Indonesia: Dams to cut supply as dry season drags on

The Jakarta Post 19 Sep 15;

WONOGIRI: Gajah Mungkur and Colo dams in Wonogiri, Central Java, plan to stop irrigating farmland for a month, starting on Oct. 1, in an effort to save water, an official has said.

“In the current prolonged dry season, the availability of clean water is imperative. [The move] is in the interests of the wider public,” said the head of state-owned clean water company Perum Jasa Tirta I’s water resource and service division, Winarno Susiladi.

Winarno said the cutting off of irrigation supplies would begin in October, by which time most harvests would be complete, reducing the need for water. “We need to match the farmers’ harvest schedule before we stop the water supply. The closure will also allow maintenance of the dams and irrigation channels,” he added.

The two dams are used to irrigate 24,000 hectares of farmland in Wonogiri, Sukoharjo, Klaten, Karanganyar and Sragen, all in Central Java, and Ngawi in East Java, according to the official.

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