Water way to go. News and views on South Africa's drought crisis.

[Daily Maverick] WATER CRISIS EXPLAINED Friday, 5 May 2018 443 million The number of school days lost each year due to water-related diseases. Feature Articles [Alien trees are a major threat to water supply – so why doesn’t this reflect in Cape Town’s draft budget?]( By Jasper Slingsby and Mark Botha. Invasive alien trees are reducing water supply to our dams by almost as much as the ±150 megalitres-per-day bulk water augmentation target, and have similar impacts on groundwater recharge. Yet the City of Cape Town’s draft budget and integrated development plan – which are open for comment until 4 May 2018 – makes no provision for alien clearing. The City aims to create dependence on groundwater without addressing threats to the resource – ultimately setting us up for a much bigger disaster when the next drought occurs. Water Fact of the Week According to the World Health Organisation, every minute a newborn dies from infection caused by lack of safe water and sanitation. Key Reading [Day Zero: It has become fashionable to blame me for everything – De Lille]( If there was one person in the City of Cape Town’s water response team who had the greatest sense of urgency, it was me. [BEE farming project strangled by drought]( ‘The dam is now at less than 10% of its capacity,’ says Wolseley farmer. Editor's Picks [Lacklustre season for Western Cape agriculture expected]( By Wandile Sihlobo [South Africa wine production drying up in water crisis]( By AFP [Iceberg proposal gains traction for Cape Town]( By News24 [Rainy weather brings relief for most parts of SA]( By News24 — External Reading [You think we have it bad?]( The Aussies have recently been facing some of the worst droughts in 800 years,[The Conversation]( reports. By analysing rainfall data over several hundred years, researchers came to the conclusion that recent droughts have been unusually bad (to put it euphemistically). “For example, the Millennium Drought was larger in area and longer than any other drought in southern Australia over the last 400 years,” they wrote. The study hopes to help predict future rainfall patterns. [Water and Sanitation ‘a mess’]( Water and Sanitation Minister Gugile Nkwinti has come out and said that he inherited a department that was “a mess”, reports [News24]( . He does say, however, that he’s sorting it out. Among the problems on his to-do list are: R1.2bn debt because municipalities, water boards, companies and parastatals have not been paying up; lack of staff, with 1,016 vacant posts; and losing some 35% of water to leaks. Several deputy directors general were earlier suspended for mismanagement, but returned to work. The minister said due process had to be followed. [Zakariyya Park water crisis looming]( Residents in Zakariyya Park, Johannesburg, were protesting last week over persistent water problems, which they say have lasted a decade. [Mail & Guardian]( reported there had been no water for several days and residents blocked the Golden Highway in Lenasia South with burning tyres, rocks and tree branches. — [FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO A FRIEND]( Copyright © 2018 Daily Maverick, All rights reserved. You are receiving this mail because you are awesome and on the Daily Maverick First Thing subscriber list. Keep up to date on all DM activities by [clicking here](. [Preferences]( | [Unsubscribe](