Uruguay only has drinking water for three weeks

Berlin When Federico Kreimerman turns on the tap at home in Uruguay these days, a salty broth drips out of it, leaving a white crust in the water pot in which he boils his breakfast eggs.

The small country on the Silver River, the Rio de la Plata, has been suffering from a drought of the century for three years. It is particularly bad in the capital Montevideo, where almost half of the population lives. In theory, Uruguay is not a low-rain country. Average rainfall is 1281 mm per year; in Germany there are only around 700.

But now the two most important water reservoirs on the Santa Lucia River, which supply 60 percent of the population, are just five percent full. This is enough for three weeks with sustained consumption and no rain.

“You can swallow it”