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This comes amid revelations that the water in the city’s five supply dams could only last up to the next rain season.
At the moment the dams have a combined supply capacity of 52 percent with Insiza Dam being the only dam with significant water storage.
This emerged during a tour of the city’s supply dams yesterday by the Minister of Water Resources Development and Management, Samuel Sipepa Nkomo, Bulawayo Mayor Councillor Thaba Moyo and senior council staff.
Minister Nkomo expressed concern over the diminishing water levels in the city’s dams and said urgent measures would be taken to prevent the looming disaster.
He said the tour was conducted following reports concerning poor inflows due to low rainfall in Bulawayo and its surroundings.
“We agreed that we needed to assess the situation and get first hand information that would enable me to report to Cabinet about the situation in Bulawayo,” said Minister Sipepa Nkomo.
“I will communicate this situation to my colleagues in Government and our development partners. We need to unite in doing something very urgently.
“I am satisfied that there is enough water at Insiza Dam but we are not taking enough water from it because of the constraint of the size of the pipe, which is 900 millimetres in diameter. The urgent thing to do is to duplicate the Insiza pipeline to increase the volume of water to Ncema and we need $20 million to do that. This will take us to the next rainy season.”
Minister Sipepa Nkomo said the pipeline duplication project would guarantee Bulawayo a constant supply of water, adding that funds permitting, the project would be completed in the next three months.
He also announced that the Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with a Chinese company to get a loan of $864 million for the construction of Gwayi-Shangani Dam, a major component of the National Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project (NMZWP).
The project is considered as a long-term solution to the Bulawayo’s water problems.
Meanwhile, the council’s director of engineering services Engineer Simela Dube said the water situation in the city was critical.
He urged residents to use water cautiously to ensure that it last for a long time.
According to Eng Dube, Insiza Dam is 87,5 percent full followed by Lower Ncema at 56 percent. Inyankuni Dam is 20,3 percent full while Umzingwane Dam is only at 15 percent that can last for three months.
Upper Ncema has the lowest supply capacity at 8,11 percent full and is likely to be decommissioned next month.
Eng Dube said the water supply was diminishing at a faster rate because of increased consumer demand.
Speaking at the same occasion Clr Moyo said the water situation should be communicated to residents.
“We will do our best to handle the situation but we also need to communicate this to the consumers,” said Clr Moyo.
Last month the city council warned that it would be forced to introduce water shedding by mid-year if there were no significant inflows and when the pipeline project was not completed.
Bulawayo is also pinning its hopes on Mtshabezi Dam, whose pipelink to Umzingwane is yet to be completed.
The project, viewed as a short term solution to the city’s water woes, was set to be completed in the first quarter of last year, but has been postponed several times up to May this year.
Mtshabezi Dam, with a holding capacity of 52,2 million cubic metres of water, was completed in 1994 but has been lying idle.
Bulawayo is now under permanent water rationing as the city battles to preserve its ever-dwindling water supplies.
Online Reporter