Crisis in Bursa: 7 days of water left, outages to begin

Bursa is facing a serious water crisis due to the drought experienced in recent years. The occupancy rate in the Doğancı Dam, which meets the water needs of the city with a population of over 3 million, has fallen to 6.81 percent. The Nilüfer Dam, meanwhile, has completely dried up. The Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Water and Sewerage Administration (BUSKİ) announced that 110 thousand cubic meters of water per day will be transferred from the Çınarcık Dam to the Dobruca Drinking Water Treatment Plant. However, even with this supplement, the city's drinking water occupancy rate remained at the 3.34 percent level.

Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mustafa Bozbey stated that water resources are in a critical condition and that there is also a serious decrease in groundwater. Bozbey said, "A large portion of our city's water needs was being met by the Doğancı and Nilüfer dams. However, this ratio has changed due to the drought. Currently, 50 percent of the need is met from dams, 15 percent from spring sources, and 35 percent from deep wells belonging to BUSKİ. The drop in the groundwater level from 10 meters to 250 meters shows how severely the Bursa Plain is experiencing the drought."

WATER OUTAGES BEGIN

Following the drop in dam occupancy rates to critical levels, BUSKİ will begin planned water outages. Daily 12-hour water cuts will be implemented in the city center and districts for 10 days.

News Source: 12punto