How can we solve the water crisis in Cape Town?

Install water efficient taps or install aerators on existing taps to reduce water flow. Install water efficient shower heads and encourage two-minute showers. Modify toilets to reduce flushing volumes. Convert to water-wise landscaping.

What is causing the water crisis in South Africa?

There are many reasons that attribute to this growing water crisis in South Africa. Climate change has affected water supplies within the region. Rains that usually come and supply the country’s water has come infrequently. Due to this fact cities are looking to impose water restrictions on communities.

Why is water crisis important?

The water crisis is a health crisis. Nearly 1 million people die each year from water, sanitation and hygiene-related diseases which could be reduced with access to safe water or sanitation. Access to safe water and sanitation contributes to improved health and helps prevent the spread of infectious disease.

How can water sanitation be improved?

Improve sanitation facilities by providing toilets and latrines that flush into a sewer or safe enclosure. Promote good hygiene habits through education. Proper hand washing with soap and water can reduce diarrhea cases by up to 35 percent.

How is village water wasted?

In the water supply water is wasted due to lack of maintenance. The tape or the switch remains broken and it causes unnecessary flow. In the kitchen and the bath, there are reservoirs with leakage. Water can be saved by conducting due maintenance and sealing the leakages.

Who has control over water resources?

Surface water and groundwater are transboundary resources that often cross political boundaries. Generally, under the United States’ federal system of government, no single governmental level has absolute sovereign authority over water.

Is Cape Town on the verge of a water crisis?

EDINBURGH — Scientist Gordon Maclear warned more than two decades ago that Cape Town was edging slowly but surely towards a water crisis of epic proportions. He published a scientific report in an academic journal outlining the evidence.

Can nature-based solutions solve Cape Town’s water crisis?

The Greater Cape Town Water Fund Business Case—released on Nov. 16, 2018—shows that nature-based solutions could help ensure the city has the water it needs for its citizens, businesses and the economically important agricultural sector.

Who should be responsible water users in South Africa?

All South Africans with access to piped water should always be responsible water users, and not only when a crisis looms, as is currently the case in the Western and Eastern Cape regions. We focus on Cape Town and the Western Cape in order to indicate what possible solutions there are for drought stricken areas.

Will Cape Town run out of water by 2050?

The Western Cape government’s Disaster Management Directorate estimates rainfall will decrease by 30\% by the year 2050. We asked various government officials what the plan is to prevent the city’s taps running dry. Government has several projects on the go to increase the water supply to Cape Town.