By Haile-Gebriel Endashaw
Staff reporter
ADDIS ABABA – Though there is a need to sink wells in a bid to address problems of potable water provision in Addis, it has been difficult to get sites with potential yields, sources said. The Amharic Weekly Reporter wrote in 15 March 2023 quoting senior head as saying that sites that were proved to be with high potential yields of fresh water were used for other purposes. These have brought about problems for the city not to have its own fresh water, according to the source.
Particularly areas specially known by the names Jommo and Furi, which have been proved to have abundant yields of ground water have come to serve as garbage dump site, it was said.
Manager of the Water and Sewerage Authority of Addis Ababa City administration, Zerihun Abate (Engineer) said that there “is no site” where to sink wells for ground water. Zerihin said that ground water sites reserved for this particular project have been utilized for another purposes. This was done as there was no land use policy, according to the manager.
Reporter said quoting the authority that unless the City gets 200,000 cubic meters of water, it will face serious problem of shortage of fresh water provision over the coming years.
The city needs 1.2 million cubic meters of potable water per day. However, the current production is limited at only 725,000 cubic meter. Unless 200,000 cubic meter potable water can be yielded per day, the city will be hit by serious water shortage problem over the coming years.
“If there is water cut for a single day at the National Palace or Airport, it will not give good image for the country. The problem is very serious,” Zerihun said.
Currently there are 230 water wells that can give services for the whole city. This is not sufficient for the entire metropolitans. Gerbi water project was given a go-ahead sign and this can be a source for the production of water for Welmera. The other water project under execution is Chiquala water well development. If this project is finalized until 2018 Ethiopian Calander, it will have the capacity of yielding 100,000 cubic meter of fresh water for the city. Failing to complete this project within the stated time will cause a serious problem, head with City Water and Sewerage Authority said.
Zerihun said that though it has made its seat on water tower, Addis Ababa will plunge in to big problems if we fail to install 200,000 cubic meter water in to its system.
In a related development, the Weekly Reporter said that though it has not yet been made public, the water fees in Adddis Ababa rose by triple fold.
__
To share information or for submission, send e-mail to info@borkena.com
Telegram Channel : t.me/borkena
Join the conversation. Follow us on twitter @zborkenato get the latest Ethiopian News updates regularly. Like borkena on Facebook as well. Subscribe to YouTube channel
After reading this news article some one in that city is like ‘are you finding this one out now? I’ve been hauling potable with my jerrycans since I found myself living in the capital. Duhhhhhhhh!!’