BY SHARON SIBINDI
BULAWAYO City Council (BCC) has decommissioned the Upper Ncema Dam as the city’s water supply dam levels continue to drop, leaving it with five out of six major supply dams.
This comes after city engineer Dumisani Gwethe recently warned that the local authority would experience more water cuts unless it secured US$4,6 million to refurbish its ageing water infrastructure.
“There is potential of 176 megalitres when pumps are redesigned and currently, the total water abstraction is 156 megalitres,” Gwethe said.
In a statement yesterday, council spokesperson Bongiwe Ngwenya advised residents and stakeholders in the city that Upper Ncema Dam was decommissioned on Saturday due to low water levels.
“The City of Bulawayo would like to advise members of the public that Upper Ncema Dam was decommissioned, with effect from Saturday June 8. The city remains with five out of six dams (Lower Ncema, Umzingwane, Insiza, Mtshabezi, and Inyankuni) as available sources of surface water supply,” she said.
“BCC further advises consumers that the current 48-hour water rationing programme remains unchanged, and residents are urged to conserve and use water sparingly.”
Currently, residents are enduring a 48-hour water-rationing programme that was introduced at the beginning of the year after water levels in the city dams dropped significantly.
