Cape Town water crisis
What if we turn on the taps and nothing comes out? With dam levels at record lows and rain still not falling, this is a serious threat facing a city of four million people. GroundUp did an in-depth investigation of the water crisis.
GroundUp's investigation into the water crisis
- 15 May 2017: Water shortage in photos
- 16 May 2017: What's causing the problem — but the following article is more up-to-date (22 January 2018): How severe is the drought? An analysis of the latest data
- 17 May 2017: Data and the water shortage
- 18 May 2017: What is being done and what needs to be done
- 19 May 2017: What happens if the dams dry out
- 21 July 2017: What government is doing
Also see:
- Cape Town's precarious water supply (8 June 2016)
- This water crisis will not be Cape Town's last (17 Feb 2017)
- Cape Town's taps could really run dry (3 April 2017)
- Drought: Cape Town may ban swimming pool top-ups (13 April 2017)
Useful articles on other sites
The University of Cape Town has an excellent series on the Cape Town water crisis.
Also see:
- How severe is the drought? by Dr Piotr Wolski, UCT’s Climate System Analysis Group
- Water restrictions explained on City of Cape Town website
- Cape Town's weekly dam levels on City of Cape Town website
Articles on Cape Town water crisis
Paddling across Cape Town
The health of the city can be seen in the condition of its waterways
By Kevin Winter
Opinion | 15 June 2017
Researchers test nifty way to save water in informal settlement
“One of the things that we’ve done badly across Africa… is deal with the surface runoff”
Solutions | 14 June 2017
Some Cape Town homes without water at night as City tries to find right pressure
Councillor urges residents to report problems
Brief | 6 June 2017
What happens when the dams run dry?
Mayor Patricia de Lille: “We are going to have to cut the water off for long hours like with load-shedding”
News | 19 May 2017
What needs to be done about Cape Town’s water crisis
“Decision making … is now lagging too far behind our current reality”
News | 18 May 2017
Here’s where to find data on Cape Town’s water crisis
Government, the weather service and academics need to do better at making data and analysis of the water crisis available
News | 17 May 2017
What’s causing Cape Town’s water crisis?
Population growth, drought and climate change threaten the city’s water supply
News | 16 May 2017
In photos: Cape Town’s water crisis
Perilous state of city’s water supply is starkly visible
Text by Trevor Bohatch. Photos by Ashraf Hendricks.
Photo Essay | 15 May 2017
Drought: Cape Town may ban swimming pool top-ups
City’s water use still not down to target levels
News | 13 April 2017