Water rationing in Klang Valley again? Water rationing in the Klang Valley may return if water in the Sungai Selangor Dam drops to a worrying level due to the El Nino phenomenon. Deputy Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid said although the dry season was expected to occur in Malaysia from this month, the effects would only begin to be felt in July. “At the moment, the water level in the Sungai Selangor Dam has only increased by 7% to reach 43%, compared to 36% two months ago when water rationing was implemented. “If the drought causes the water level to drop again, water rationing will have to be implemented as 60% of water supply in the Klang Valley comes from the Sungai Selangor Dam.” He said this after opening the Green Technology National Conference in conjunction with the Green Technology Week 2014 here today. Parts of Selangor and the Klang Valley experienced scheduled water rationing in stages for three months from February to April due to the water supply shortage during the recent drought. Mahdzir said during the rationing exercise, the water output in the Klang Valley was reduced to 1,700 million litres per day compared to the normal rate of 2,700 million litres per day. “However, the Selangor government, through Lembaga Urus Air Selangor (LUAS), will undertake various measures to raise the water level in that dam. “This includes pumping in water from the retention ponds and using underground water, besides cloud seeding by the Meteorological Department.” The ministry had recently issued guidelines for use by water supply operators nationwide throughout the El Nino weather phenomenon or drought. The guidelines, among others, requires water supply operators to closely monitor the water levels in rivers and dams that supply raw water to the treatment plants in the respective states. The operators must activate the Water Supply Contingency Plan if the water levels drop to the alert level and get ready the logistics to send water to those in need. The Meteorological Department has forecast that Malaysia would be experiencing a dry season until September. The World Meteorological Organisation has also forecast that the El Nino phenomenon may occur in the middle of this year and continue for six to 18 months. therakyatpost/news/2014/06/09/water-rationing-klang-valley/
Posted on: Mon, 09 Jun 2014 13:32:28 +0000