Chloride and sodium values were well below what was allowed, while the level of the dam continues to rise.
The water quality of SBI experienced a notable improvement today, where there was also a significant increase in the reserves of the Severino Pass dam, which represents a relief in the framework of the water emergency that affects Montevideo and the metropolitan area of Uruguay.
This situation was foreseen by the Undersecretary of the Environment, Gerardo Amarilla, who in dialogue with Underlined had highlighted that due to the rainfall “prospects are good” and anticipated that “surely the quality will improve in all aspects”.
After the rains of the last days, the daily report of the Presidency reflected a significant increase in the water level, which became 3,401,069 cubic meters, bit more than 5% of the total, a much higher figure than yesterday’s 2,581,204 cubic meters. Meanwhile, daily consumption was in the order of 510,057 cubic meters.
Another notable aspect of the survey was the decline in the salinity of water, with values well below the maximum allowed both in chlorides (720 mg/l), as in sodium (440mg/l). Thus, in pumping line 4, 245 mg/l of chloride and 172 mg/l of sodium were recorded, while in line 5 there were 435 mg/l of chloride and 276 mg/l of sodium. Finally, in line 6, it was 262 mg/l and 181 mg/l, respectively.
The improvement in water quality comes after a controversy with the UN
The good news comes after the counterpoint between the government and the UN, after the international body spoke of “de facto privatization” of water and requested to “prioritize human consumption” over the use of industries, after which the Executive questioned the “inaccuracies” of the report.
In addition, days ago, the Minister of Public Health, Karina Rando, declared that the water supplied by OSE is potable, when appearing before the Public Health and Social Assistance Commission of the Chamber of Deputieswhich earned him criticism from the mayor of Montevideo, Carolina Cosse, who pointed out that it contained “alarming levels” of sodium and chloride.
Source: Ambito
