The Water Authority of Fiji is urging its customers to conserve water and to store enough for at least two days. This call for action follows the ongoing critical conditions of raw water sources associated with the Tamavua system.
Currently, five out of six primary raw water sources, which include rivers and streams, are at critical levels. The affected sources are Headwork’s 1, Headwork’s 2, Headwork’s 3, Waimanu Pump Station, and Savura Pump Station.
In the Central Eastern region, nine of the twenty water sources have reached critical status, alongside those mentioned, while five remain stable but are trending toward critical conditions due to decreasing levels and flow.
Samuela Rokovaleusa, WAF’s Acting Chief Operating Officer, noted that recent rainfall has had minimal impact on water levels and that further decreases are likely if no significant rain occurs soon. He explained that ongoing low rainfall over the past two months has led to most sources reaching their base flow condition, driven primarily by groundwater contributions.
Rokovaleusa highlighted that reduced raw water availability from the catchments is resulting in lower treated water production, which in turn affects reservoir levels at the Tamavua Reservoir. The decline in water sources is having a direct effect on water production efforts, leading to further depletion in reservoir levels. The WAF Hydrology Team is closely monitoring the primary raw water sources.
As a result, areas serviced by the Tamavua Water Treatment Plant may face temporary disruptions in service, as WAF Operation Teams may need to adjust valve operations according to treated water production levels.