Starting today, the Water Resources Agency is reducing water pressure during nighttime hours and other time periods for consumers across Taoyuan, Hsinchu and New Taipei''s Banqiao, Xinzhuang and Linkou Districts. The measures are part of an effort to conserve the limited amount of water in Taoyuan''s Shimen Reservoir. But unless Taiwan gets more rain soon, the rationing may expand to other municipalities. The ongoing dry spell has exposed cracks in the sloped edges of Shimen Reservoir and has made parts of its once submerged basin look like a parking lot.Chiu Chung-chuanNorthern Water Resources OfficeStarting today, we will begin implementing initial water rationing in areas served by Shimen Reservoir, including Taoyuan, (Hsinchu) and New Taipei’s Linkou, Banqiao and Xinzhuang districts. Between 11:00 pm and 6:00 am the following morning, water supply pressure will be reduced by 5 percent. I suggest that those living around the end of water pipelines or at higher elevations store up water now for later use.A critical water alert has been declared for Shimen Reservoir, which is at only 51 percent of capacity. Conditions are just as dire at Baoshan Second Reservoir in central Taiwan and at Tsengwen and Nanhua Reservoirs in the south, where water levels have all dipped below 50 percent.Chiu Chung-chuanNorthern Water Resources OfficeCompared to the average at this point in past years, Shimen Reservoir is down 47 million tons of water. So, we are limiting total daily water usage to 1.18 million tons.Though it has not announced any plans for a second round of water rationing, the Water Resources Agency called on consumers across the nation to be mindful of their water usage to help prevent an even worse potential shortage.
