www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-south-africa-water-crisis-20180119-story.html"Day Zero", the day that South Africa's Cape Town will run out of water, has now been estimated to be April 12th. The city is having it's worst drought of the century, and it will be the first major city in a developed country to run out of water if "Day Zero" actually happens. The problem can be traced to a sharp population growth and a failure by the government to plan alternative water sources, or to even recognize the situation as a threat in time. There were warnings dating as far back as 2004, but now people are left without any real plan for survival because of the government's reliance solely on water conservation and water demand management. At the moment, it seems that the government would rather quarrel with politicians and attempt to assign blame rather than come up with a solution. Sure, there are new water projects being proposed, but all but one of these efforts are behind schedule leaving a fear of no real impact by "Day Zero". All that is to be understood is that people will begin to line up outside with buckets at 200 water stations while officials control the crowd and insure that they take 6.6 gallons per person. The buckets are the only things people can rely on throughout the city to recycle their water as best they can. And if they aren't able to conserve and potentially exceed their water ration, they could have a water restriction device installed in their pipes. It is very stressful for everyone involved with Cape Town at the moment.
Water is crucial for the lives of every species, especially humans. That is why this issue is so serious. If the town runs out of water, it is only a matter of time before people become sick and their population growth slows. Not only that, but it could affect businesses which could ultimately affect Cape Town's economy. It might end up being an awfully sad lesson for other regions to learn about the importance of substantial planning. It could also be a first glance at events yet to come. Climate change plays a role in any major drought these days, and this could be one of our first looks at the devastation it could bring. Hopefully we will learn from this, and hopefully people will recognize the necessity of working towards lessening climate change.
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