Dried out dam resumes operations

KOTA KINABALU: The dam on Pulau Sebatik near Tawau that dried up early this year is back in operation at minimum capacity, with a production of 0.3 million litres per day, said Sabah Deputy Chief Minister III Datuk Shahelmey Yahya.

The state public works minister said reactivation of the dam was made possible following a cloud seeding operation carried out last Thursday, which also produced rain at several catchment areas.

“This is a good sign because Pulau Sebatik Island is one of the areas in Sabah that has been relatively dry since the beginning of the year, apart from Papar.

“We hope with the transition of the monsoon, the change in weather and the arrival of more rain, the level of the dam will rise and the (water treatment) plant will be able to process water at a higher rate,” he told reporters after breaking fast with orphans from the As Sakinah Orphanage and the media on Saturday.

Shahelmey also said the Sabah Water Department will continue to distribute underground water using tankers to areas affected by the drought, Bernama reported.

On the cloud seeding operation,

Shahelmey said it succeeded in producing rain at several districts, including Papar, Lahad Datu and Kota Kinabalu.

“However, we have not been able to ascertain whether rain has fallen at the water catchment areas. We pray there will be more rain as we enter April and the Meteorology Department has stated that we are in the transition phase of the monsoon.

In another development, Shahelmey said the RM320 million allocation from the federal government to Sabah to implement a short-term plan to deal with water issues in the state is now in the value management stage.