South African winemaker Marlize Jacobs looks out across the parched brown earth that sustains her award-winning vines, surveying the effects of the water crisis ravaging Cape Town and surrounding areas. ADVERTISEMENTWine flavors may benefit but water-intensive businesses like Marlize’s farm, 35 kilometers (20 miles) east of Cape Town, have borne the brunt of the water crisis. If Day Zero does arrive, individuals will be forced to queue at public standpipes to collect daily 25-liter (6.6 US gallons) rations. The Rabie Group, a large construction company, uses treated effluent water to make concrete and wash equipment on its Cape Town sites. Christopher Smith, a senior engineering assistant at the Koeberg nuclear power station outside Cape Town, said that the plant has developed its own desalination system in response to the drought.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer March 19, 2018 04:24 UTC