Malaysia: Timah Tasoh Dam Register Lowest Water Level Since 1992

Bernama 21 Mar 16;

KANGAR, March 21 (Bernama) -- The current dry spell seems to have affected water catchment and water storage areas in the state since the only dam in Perlis, the Timah Tasoh Lake in Beseri, registered its lowest water level today.

The dam's water level was recorded at 26.78m today, a drop of 2 millimeter, compared with the 26.8m registered yesterday.

Perlis Irrigation and Drainage Department director Abdul Najib Abdullah said the level recorded today was the lowest since 1992 while the critical level has been set at 25.0m.

"The level recorded today is even lower than the El-Nino phenomenon which struck the country resulting in water level at the dam dropping to 27.04m on July 24, 1998," he told Bernama, here today.

The New York Times said scientists began reporting early signs of El Nino conditions early last year, based on changes in surface-water temperatures and atmospheric pressure in the equatorial Pacific near Peru.

By midyear, the World Meteorological Organization declared that El Nino was in full swing and that it was on track to be the strongest such event since 1997-98.

In some parts of the world, the problem has been not enough rain; in others, too much.

Abdul Najib said the dry spell which started in Perlis since December last year had resulted in low water level at the dam which caters for 50 percent of the water supply to Perlis, especially the people of Padang Besar and Kangar.

The Timah Tasoh Lake supplies water to the Perlis population as well as prevents floods from occurring in the state. The lake is 1,300 hectares in area, and can hold 35.3 million litres of water.

It was created when a dam was built on Sungai Korok, about 2.5km below the confluence of Sungai Timah and Sungai Tasoh.

Abdul Najib also urged consumers to be thrifty when using water.

-- BERNAMA