The reservation of Severine Pass it has less than 6 million cubic meters, which is not only its historical minimum level, but also a great concern in the metropolitan area of Uruguay In front of one water crisis who lives with a daily consumption of SBI of 240 thousand cubic meters per day. Meanwhile, and given the shortage without certainty of completion, the government is already analyzing import options of this indispensable resource.
The rains are expected before June, in quantities that allow the reserves of Paso Severino to be “stretched”, the main source of fresh water in the metropolitan area, one of the most affected by the severe water deficit that the country is experiencing as a result of what is already considered worst drought in the last century.
Meanwhile, the level is located at 27.16 meters, the historical minimum and a mark that is four meters below the previous record. The usual thing at this time of year is that the water is 9 meters above, exceeding the dam. In turn, the last time it was full to its capacity – about 65 million cubic meters – was last November. The current number, according to a report submitted to the OSE directors, is 6,028,319 cubic meters; and in the last 70 days it has lost 19 million cubic meters.
At the rate of daily use, and without considering the possible rains announced by the weather forecasts, there would be around 25 days of drinking water left from Paso Severino.
The import, a desperate measure
The lack of drinking water and the increase in salinity in the liquid that OSE distributes has led many people to resort to bottled water. The exponential and disproportionate increase in demand even broke the stock of some brands, although it was mainly due to a “mismatch” in the distribution of the product in stores and supermarkets, as the companies explained -although since the Center for Retail Storekeepers, Baristas, Self-Service Workers and Allied Workers of Uruguay (Cambadu) They noted that replacement orders take between two and three days to arrive.
In this context, and without the guarantee that the rains that are expected will solve a critical situation, the government is already evaluating the idea that the companies import bottled water and, even, that the State itself does so to cover local demand.
“The prices of bottled water will be monitored and the necessary operations will be implemented for a possible import, if necessary,” the secretary of Chair, Alvaro Delgado, during the press conference in which he announced the battery of measures aimed at sustaining the supply of drinking water in the midst of the crisis.
In this sense, the possibility of looking for bottled water for the metropolitan area in other areas of the country is being studied and, if necessary, importing it from Argentina either Brazil. Meanwhile, and in parallel, the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) evaluates exempting import taxes on this product that has become fundamental in Uruguayan daily consumption.
Two weeks of water for the metropolitan area
The situation in the metropolitan area is the most critical since, with the Paso Severino reserve at its historic lows, the days of drinking water supply in the area are numbered. In fact, as reported by the president of OSE, Raul Montero, on Monday, reserves are enough for others 14 day supply —while at the beginning of the week it was a limit of 18 days.
“The outlook we have is quite harsh,” said the chief, referring to what was already scarce 6.5 million cubic meters in Paso Severino at the time, and today there are already 6 million. cannelloni and Montevideo They are the departments most affected by this situation for which the only solution is heavy rainfall that, according to weather forecasts, they would not arrive in necessary quantities until June.
Source: Ambito
