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And it’s bigger in area than any two European countries (excluding Russia) combined. Just because there’s a drought in one part of Spain __ there might be plent

And it’s bigger in area than any two European countries (excluding Russia) combined. Just because there’s a drought in one part of Spain __ there might be plenty of water somewhere in France.

baxtr 9y ago
My point is: if there’s a case to fly water (in form of grapes) to Europe, why would they not move water from one place in SA to another?
- throwwwwaway9 9y ago
  Cost?
- tonteldoos 9y ago
  Cost and lead time of infrastructure (and adequate planning). Systems to do this exist in the country (eg, moving water from Lesotho to the Vaaldam with the Highlands water scheme), but that project was 15+ years in the making, and is still ongoing. From what I can see, nothing like this was realistically expected for Cape Town, and thus never planned for.
- buyx 9y ago
  why would they not move water from one place in SA to another Not my area of expertise, but: South Africa has some massive water transfer schemes: The Lesotho Highlands Water Project and others. The Western Cape Province and Cape Town are governed by the national opposition party (Democratic Alliance). It wouldn't surprise me if this led to a lack of coordination and plannning with the national government, if not outright neglect of the issue (along with general infrastructure-planning neglect between 1990-2005 or so).
- TallGuyShort 9y ago
  No one's consuming liters of grapes every day to survive - it's a nice-to-have and not a staple. Transporting it in massive quantities (like enough to make a dent in how much Cape Town consumes every day) changes the equation somewhat, making it prohibitively expensive to do (compared to options like, hoping for rain). Of course, this also changes the equation if we do get to the point that many lives imminently depend on it - people don't riot to be first in line to get grapes.
- Someone 9y ago
  It could bring in money that is needed to pay for moving other water across the country. It could also be profitable to ship out water inside grapes and, at the same time, import an equivalent amount of water in barrels. See it as Europe shipping water to SA to be packed inside grapes. More likely, though, that is because Europeans are willing/able to pay more for that grapes/water. In a capitalistic world, it is the poor who will feel water shortages most.

And it’s bigger in area than any two European countries (excluding Russia) combined. Just because there’s a drought in one part of Spain __ there might be plenty of water somewhere in France.

baxtr 9y ago

My point is: if there’s a case to fly water (in form of grapes) to Europe, why would they not move water from one place in SA to another?

throwwwwaway9 9y ago
Cost?
tonteldoos 9y ago
Cost and lead time of infrastructure (and adequate planning). Systems to do this exist in the country (eg, moving water from Lesotho to the Vaaldam with the Highlands water scheme), but that project was 15+ years in the making, and is still ongoing. From what I can see, nothing like this was realistically expected for Cape Town, and thus never planned for.
buyx 9y ago
why would they not move water from one place in SA to another Not my area of expertise, but: South Africa has some massive water transfer schemes: The Lesotho Highlands Water Project and others. The Western Cape Province and Cape Town are governed by the national opposition party (Democratic Alliance). It wouldn't surprise me if this led to a lack of coordination and plannning with the national government, if not outright neglect of the issue (along with general infrastructure-planning neglect between 1990-2005 or so).
TallGuyShort 9y ago
No one's consuming liters of grapes every day to survive - it's a nice-to-have and not a staple. Transporting it in massive quantities (like enough to make a dent in how much Cape Town consumes every day) changes the equation somewhat, making it prohibitively expensive to do (compared to options like, hoping for rain). Of course, this also changes the equation if we do get to the point that many lives imminently depend on it - people don't riot to be first in line to get grapes.
Someone 9y ago
It could bring in money that is needed to pay for moving other water across the country. It could also be profitable to ship out water inside grapes and, at the same time, import an equivalent amount of water in barrels. See it as Europe shipping water to SA to be packed inside grapes. More likely, though, that is because Europeans are willing/able to pay more for that grapes/water. In a capitalistic world, it is the poor who will feel water shortages most.