My name is Adam Welz and I’m a South Africa-based freelance journalist and contributor to Yale Environment 360 magazine, where I recently published the story, “Awaiting Day Zero: Cape Town Faces an Uncertain Water Future.” Recently, Cape Town has become infamous as the home of “Day Zero,” the day when most of the city’s taps are predicted to run dry. With its major, rain-fed supply dams dangerously low after three years of drought, most of the city’s 4 million-plus residents — some rich, many desperately poor — have been facing the prospect of lining up at emergency water distribution points to collect a daily ration of just 6.6 gallons per person. Thanks to massive reductions in water usage in recent months, Cape Town recently pushed back its Day Zero, but the region’s drought continues and the city’s water shortage issues are far from over. How did one of the best-managed and wealthiest cities in Africa find itself on the brink of a catastrophic water shortage in the first place, particularly considering climate change and water management have been firmly on the agenda of Cape Town’s leaders for years? What is the city doing to rectify the immediate situation, and at what cost? And with its population growing and the climate warming, how does Cape Town meet its future water needs?
Joining me today are water policy expert Christine Colvin, head of freshwater programs with WWF-South Africa, climate scientist Peter Johnston of the University of Cape Town, and biologist Adam West also of the University of Cape Town.
We’ll be answering your questions starting at 10 am ET — Ask Us Anything!
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