1 hour ago
1
With retention successful the city’s 2 large reservoirs falling to astir 50% of their capacity, national groups and activists question timely desilting to retrieve mislaid retention capacity.
The Water Resources Department (WRD) is examining a revenue-based exemplary for the exercise. The combined retention of the 5 large reservoirs, including Chembarambakkam, stands astatine 6,148 cardinal cubic feet, which is astir 52% of their full capacity.
The retention successful Red Hills and Poondi reservoirs has dropped to astir 51% and 34% of their capacity.
Dry patches are disposable successful the rear portions of the waterbody successful Red Hills owed to the receding h2o level.
Residents and representatives of national groups said akin adust stretches had emerged successful the Poondi reservoir — 1 of the city’s superior sources of drinking h2o — from wherever h2o is diverted to different reservoirs.
They underlined the request for timely desilting of the waterbodies to retrieve the mislaid retention capacity.
S. Sameer, founder, SWOTT (Social Work Team Trust), a non-governmental organisation engaged successful waterbodies conservation, said the rear portions of the Red Hills reservoir had dried up and were intelligibly disposable adjacent places specified arsenic Surapet and Kannappasamy Nagar, Puzhal.
The section indispensable effort targeted desilting measures to alteration further retention of h2o during the rainy season, helium said.
He besides sought enactment against the discharge of sewage into the Red Hills reservoir astatine assorted locations, including Surapet, Pammadhukulam, Padianallur, and Venkatachalam Nagar successful Thirumullaivoyal.
The Poondi reservoir receives astir 210 cubic feet per 2nd (cusecs) of Krishna h2o from Andhra Pradesh, which is diverted to the Chembarambakkam reservoir to rise the h2o level and facilitate organisation successful city.
In 2018, the section projected desilting of the large reservoirs, which it decided to transportation retired arsenic a gross procreation model.
While the enactment made immoderate advancement successful Cholavaram reservoir, the project, aimed astatine creating an further capableness of astir 1,900 cardinal cubic feet crossed the reservoirs, was not executed. This was partially due to the fact that the waterbodies had ample retention successful the consequent years.
The WRD officials said Krishna h2o had accrued the retention of Poondi reservoir by astir 450 mcft since May 27. Talks are successful advancement with Andhra Pradesh authorities to summation the merchandise of Krishna h2o to Chennai, they said.
The city’s reservoirs person capable retention to prolong h2o proviso this year, they added.
While the survey to augment the capableness of Poondi reservoir is nether scrutiny, the section is exploring ways to marque the gross procreation exemplary much effectual for desilting works, officials said.
