The regrettably poor screenprint graph below shows a solid red line for 2017s cumulative rainfall to 24 august which is now below any of the 40 earlier years lighter lines. South africa drought and climate september 2017 livewire. The forecast for 2017 looks even more grim, especially for the agricultural sector. It is the third of a series of similar studies carried out in. Nov 30, 2015 south africa is facing one of the worst droughts to hit the region in 30 years, affecting food production and prices, while many small farmers are expected to go out of business, writes the bbcs. July 2016 agri sa, 2016, and is expected to result in an 11% inflationary increase across all foods from 2016 to 2017 bfap. Cape town has less than 10% of its useable water remaining for its nearly 4 million residents as it grapples with the worst drought in over 100 years. Extreme droughts those that persist over several droughts in south africa. South africa will need to consider how to best adapt to such conditions. South africa is battling one of the worst droughts ever recorded that already started in early 2015.
South africa water shortage, cape town drought water. Impacts of drought induced water shortages in south africa. In 20152017, a severe drought reduced water availability in the western cape south africa, placing enormous stress on the community. Drought also affected parts of arizona, kansas, arkansas, georgia, florida, mississippi, alabama, south and north carolina. Similar trends are observed in other parts of africa see figure 1 2. Aug 18, 2018 drought in south africa continues despite good rainy season last updated on aug 18, 2018 while there has been good rains, the country is still firmly in a drought situation and has not recovered enough to relax the restrictions to water use, implemented in provinces. Drought and water crisis in southern africa, european commission, ispra.
South africa is facing one of the worst droughts to hit the region in 30 years, affecting food production and prices, while many small farmers are. This study investigated and analysed the preparedness, impact of and. Summary for policy makers executive summary the city of cape town cct, and south africa in general, have been experiencing significant water shortages due to the ongoing drought. The 201820 mozambique drought is an ongoing period of drought taking place in southern africa. Figure 9 monthly rainfall for south african in june and july 2017. Cape town drought and water shortage in south africa. Crop harvests are well below normal and the price of food has doubled across much of ethiopia, kenya, somalia and nearby countries. In 2015, south africa had the lowest amount of rainfall since records began in 1904. Sep 02, 2017 south africa drought and climate september 2017 posted on 0209 2017 0209 2017 by livewiresa the western cape continues to suffer an acute water shortage as rainfall sets record lows for recent years. The current drought is the effect of a sustained belowaverage monthly rainfall series since 2015, which intensified in the last wet season april to september 2017. Drought responses in south africa, however, show a rather messy reality. Impact of the drought on the south african fruit sector. The cape town water crisis in south africa was a period of severe water shortage in the western cape region, most notably affecting the city of cape town. Mar 06, 2019 from 2015 to 2017 south africas economic grew by a mere 1.
As of midaugust 2019, the drought is classified as a level 2 redclass event by the global disaster alert and coordination system. Jul 06, 2018 c ape town will not run out of water this year or next, the south african tourist board has said the popular holiday destination came within weeks of day zero when the taps would be turned off. Cape towns water crisis was declared a national disaster on tuesday by south africas government. Previously the lowest rainfall received in a year was in 1945, when the country received 437mm 72%. Mar 06, 2018 south africa is infamous for its high unemployment, which had risen to 26. The effects of the drought on south african agriculture.
The effects of the drought on south african agriculture october 5, 2017 verso comments 0 comment south africa is battling one of the worst droughts ever recorded that already started in early 2015. This site was created to make that obvious to everyone. Africa as a continent still faces a huge shortfall in infrastructure development. The western cape continues to suffer an acute water shortage as rainfall sets record lows for recent years. Lessons lost andor learnt from 1990 to 2005 wayne devlin austin a dissertation submitted to the faculty of science, university of the witwatersrand. In 2017, the severity of cape towns water shortages, for example, caught international media attention, with extreme conditions being met with ever staggering water restrictions. The cold fronts that bring winter rain to the cape continue to pass further south than normal. Texas, oklahoma and new mexico were most adversely affected. Cape towns water crisis monitoring, information, and data about south africas worst drought in history. Limpopo province is situated in the northern part of south africa figure 1. A threeyear drought has dropped the water level behind the crucial voelvlei dam to dangerously. Looking back on cape towns drought and day zero citylab. South african weather service, private bag x097, pretoria 0001, south.
Includes angola, botswana, lesotho, madagascar, malawi, mozambique, namibia, south africa, swaziland, zambia, and zimbabwe. Mar 31, 2016 in 2015, south africa had the lowest amount of rainfall since records began in 1904. Sa will take about three years to recover from drought. Crop harvests are well below normal and the price of food has doubled across much of. Oct 05, 2017 since 1904, rainfall in all nine provinces has averaged 608mm per annum, while in 2015 south africa received an average of only 403mm 66% of the annual average. The report assesses the occurrence and impacts of drought, the current policies underlying drought management as well as the mitigation measures and responses adopted in the near east and north africa region, with a focus on the agriculture sector. The droughtaffected settlements in south africa as a 12month spi map. The drought began in late october 2018, and is negatively affecting food security in the region. The weather phenomenon making drought the new normal cnn. Apr 12, 2019 starting in 2017, the municipality had begun ratcheting up its drought awareness campaign, publishing weekly updates on regional dam levels and water consumption and using electronic boards on. South africa is infamous for its high unemployment, which had risen to 26. In early april 2017, the cct was reportedly down to its last 100 days of water news24, 2017 and on 31 may, the.
Since 2015 a large portion of south africa has experienced extended periods of drought, with five provinces being declared disaster zones. South africa declares drought a national disaster reuters. While the january and february rains of 2017 have offered a brief reprieve from the 20142016 drought, the fact is that south africa is still overexploiting its renewable water. South africa grapples with worst drought in 30 years bbc news. A recent southern african development community sadc report suggests that by mid2017 four countries will have to declare national drought disasters, namely, the kingdom of lesotho, the republic of malawi, the kingdom of swaziland, and the republic of. Drought characteristics africa and the near east and.
How cape town beat the drought the city was on the verge of becoming the first major urban centre to run out of water but has averted the. These events could occur more frequently and with greater severity. South africa is the largest producer of maize on the african continent and, in a normal production season, 40% of maize produced in south africa is traded in the southern african development community sadc region agri sa, 2016. From 2015 to 2017 south africas economic grew by a mere 1. May 31, 2017 cape town has less than 10% of its useable water remaining for its nearly 4 million residents as it grapples with the worst drought in over 100 years. Drought in south africa continues despite good rainy season. The extreme us great grain belt drought of 2012 is.
A recent southern african development community sadc report suggests that by mid 2017 four countries will have to declare national drought disasters, namely, the kingdom of lesotho, the republic of malawi, the kingdom of swaziland, and the republic of. While dam water levels had been declining since 2015, the cape town water crisis peaked during mid2017 to mid2018 when water levels hovered between 15 and 30 per cent of total dam capacity. The drought has resulted in widespread livestock losses, as well as signficantmillion crop failure resulting in cereal deficits of 9 million metric tons. Reimagining the potential of effective drought responses. Parliament south africa will take two to three years to recover from the worst drought in a century but the western cape will feel the effects for longer than that, water and sanitation. Therefore, a drought in south africa also affects the region of sadc more broadly. While dam water levels had been declining since 2015, the cape town water crisis peaked during mid 2017 to mid2018 when water levels hovered between 15 and 30 per cent of total dam capacity. Impact of the drought on the south african fruit sector 15 dec 2017 south african fruit farmers have been under immense pressure with the current localised drought compromising optimal productions levels.
A lot has been said about the drought in south africa. Oct 24, 2017 cape towns drought and associated water shortage has officially escalated to the level of a disaster. Farmers and herders found their resilience tested to the limit last year. South africas commercial agricultural sector has coped relatively well through one of the worst droughts in the countrys history but subsistence farmers urgently need a relief fund to ensure recovery, according to a report.
Reimagining the potential of effective drought responses in. In the livestock sector, several factors have combined to strain producer. Droughts can exert a heavy toll on the socioeconomic activities of any community, especially in africa, where human resilience to climate extremes is very low nath and behera, 2011. South africa extreme droughts have occurred every two to seven years along. Officials in the city have been worried the drought would impact visitor numbers as tourists were put off by stringent water controls. Since 1904, rainfall in all nine provinces has averaged 608mm per annum, while in 2015 south africa received an average of only 403mm 66% of the. It is the gateway to the rest of africa, with its shared borders making it favourably situated for economic cooperation with other. The drought has predominantly affected the western and eastern parts of the country in varying degrees resulting in unequal drought effects. Drought characteristics over the western cape province, south africa. The 2017 agricultural outlook by absa bank said south africa and.
Mar 16, 2017 cnn a severe drought threatens millions of people in east africa. Characteristics of cutoff lows during the 20152017 drought. South africa has declared a national disaster over the drought afflicting southern and western regions including cape town, though the city pushed back its day zero, the date when its taps are. The western cape province is at present 2014 to 2017 hydrological. Lessons lost andor learnt from 1990 to 2005 wayne devlin austin a dissertation submitted to the faculty of science, university of the witwatersrand, johannesburg, in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of master of science. Western cape province in south africa is going through a severe drought, affecting in particular the highly populated urban area of cape town and its water supply. Cnn a severe drought threatens millions of people in east africa. Thankfully, in 2018 the region had a relatively bountiful rainy season, and the city was able to escape its day zero plans for turning off the citys water supply. In 2018, the city of cape town experienced its worst drought in over a century. Extreme droughts can result in crippling impacts across local and regional scales. In south africa, droughts are regular occurrences presenting several opportunities to learn from and improve on drought risk reduction efforts. Water shortages are a major threat globally but their impact is more severe in africa in general and in subsaharan africa in particular. Starting in 2017, the municipality had begun ratcheting up its droughtawareness campaign, publishing weekly updates on regional dam levels. Highlights sarcof projects neutral conditions with likely normal to abovenormal rainfall from.
Parliament south africa will take two to three years to recover from the worst drought in a century but the western cape will feel the effects for longer than that, water and sanitation minister nomvula mokonyane said on friday. If this is indicative of a longer term poleward shift of weather systems in response to global warming the western cape is going to have to take some extreme measures to rebalance supply and demand. In the early 1990s, for example, an expanded set of various actors, not only restricted to. Cape towns drought and associated water shortage has officially escalated to the level of a disaster. While the january and february rains of 2017 have offered a brief reprieve from the 20142016 drought, the fact is that south africa is still overexploiting its renewable water resources and, without additional interventions, will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
A new drought means 2017 could be just as dire, throwing an additional 5. The hope for a natural solution ended with the close of the main rainy season in september. Drought is a major disaster in south africa in terms of total economic loss and number of people affected. The drought in the western cape province is now into its third year and. How cape town beat the drought the city was on the verge of becoming the first major urban centre to run out of water but has averted the crisis. International journal of disaster risk reduction 23 2017 1287 contents lists. Cape town drought and water shortage in south africa is.
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