Day Zero: The Day the Taps Were Turned Off
💧 Day Zero: The Day the Taps Were Turned Off
Day Zero had originally been set for April 2018. Then the city realised the reservoirs were draining faster than expected. Officials moved it forward. Then forward again. Cape Town was on track to become the first major city in the modern world to run out of water.
It didn't happen — but only just. Three years of drought, a growing population, ageing infrastructure, and complacency had pushed a wealthy, modern African city to the edge of catastrophe. Residents cut their use from 200 litres per person per day to 50. They placed buckets in showers. They flushed toilets only when absolutely necessary. Day Zero was postponed, then cancelled — but the message was unmistakeable. Water security is not a problem of the developing world. It is a problem of the whole world.
And the numbers make it starker still: right now, 2 billion people are already living in water-stressed countries. By 2050, that figure could rise to 4 billion — half the world's population. Water is not running out, exactly. But the gap between where water exists and where people need it is widening, year by year.
Geography glossary
- What is physical water scarcity?
- When natural water supply is limited by climate or environment.
- What is economic water scarcity?
- When water exists but people cannot access it because of poverty, weak infrastructure or poor management.
Water security means having reliable access to sufficient, safe water for health, livelihoods and economic development. That sounds simple. The reality is that hundreds of millions of people lack it — and the reasons why reveal geography's central concern: the gap between physical processes and human systems.
Earn the mark scheme marks
🧠 The POCA Framework — Threats to Water Security
Use POCA to remember the four main threats to water security in any extended answer:
And for evaluating management strategies, remember SCALE:
Now try it yourself
Quiz · Question 1 of 15
What is the difference between physical and economic water scarcity?
Tap an answer to check it
This topic in real past papers
Every real exam question we've found on water resource management, with a full worked answer.
AQA Paper 2
Look at a map or choropleth and describe the pattern it shows, naming real places or regions from the source, not just a vague impression.
AQA Paper 2
Give a brief, accurate definition of a key term from the resource management topics, in one sentence.
AQA Paper 2
Explain a quoted statement using specific evidence drawn from two given sources, rather than general knowledge alone.
AQA Paper 2
Interpret how a scheme or strategy contributes to security or sustainability in your chosen resource option, using the source material given and your own understanding.