CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020
| Author | Halevi, Adina Shira |
|---|---|
| Title | Surviving the Drought: A Comparative Study of Water Security in Israel and Cape Town |
| Summary | Securing water on national and municipal levels is becoming more challenging all around the globe, due mainly to climate change and population growth. In 2018, the City of Cape Town – following its worst drought in a century – nearly became the first city of its size to run out of water. At the same time, Israel – a country with a climate similar to that of Cape Town – was also experiencing severe drought. In contrast, Israel showed the exact opposite trend, achieving water security despite these adverse conditions. This paper therefore aims to understand why the water security outcomes for these two regions were so different, given the similar circumstances. The method used for conducting the research is a comparative analysis, examining the threats to water security that both regions face, and how water security is approached. Findings showed that there are several reasons for the differing outcomes. Cape Town faced several challenges that Israel did not, such as the Apartheid and severe poverty; however, it seems that the challenges Israel did face -- such as large immigration waves and settling the desert made Israel’s water sector more resilient overall. This was thanks to the development of management practices such as supply augmentation via large-scale seawater desalination, utilizing treated wastewater, developing efficient agriculture technologies. Cape Town’s water management practices are far less comprehensive and developed. Additional findings show that Israel has prepared for climate change better than CoCT, a practice that may have influenced preparedness for surviving the drought. |
| Supervisor | Illes, Zoltan |
| Department | Environment Sciences and Policy MSc |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2020/halevi_adina-shira.pdf |
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