Sao Paulo Biggest Water-Supply System May Run Dry Within 45 Days

The system that provides half the drinking water to South America’s largest city, Sao Paulo, will run dry in 45 days if there’s no rain, amid the biggest drought on record.

The Cantareira water system, which supplies 10 million people in the region, is at less than a quarter of capacity, Francisco Lahoz, executive secretary of water association Consorcio PCJ, said in a telephone interview today. Once it falls below 20 percent, Brazil’s biggest water utility Cia. de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo will face difficulties transferring water between reservoirs.