South Africa’s Cape Town risks running out of water by April unless rains fall, putting the iconic tourist destination’s future in jeopardy.
On average, two million people visit Cape Town yearly to bathe on its white sandy beaches, explore natural features and see various attractive features.
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, travel and tourism accounted for an estimated 9 percent or 412 billion rand ($33 billion) of South Africa’s economic output last year.
“Day Zero” – the date taps are due to run dry – has been projected to come on April 22, and authorities in the city are in a race to build desalination plants and drill underground boreholes to avert a crisis.
“There is a real risk that residents will have to queue,” says Cape Town city councilor Xanthea Limberg.
A maximum 25 litres of water will be provided per person, per day, officials said.
Limberg says the dire situation is being worsened by some people ignoring requests for residents and visitors to limit water use to no more than 87 litres per person per day.
Businesses in the hospitality industry also say they are trying to help, limiting showers to two minutes and using water used for washing dishes and clothes to water gardens.
Cape Town is home to some of South Africa’s wealthy residents, some of whom have swimming pools and use sprinkler systems to water their gardens.
For now, the residents of the tourist city hope rains can fall soon enough to avert the lack of water.
