’Water Wars’ are predicated.This could be an opportunity for Trump to offer them a few desalination plants and gain a small bit of credibility.

Jimbob1977

Desalination plants could become more popular in decades to come.

The sea has a plentiful supply of water. Melting glaciers etc

El Tarangu

Isn't Cape Town next to the sea? - desalination plant

Wanderer78

Pac1Man wrote: »

More water.

Rumpy Pumpy

El Tarangu wrote: »

Isn't Cape Town next to the sea? - desalination plant

They’ll hardly get one built in 80 days.

Rhys Essien

Apparently they have one Desalination plant but it only caters for a small percentage.They are now also frantically drilling for ground water.

kneemos

Rhys Essien wrote: »

I would think so.’Water Wars’ are predicated.This could be an opportunity for Trump to offer them a few desalination plants and gain a small bit of credibility.

Can’t see the point in going to war over water. You can't transport it.

CruelCoin

An SA friend of mine living in Ireland mentioned this the other day.

People are relocating to Johannesburg in droves apparently.

igCorcaigh

El Tarangu wrote: »

Isn't Cape Town next to the sea? - desalination plant

Expensive. I can foresee the Sahara desert covered in solar panels some day (soon?). Would be a huge source of revenue for African countries, if the contracts were sorted out fairly.

wexie

kneemos wrote: »

Can’t see the point in going to war over water. You can't transport it.

You can't?

Seems to me there's plenty of wars been fought over oil which is as transportable as water?

And even if that was the case (it's not) then wars could be fought over access to it...

igCorcaigh

The article in the OP doesn't mention the cause of the crisis, but a previous one does:

"The crisis has been caused by three years of very low rainfall, coupled with increasing consumption by a growing population."

A sign of things to come.

Alun

The desalination process, whether using distillation or reverse osmosis, is energy hungry and therefore potentially very expensive. If solar power is readily available and abundant in the location then that goes some way to making it more attractive but otherwise it's not the cheap and easy alternative many might think.

DEFTLEFTHAND

Rhys Essien wrote: »

I would think so.’Water Wars’ are predicated.This could be an opportunity for Trump to offer them a few desalination plants and gain a small bit of credibility.

It's not the USA's responsibility to offer them anything.

An independent country sorts their own problems.

Wanderer78

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote:

It's not the USA's responsibility to offer them anything.

Maybe some western financial institutions, including American institutions should cancel some of their debts, maybe that would help them get started?

ted1

El Tarangu wrote: »

Isn't Cape Town next to the sea? - desalination plant

Afaik they already have some and more are due to come online

biko

Let them drink beer

wexie

biko wrote: »

Let them drink beer

made with....

And how would you transport it? :rolleyes:

fancy pigeon

They should have paid their water bill

VinLieger

Any chance the rampant longterm corruption and political incompetance might have anything to do with it

wexie

VinLieger wrote: »

Any chance the rampant longterm corruption and political incompetance might have anything to do with it

'it' being the long term drought?

it's unlikely I'd say

Jacovs

Here is what Level 6b water restrictions mean for Capetonians

Vita nova

Maybe it's time to try towing icebergs (fresh water) from Antarctica. I know it's been proposed and rejected in the past but with modern technology and greater need, it could be viable.

igCorcaigh

VinLieger wrote: »

Any chance the rampant longterm corruption and political incompetance might have anything to do with it

Not everywhere is like Ireland.

Chrongen

El Tarangu wrote: »

Isn't Cape Town next to the sea? - desalination plant

Well people could certainly go to the beach a few times a week just for a wash in the sea. OK so you'll be a bit salty but nice and clean..for free and if you're a woman you're hair will be that lovely, shaggy, Shakira texture.

Chrongen

kneemos wrote: »

Can’t see the point in going to war over water. You can't transport it.

You can transport oil and natural gas. Plenty of wars of those. Water pipelines could be the new norm.

wexie

Chrongen wrote: »

Well people could certainly go to the beach a few times a week just for a wash in the sea. OK so you'll be a bit salty but nice and clean..for free and if you're a woman you're hair will be that lovely, shaggy, Shakira texture.

be a half decent chance that the great whites* round there would sort out some of the population increase as well

*sharks people before you suggest anything else

Chrongen

Jacovs wrote: »

Here is what Level 6b water restrictions mean for Capetonians

Pfft...the 15l from the 90 second shower can be put straight into the dishwasher and washing machine and then redirected to the cistern. That's another four flushes.