Drought-hit Cape Town should cut down 'alien' trees: study

The South African city of Cape Town, which nearly ran out of water this year, could beat future droughts by cutting down non-native trees including pine, acacia and eucalyptus, according to a study released Friday. A report by the Nature Conservancy conservation group said that removing non-native water-hungry trees from catchment areas would be far cheaper than other solutions such as desalination plants. "Desalination, recycling waste-water, and tapping groundwater supplies cost on average 10 times more to supply each litre of water than clearing invasive trees," the report said.