Cyprus dam levels recorded a significant boost following weekend rainfall, with inflows totalling 9.2 million cubic metres, according to the Water Development Department.
Marios Hadjicostis, technical engineer at the department, described the rainfall as “heavenly” in terms of both quantity and intensity, as well as the areas where it occurred.
9.2 million cubic metres inflow
Over the weekend alone, inflows reached 9.2 million cubic metres of water.
As a result, the Klirou and Pomos dams have overflowed and are now at 100% capacity. In recent days, the Kalopanayiotis dam also reached full capacity.
Despite the improvement, Hadjicostis stressed that the overall situation remains poor and below last year’s levels.
“The picture is certainly much better than it was on Friday, but we remain at low levels,” he said.
On Friday, water reserves stood at 41 million cubic metres, corresponding to a fill rate of 14.1%. They have now risen to 50 million cubic metres, with an overall fill rate of 17.2%.
By comparison, on the same day last year, dam levels stood at 25.9%.
“Today’s level is lower than last year’s low, but it is encouraging that we had a two-day period with a satisfactory inflow of 9 million cubic metres,” he added.
Still far from sustainable levels
Hadjicostis recalled that on January 1, reservoir capacity stood at just 9%, the lowest level compared to recent years, drawing comparisons with 2008, a year marked by severe drought.
Regarding rainfall totals, 23.4 millimetres were recorded over the three-day period. He noted that the positive aspect was that the rainfall occurred mainly in mountainous areas, which contribute more significantly to dam inflows than plains or coastal regions.
The normal rainfall for February is 81.6 millimetres, while the current total stands at 50 millimetres.
“We need another 30 millimetres to reach normal rainfall levels, but this is not expected according to current estimates,” he said.
With reservoirs at 17% capacity, he cautioned that the situation cannot be considered sustainable. Additional solutions are being examined, including the creation of new desalination units in the coming years.
Impact on environment and outlook
Reduced water capacity has direct implications for the environment and biodiversity, and also affects community wells, he noted.
At the same time, Hadjicostis expressed cautious optimism about the hydrological year.
“It is not the driest winter,” he said, adding that the 10th worst year on record was 1995–1996, when inflows totalled 32 million cubic metres. So far this year, inflows stand at 28.4 million cubic metres.
“I am optimistic that we will avoid ranking among the worst years of the last 40 years,” he added.
According to the latest records, the total storage capacity of Cyprus dams is 290.804 million cubic metres, with an overall fill rate of 17.2%.
The lowest fill rates are recorded at Achna Dam (1.9%), Germasogeia Dam (7.1%) and Kalavasos Dam (8.1%).
The island’s largest reservoir, Kourris Dam, with a capacity of 115 million cubic metres, currently stands at 14.5%, while Asprokremmos Dam is at 18.0% and Evretou Dam at 21.3%.
Also read: Water supply reduction in Nicosia, Larnaca and Famagusta
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