Water, Water Everywhere - Not

 Save Water While We Have It!

And Don't Panic!

As the water crisis is in full-swing in Cape Town, I thought it useful to give an update on what I know.  The Western Cape, particularly the part where Cape Town is located, has been in a drought for the past 3 years.  In addition, Cape Town is now a city of 4 million, a double in its population since 1996; plus, it is estimated there are 10 million visitors a year to the area.  The reservoirs that serve the area were not built with either these two critical factors in mind, increased population and decreased rainfall.  The reservoirs are currently around 25-26% of capacity and if the supply drops below 14%, there will not be enough water to run the system nor keep the main business area functioning.  So, if the level drops that low, we will be at Day Zero when the taps are turned off, although the central business district and the informal settlements will be exempt while supply lasts.  If Day Zero actually occurs, we would be required to take our 25-liter jugs to the hundreds of water stations that will be set up – that will be the individual daily ration.  Unfortunately, many do not have transport, so that will be another logistic to contend with. 

So Draconian water restrictions are in place, a limit of 50 liter per day per person, and there are many creative ways many if not most are trying to adhere to – like taking shorter and fewer showers, doing laundry less often, not flushing the toilet each time (and not depositing toilet paper into the toilet particularly just for urine), reducing how much water is used for dishwashing, brushing teeth, etc.  Grey water from dishwashing is used for the toilet or to water plants (it is crazy we use potable water for toilets in the first place). I have a little adaptation created by a few colleagues pictured below to attempt to use less water for handwashing or simple rinsing – it is a plastic water bottle to squeeze so that the small drip irrigation tubing delivers less water than a faucet.  There is even a restaurant in town that has started creating more dishes that don’t use water or even cooking.  Speaking of plastic water bottles, the impact of so many being bought and often not recycled is likely staggering.  I have not seen any commentary on this.  I almost never buy water in plastic if I can avoid it by now I am purchasing 5-liter bottles and also boiling an extra kettle of water when I make my morning tea, to have for drinking water.  I have not heard that there is a problem yet, but I have started to wonder – either that the levels are too low to actually dilute what buggers may be hanging around, or that the system will require more chlorine.  This is purely my own opinion and I have not seen any information to corroborate my ideas.

Of course, the disparities between the haves- and the haven-nots appear in these circumstances.  Many in the informal settlements here, and in many communities around the world, where there is no plumbing have been living bucket-to-bucket for years.  Here in the well-to-do suburbs, many have access to bore holes to access ground water or they have swimming pools functioning as storage capacity (theoretically they are not to be filled with city or ground water, but only rain water).  It is hard to tell whether compliance with the restrictions is equitably distributed. 

Some have asked about desalination as an option.  I heard a good lecture recently about water issues and that question came up. According to this person, Kevin Winter, the technology is not up to the task here or in many areas, besides that it is very expensive.  Current technology relies on reverse osmosis which is problematic where the water source has pollution issues and can cause blockages in the system, which is the case in this area.  There are 3 small desalination plants in the area that will be up and running in March but they are too small to make a difference and are considered more on the scale of demonstration projects.  There is a great deal of high tech modeling going on about the water supply and all the many options that could capture more from rainwater (lots of people have large tanks at home), ground water, surface water recapture (rain gardens were discussed) and improved waste treatment.  Also, making sure leakage in the system is addressed and all efforts to maintain accurate measurements of what is happening in a system is essential.

The demand for water is also great in agriculture where approximately 50% of the water goes.  Right now, however, farmers are taking the biggest hit as their supply was shut off recently – with many admitting that farmers are essentially donating water to Cape Town.  This could have implications for food supply if things become more severe.  In a recent discussion I heard, it was acknowledged that farmers here are the most conservative with water use and have a much better understanding of the balances needed in the system. There are certainly public health implications of this water crisis related to hygiene, sanitation and dehydration, etc.  There is a link below with a good summary of these issues to consider.

Although this is not the rainy season, one night recently we had one of the biggest thunder, lighting and rain storms I have seen since I arrived in August.  It moved the Day Zero prediction from mid-May into June which will be the beginning of winter and hopefully a more sustained rainfall -although the past 3 years have not been enough to avoid where we are now.  But the conservation measures in place and the relentless attention to the problems and the crisis has helped move the date of Day Zero as much as the recent rain.

While Cape Town may be the first major city in the world to consider turning off the taps, it is not the first to get close to this point and will not be the last.  Cape Town water supply was at this same level in 2005 but was saved by the rains that time.  San Paolo came close in 2017; Melbourne Australia is on the brink of a similar crisis. In 2017, some parts of Italy had an 80% drop in its normal water supply and 2,500 fountains in Rome were turned off. So the lessons being learned here apply anywhere and this should be seen as a wake-up call, and the role of climate change that is hurling us into these stark realities. 

In addition to the link on the public health issues of the water crisis, I have included two links below – one that shows the dam levels in the area and the other is the Dashboard for the Day Zero date prediction.  

How Cape Town's Water Crisis Could Make People Sick 

The Dam Levels are Critical for Cape Town's water supply and are a key contributor to the 

Day Zero Dashboard

Environmental Defence Fund article: The energy reality behind Cape Town's water crisis.  Burning coal wastes water resources

[And as an aside, since Jacob Zuma is finally out of office, I thought this photo of someone wearing an ANC T-shirt once supporting him was seen wearing the day he resigned last week; a photo of the Wild Coast I will blog about another time]

 

Life in my 'hood - Getting Back to Blog

Happy New Year!

Well, it has been quite since I have written here.  I have had a sort of blogger's block since a break-in to my place around Sept 12.  My laptop and many other things were taken and I have gradually recovered from this.  Old and new friends and perfect strangers were so kind, I felt very supported which helped a lot, of course. I bought a used laptop similar to the one I lost but initially mostly kept it at work. Now, I am gradually bringing it home so I can more easily write emails and ultimately blog again.   The main computer I have for work or personal use is my laptop which I was carrying back and forth every day, walking from home to UCT (Univ of Cape Town), about a mile walk.  it was risky for me to do this in the first place I suppose.  so, I will likely continue to bring it home on weekends for the most part.  Writing for the blog is more relaxing when I do it in the comfort of my home rather than in an office at the university.  I will see how this all works out over time.  Eventually, plain old procrastination got in my way and just feeling a little stymied about where to begin.  I've decided to begin with where I live.

My landlord installed an alarm system a couple of weeks after the break-in which has helped me a lot to feel more comfortable staying where I am.  In addition, I found it is harder to find a furnished place than I anticipated, so I am glad I can stay where I am.  The area where I am located is called Observatory, and is very conveniently located to UCT, grocery stores, coffee shops and restaurants, and friends that it makes it all the more desirable for me.

So, now, I am totally settled and committed to stay in my cottage which is located about 10 feet from the main house where my landlord lives.  Until recently, his two kids, ages 11 and 14 were living there with him, but they recently left to live with their mother in Germany for a year.  He has a 4-year-old son as well who is quite cute and visits his place regularly.  A big draw for me in my current place is his dog, Milo.  She and I have become great friends and are quite attached to each other.  I walk her daily and she often spends a lot of time with me in my place.  Just today she figured out she could jump up on the bed and I would do little to move her.  She reminds me of a seal so I call her a seal-pup.  I started having fantasies that Sean, my landlord, would allow me to make her a US citizen and bring her home with me, but I think that is unlikely.

I have established some steady routines in my little home and neighborhood. I started making what is known as Brown Seed Bread, sort of a staple here, and also rusk, another major staple. I have been complimented recently that I am turning into a South African with these achievements, apparently.  I think it would take quite a bit more.  anyway, it is a major accomplishment given that my stove is just a counter top thing that looks like a toaster oven with two hot plates on top.  there are no temperature settings on it, just 1, 2 and 3!  I bought an oven thermometer to help with this which so far I am mastering for the baking I have done.  there is a wonderful organic seed shop in walking distance from my place so that is my regular go-to store for flours and nuts, etc.  They were in business in 2001 when I was here previously, so it is nice to revisit some familiar places.

My neighborhood is pretty diverse with students and families and various ethnic groups living and or working nearby.  Within a block of where I live is a largely Muslim neighborhood, and Muslims are just a part of every day life everywhere I go throughout most of the city and surrounding areas.  At home I often hear the call to prayer wafting through the evening, which is so lovely and peaceful.  It is so refreshing that this fact is not in the least bit threatening to anyone.  Such a contrast to the US.  In reality, the USA is really quite a conservative country in many respects, particularly when it comes to freedom of or from religion.  The "suburb" called Observatory also has a great feel to it despite some undercurrents of opportunistic crime.  there is a very active community organization with a long history of activism.  I recently joined and attended a lively meeting with hundreds who came to protest the take-over of the council by developers.  it was pretty cool to see people so involved and eventually overturned that take-over or "capture".  There is a lot of development in this and many other communities, serious gentrification without attention to infrastructure and affordable housing, not unlike Seattle and many other places.    For the past several months I was able to attend a yoga class at the local community center a couple times a week with a really great teacher.  Unfortunately, it looks like he won't be continuing there any longer.  I also recently joined a gym that isn't too far away to be able to get some varied exercise including swimming when possible.

I walk everywhere within reason which has been my major form of exercise for the most part, but a few months ago my friend Leslie loaned me a second bike he has plans to donate somewhere, but that I can use it for my stay is wonderful.  I use it primarily on weekends when there is less traffic, and it is wonderful to be back on the bike again.  When I am walking it is often a challenge since many sidewalks are in disrepair or the there are cars parked partly on the sidewalks taking up most of the walkable area.  the residential side streets are narrow and most people must park on the street, so hence the sidewalks are sacrificed.  For these reasons, walking in the street is more commonplace than not.

When I am needing transport, I typically take a combi or van taxi on the Main Rd not far from my place - it travels north/south to many if not most places I need to go.  These are part of a network of relatively informal taxis operated by individuals.  they are more regulated now than in the past, but operate by having one just flag them down anywhere and then tell the driver where to drop you.  the most it can cost is 12 Rand which is about $1 USD.  it is very convenient since they run pretty regularly all day.  I don't take them at night and never get on unless there are others on the van.  And some of them are not in the best of shape or the drivers try to fit too many for the capacity.  I just have to pick and chose when to get on or get off.  I am typically the only white person on a van, although I do see others from time to time.  My other option is to use the lift service, Taxify.  It is a better alternative to Uber since they are cheaper and pay the drivers better.  It is convenient to use an app on my phone to order a ride no matter where I am.  and I don't need to use cash for payment, which is also convenient as I use a local bank account for automatic payment.

Speaking of my phone, it died permanently on 30 Dec and I thought it would be revived with a new battery, but not so.  Luckily as my phone began to act up, I ordered a refurbished one in the US for friends (thanks Charlotte, Larry, Libs and Clark) to bring when they come on 15 Jan.  So, I have been without a phone for two weeks which is pretty weird given what lifeline it is.  I didn't expect this predicament of course, and ordering from the US was a lot less expensive than buying one here, in addition to the fact that many sellers do not ship to South Africa.  so, it is an interesting exercise in creativity to sort out alternative modes of communication - mostly email with some Messenger thrown in.  I am also able to use Skype for some calls as well.

A critical issue here is the this city of 4 million, plus the 10 million tourists that come each year, is experiencing the biggest drought in years and is suffering a severe water shortage. The city has restricted water per person and per household to try to avoid Day Zero, which is the day the city runs out of water.  Right now it is anticipated for late April or early May.  I am not really sure what Plan B is at this point.  Everyone is expected to restrict number of showers per week; how often one flushes at home and in workplaces or public establishments like restaurants, etc; and washing dishes or doing laundry in the most conservative ways possible.  Since the on-demand hot water heater wastes too much to bring hot water to my cottage from the main house, now that it is warm to hot outside, I am using the outdoor shower which is connected to the main house and wastes less.  Another element that is good for conserving energy and is not new here (and most places in the world, I suspect) is that  laundry is hung to dry on a line and not via the use of dryers.

Photos include: my cottage; Sean my landlord; the front of his house; the view of Devils Peak (part of Table Mountain area) looking up the street in front of my house; Milo-the-dog; a combi/taxi; my loaner bike - my first real ride and parked outside my door with the giant jasmine bush; a neighbor girl dressed up as Queen Elizabeth for a party; my holiday tree from a local corner vendor and sitting on a Ndebele beaded mat.

 



     

Settling In

I am so very stunned at what is happening in Texas and so sorry for so many whose lives have been lost or disrupted.  wow, the images are almost incomprehensible to me.  I am so impressed with the heroic efforts of so many.  

I started a yoga class in the local community center last week. It feels good to start doing that again.  I walk a lot but I am not getting any serious exercise that I eventually need to do something about, and in the meantime, yoga is even more important.

Last Saturday, I attended an event regarding a partnership between UCT and schools in Khayelitsha celebrating successes of this program to help mentor students and teachers so more students graduate high school and are given a chance to go to college.  It was very cool.  Khayelitsha is one of the largest townships just outside Cape Town.  During apartheid, Cape Town and most of the surrounding neighborhoods were made “whites-only” areas and townships are communities built outside of Cape Town for mixed-race and black residents.  There are also townships outside the other big cities like Soweto outside of Johannesburg.  some of them are “formal” meaning they have structures and utilities.  however, over time huge numbers of people looking for work moved to the outskirts of these communities and have just shacks made of whatever materials could be found, and often there are no utilities or services.   some informal settlements have developed in places other than adjacent to the townships.   when i was here before i remember thinking i have never seen anything like this - the poverty is immense.  i haven’t been around enough to see some of the informal settlements, but likely, things have not improved.  Townships are essentially like isolated ghettos or slums with many, many problems for the residents living there.  At this point I would not go to one of the townships by myself.  And on the other hand, there are some amazing programs with remarkable community involvement that is inspiring.  I was at two meetings at the department at UCT last week where members of the Khayelitsha community attended.  They were so insightful and involved in making a difference in their communities.  They were inspiring to me.

One especially horrible blight in Cape Town and on its history is that there was a really vibrant, artsy, and well-integrated community of blacks, Malaysians, Indians, mixed-race (also called coloured here), called District Six.  The people were ordered to move in order to make Cape Town white again, but people resisted.  Eventually the apartheid government just bulldozed the entire community.  unbelievable.

It is interesting to approach every new thing I do for the first few times, like I am learning a new skill or something.  It is intriguing and fun, but also tiring at times – likely due to all the new stimuli and extra energy it takes to initiate things and engage in relatively unfamiliar ways.  But the more I do, the more I realize how much people want to help and how kind and open they are; making me more open to them, too.  And as soon as I open my mouth, and they realize I am from the US, they become even more curious and want to know more and if I am liking Cape Town so far.  Everyone seems to have a comment about Trump, usually shaking their heads about how he could be president (of course, I have no simple answer).  Many in Africa have been living under dictators or corrupt leaders for a long time and understand, sort of, but they tell me they thought they could look to the US for some hope, but currently, not so much. 

On Friday Sept 1, I move to my new place and I am really looking forward to unpacking finally.  I have been getting quite creative with microwave cooking, but hope to get back to some type of cooking and baking soon.  Eventually, I will certainly send some photos of my new digs.  Sunday Sept 3, I fly to Johannesburg for the Public Health Association of South Africa annual meeting, which will be a good substitute for my annual APHA meeting that I will miss this year.  I am looking forward to this meeting and my friend, Susan Wilburn, will also be there.

Photos include: Big tree on my Sunday walk recently; looking up toward the library on the main campus of UCT with Table Mountain behind it (the campus is built on a steep hillside, so lots of stairs); Marimba band at Khayelitsha event; lunch with friends on the ocean side of the city - Robben Island is out there in the bay; stone man sculpture near campus.

     

Moving Along

Last week I put a deposit on what is called a studio “cottage”.  it is a little separate structure behind the main house of the person who owns it.  It is basically a large room with a bed at one end, a bathroom, and at the other end is a kitchenette, table & chairs, small couch.  it is a little funky but the owner is motivated to make some updates and improvements based on my suggestions.  He has 3 kids that live with him part-time and he has a little black dog named, Milo.  the property has a good privacy fence and so I will feel pretty secure besides that the owner is there.  the guy seems pretty progressive and interesting.  He is likely about 10 years younger than i am, maybe more.  Currently, I am about 20 min walk from the office I am using at UCT and this will add 10 more minutes to my commute it is great to be able to walk so much actually.  I am so lucky that I am not having any obstacles to walking. I would love to have a bicycle to get around, but I have to say, it does not feel safe at this point given how narrow some of the streets are, the volume of traffic at times, and some of the crazy driving etiquette I have seen.  So, for now, I will likely not be bicycling for the foreseeable future.  Up to this point, I have only seen a few people riding a bike for transportation.  I know there are bike clubs that go out together, but if I do that, it will have to be sometime down the road.  I am still getting used to knowing which direction oncoming traffic is coming from when I am crossing the street.

It is toward the end of winter here, but pretty mild conditions by experiences in the northern hemisphere, naturally. It hover in the mid-40s at night then from 50s to high 60s during the day.  I am told this is unseasonably warm for this time of year.  We have had a couple of good days of drenching rain, but overall the rainfall has been low and the area has been in a drought for about a year.  I heard on the radio recently that the water supply reservoir is at about 30% capacity.   Despite that, I am anticipating a beautiful spring with lots of wildflowers and whale watching, too.

I am rapidly getting integrated into the Department of Public Health and Family Medicine at University of Cape Town (UCT).  I didn't quite know to anticipate being an actual part of the department but having the Fulbright is certainly a door-opener and i am grateful on a daily basis. It is a wonderful thing to be embraces do readily, although I have history there and some of the same people I worked with before are still around, which is great to reconnect them. The actual scope of my activities is a work in progress at the moment as i get to know people and their projects.  And I am having the opportunity to learn about so many other areas of public health that I haven't been involved in much, like HIV and TB which both are whole orders of magnitude from anything experienced in the US.  This week I am doing my first lecture and it is on Child Labor (Labour here), my labor of love for most of my career. I will be talking to Master’s in Public Health students in their course on Children’s Environmental Health. I didn’t expect to do this for another month so am working fast to pull the pieces together.  This coming week I will be talking with the faculty at Walter Sisulu University in Mthatha, in the Eastern Cape Provice, to see what type of assistance they anticipate from me and when I may go there to visit.  

My one little hiccup since I arrived is that I developed cellulitis in my index finger the week before last as a result of a paronychia (took me a long time to say this word – and leave it to readers to look it up).  it was so dang painful I still can’t believe it - even kept me awake for two nights.  Finally when an abscess began to appear i found a nice MD, about my age, based on the recommendation of a good friend here; he took care of it and started me on antibiotics.  I about flew off the table when he started poking to drain it - he told me I could cry if I wanted (you know it’s going to hurt when someone tells you that).  He later told me that he was “alarmed” by how far it had progressed by the time he saw me.  I don’t know what i was thinking, but somehow it did not register what was happening until a few days into it. It’s all resolved now and it was a good drill for me to figure out how to find medical care and use the health benefits I have from the Fulbright program.   

Yesterday I went exploring on my own into the city center.  My destination was to the community Bo-Kaap, the first Muslim community in Cape Town settled sometime in the mid-1800s after slavery was ended in 1838. The area was originally a township known as the Malay Quarter and the heart of the Cape Malay culture.  Many of the slaves brought to the Western Cape were from Malaysia and East Africa.  It essentially became one of the several workingclass communities in Cape Town.  It has been revitalized in recent history to recognize its unique cultural roots, which continue today.  Along the way I saw lots of tourists and tourist markets.  It takes a certain amount of grit to navigate a new area and the transportation that most tourists don’t bother with.  But since I am without a car, I have to use all options.  Much of my orientation from my earlier time here is definitely coming back, which is nice.  I have some sense of how things work.  

Photos include:  Poster from the rally to call for the Parliament to pass a vote of No Confidence in President Jacob Zuma (the vote failed); workers hanging off a building along the march route; they were sandblasting with little or no respiratory protection and, of course the dust circulated into the downtown environment; photos from Bo-Kaap; A type of Proteus flower (called pincushion) native to the region.