Cape Town Water Crisis

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It’s called Day Zero — the day when dams drop below critical levels and Cape Town officials shut off water to most homes and businesses in South Africa’s second-largest city. The metropolitan region of nearly 4 million people faces an immense challenge to prevent this scenario from happening: cut water use to 50 liters per person per day. Even conservation of that magnitude might not be enough to avert Day Zero. How the city and its residents respond to the drought crisis is a case study for this era of perilous environmental change.

Cape Town’s Harrowing Journey to the Brink of Water Catastrophe

The city of 4 million people almost turned off its taps.

Cape Town, a city of 4 million people, almost turned off its taps.

Amid Political Quarrels over Cape Town Crisis, Engineers Prepare Dams for Day Zero

Squabbles between South Africa’s politicians over who is to blame for Cape Town’s water emergency reached such a pitch in recent weeks that leaders, in an attempt to soften the debate, invoked the country’s icon of peace and resolve.

Cape Town Pushes Back Day Zero by Nearly One Month

Pointing to declining agricultural water use, Cape Town officials moved Day Zero back nearly four weeks, to May 11.

Cape Town Outlines Plans for Emergency Water Distribution

Residents will be allowed 25 liters (6.6 gallons) per person per day at 200 collection points.