Heavy rainfall welcome, but warnings over water usage remain

Significant inflows into reservoirs are expected because of the heavy rainfall in recent days, the director of the Water Development Department said on Saturday, but urged continued caution over water usage as the final figures will only become clear at the end of April.

Department head Eliana Tofa-Christidou was commenting on the fact that Cyprus’ largest reservoir, Kouris dam, recorded a higher storage level on Friday (21.2 per cent) compared to last year (20.3 per cent) and on the recent inflows in general.

“The rainfall and inflows are beneficial, and according to our indications, additional inflows are expected until March 25,” she said, stressing at the same time that “there is no room for complacency at any level.”

“The Water Development Department remains quite cautious, as we must safeguard reserves for 2027 and 2028,” she told the Cyprus News Agency. “We need these inflows and must manage whatever final reserves we have very wisely.”

She said that 8 million cubic metres of water were transferred from the Arminou reservoir via the Southern Conveyor Project, “therefore not all inflows originated from the Kouris catchment.”

She explained that careful daily management is in place to secure every usable flow, describing the Southern Conveyor Project as “the backbone” of the system.

Asked about the possibility of water cuts during summer, Christidou said this will become clearer once final flows are recorded at the end of the hydrological year, at the end of April.

“The effort must be collective,” she said, urging consumers to conserve water, while local water authorities must repair their networks and take action to reduce water losses.