Rising dam water levels quench dry season concerns

RAWANG: Klang Valley residents should have an easier time enduring this year’s dry period if the water levels at Selangor’s dams mean anything.

The most important of them all – the Sungai Selangor dam in Kuala Kubu Baru – is at 80% of its capacity, said Deputy Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid,

This dam alone supplies 60% of Klang Valley’s needs.

“We will monitor the situation closely, but so far the dam levels are heartening,” Mahdzir told reporters after launching a massive mosquito eradication session here yesterday.

Levels at the Sg Tinggi dam, the Klang Gates dam and the Batu dam are at 68.7%, 98.6%, and 98.7%, respectively, while the Sg Langat dam is full.

“Based on current readings, we have sufficient raw water for the upcoming dry season and the situation will not be as bad as last year,” he said.

He added that people still needed to moderate their consumption as they were currently using too much water.

On a separate note, Mahdzir said his ministry would look into the possibility of setting up solar photovoltaic (PV) panels and rainwater harvesting systems at flood relief centres.

“We are still collecting information from the ground. Each state uses different buildings as relief centres – halls, schools, mosques and so on. We need to find out more information about them,” he said.

Mahdzir added that many relief centres often lacked electricity, which hampered communications as cellphones and other devices could not be charged.

He said many people were unable to contact their friends and relatives during the recent floods in Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Perak as their cellphones were out of power.

PV systems could offer some relief while waiting for the electricity supply to be restored, he added.

“Once we have all the information, we can put together a proposal to the Government outlining how many units are needed and the technical specifications.”