Urban Environment - Cape Town II

The last entry introduced the drought in 2018 in Cape Town and its effect on the city.

At the beginning of the last post, together with the video, I’ve put I have given out some questions to think about while looking at the case study:

How has the urban setting altered the situation?

How effective were the regulations? 

What can be done better?

In this post, I wish to continue the topic on Cape Town and discuss, around these questions, the problem of changing environment and water in the African urban setting.

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Droughts often have various effects on different people based on structural factors including class, gender, and historical legacies of discrimination and segregation. A "water crisis" is thus more than just a matter of having too much or too little water; it is frequently a "governance catastrophe," in which the institutions in place have failed to generate resilience, adjust to changing conditions and consider all the groups in the society. From the last entry, we can see that it is important to learn from Cape Town’s experiences in adapting the 2018 drought, which showed the world that sustainable water governance must recognise the interconnected challenges of environmental changes, such as climate change and urbanisation, as well as the spectrum of implications these threats and the City's actions have on a difficult demography. 

Figure 1. Total and urban population projection in 10^3 and percentage of urbanisation for Africa.

It is hardly possible to deny the fact of climate change. Rainfall and evapotranspiration rates are altering as the world warms, owing to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions; these variations in mean annual rainfall, as well as its temporal and geographical distribution, are projected to affect the water balance as a whole. However, the reason why making water supply policies in Cape Town faced challenges is not only because there has been a decrease in precipitation due to climate change, but also its boosting population due to urbanisation; this applies the same to the lot cities in Africa, now and in the future. The demographic changes that will occur in Africa in the twenty-first century are known with considerable certainty. According to UNFPA, Africa's population would expand by around 154% between 2000 and 2050. And over the same period, an increase of around 320% of the urban population is estimated (Figure.1).

Following such projection on growth in urban population, most water supply programmes attempt to raise per capita consumption, as an aim, as well as to ensure food security and other aspects of life. The overall demand for water will therefore be expected to be increased to support the population: it is estimated that there will be at least 154% to 200% increase in water demand in Africa in the first half of the 21st century. 

Taking the water demand for urban population issue further, we should recognise the extended factors that relate to this issue, such as sanitation, food and development in general. A more urban environment can accommodate more individuals and therefore higher population density will be inevitable. Efficiency in public sanitation infrastructures are important for the distribution of water resources. Increased urban population will correspondingly cause an increase in food demand as more population needs feeding. Pressure on food production will rise in both rural and peri-urban areas to meet such demand and so as the water needed for irrigation. Moreover, it is crucial for Cape Town, as one of the nine African cities that are ranked top 100 in the world by population density, to take in a long-term development approach and to focus on minimising water-related risks for climate variability. This will require development in a variety of areas: technical, institutional and even social. For example, improve the access and comprehension of climate data by upgrading the technology, institutionally facilitate the cities with more efficient infrastructure for better engagement and execution of water distribution solutions, and socially educate the public on the science of climate to raise awareness from inside the system. However, it is also important to recognise the inadequate effort that government can do alone: a range of partners and stakeholders is needed for such greater development that builds on and goes beyond water issues and climate change adaptation. 

All in all, cities in Africa needs to move from crisis responses to effective management of, with the involvement of different stakeholders, the water that is essential to living and develop in whole the society to tackle and prepare a solid defence for the future.

‘Day Zeros’ Are Not Inevitable.