| Popis: |
The water resilience programme was crafted under the direct instruction of the political leadership, contrary to the utility department’s drought management convention. The program was premised on the City operating independently of the existing regional system water supply scheme. This required reducing Cape Town’s demand to 500 million litres a day while building mostly temporary, new supply capacity to match, within the space of just more than a year. Such supplies would obliterate reliance on existing rainfed dams, in the event that it didn’t rain again. The programme had a number of laudable characteristics such as emphasis on public engagement, integration of various disciplines and a focus on resilience. It also included the development of a comprehensive disaster management plan, in the event that dam levels should reach a critical level despite augmentation efforts. But the proposed build program was patently both unaffordable and unachievable. Modelling of dam storage showed how vulnerable the system was to low runoff and normal demand, but that the risk was technically manageable. The political appetite for science remained low, favouring augmentation and disaster planning. |
