When Cape Town Mayor Patricia de Lille recently announced a series of new steps to tackle the water crisis, she referred to a ‘New Normal’. Her message was that while a raft of measures was being put in place to address the water shortage, this is a problem she thinks Capetonians are going to face indefinitely.
My view is that the ‘New Normal’ is just not an acceptable long-term plan; we want an ‘Old Normal’, a return to a situation where abundance is the rule, and shortage is the exception. We cannot be defeated by the water crisis; we must tackle it.
The Mayor’s recent announcement is a great initiative, but the problem is just too big for the City to resolve on its own. The latest efforts seem more focused on curbing demand than on the supply side, which really needs more attention. The storage challenge is also vitally important.
Mayor de Lille spoke of securing an additional 500 million litres of new water a day, and suggested that to achieve this, capital expenditure “over this financial year and the next financial year will be in the region of R2bn, and the operating expenses will be upward of R1.3bn.” Costings will still need to be worked out in detail.
It seems inevitable that new water and rates tariffs will be needed. To some, this may seem daunting; to us, it is not enough.
We need significantly higher investment in water infrastructure, with a much greater focus on desalination. We need not just to cope with the current crisis, but to look ahead, to plan for future water security as the City grows.
We need to move from a band-aid approach to a fully-funded and comprehensive water plan. Instead of looking at an additional 500m litres of water a day, I think we should increase that target at least three-fold to 1,5bn litres.
The challenge is to come up with a series of new projects which are not just a drain on resources, but which can generate a sustainable return. If we can ensure such sustainable returns and real improvements, we have a winning formula.
To meet ambition on this scale, the private sector is needed, and we are convinced that many Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) can and should be created to help Cape Town move quickly from water shortage to water abundance.
All this may seem wildly ambitious, but what are the implications of permanent or recurring severe water-shortages?
Tourism and business would be held back by constraints on water supply, while the investment we envisage in tackling the water challenges will produce important job creation and access to clean water.
A water-abundant region would bring massive benefits, both economic and in terms of quality of life for all citizens.
What we need now is some creative thinking. The City of Cape Town has drawn on diverse opinion, and we now have a good idea of what they are planning, with initial sites for desalination plants and a whole array of water saving initiatives.
Now, we need to widen the dialogue and fully bring in the private sector.
Cape Town has no shortage of business brains. Let us get all those who can help around the table.