adminPatrick Chitumba, Midlands Bureau Chief
GWERU City Council (GCC) is seeking borrowing powers from the Government to purchase five water pumps worth $850,000 to enable it to draw water from Amapongokwe Dam to augment supplies from Gwenoro Dam.
Acting town clerk, Mr Edgar Mwedzi yesterday told The Chronicle that over the years the municipality has been relying heavily on Gwenhoro Dam but the water there is fast dwindling due to erratic rains in the past rainy season.
“We’re seeking to borrow $850,000 to purchase water pumps, five in total, which will result in us pumping water from Amapongokwe Dam to Gwenhoro Dam where we have our water treatment plant. From there the water goes to the residents. Gwenhoro at the moment is overstretched and Amapongokwe will be a relief,” he said.
Mr Mwedzi said the two dams are adjacent to each other with a distance of less than 5km between them. “So drawing water from Amapongokwe to Gwenhoro water treatment plant is very feasible,” he said.
Last week, the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) which is responsible for managing the dams that supply water to the Midlands capital said GCC should as a matter of urgency put measures to start pumping water from Amapongokwe Dam in order to complement supplies from Gwenoro Dam.
Zinwa Sanyati Catchment Manager, Engineer Felix Mubvaruri said if council utilises water from both dams, there won’t be any water shortage in Gweru.
“Following recent media reports alleging that Gweru will soon experience acute water shortage as a result of the El-Nino induced drought, the Zimbabwe National Water Authority would like to allay those fears and assure the Gweru community that Gwenoro and Amapongokwe dams have enough water to sustain the City until at least the next rainy season,” he said.
Online Reporter