Sabesp's president assures: "there is no rationing"
In testimony before the São Paulo City Council's CPI (Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry), Dilma Pena stated that any nighttime water shortage represents "management of water availability" on the part of the company; the company clarified in a statement released afterward that there is a difference between "isolated problems" and "widespendic water shortages"; Sabesp is studying reducing the flow of the Cantareira System, which currently operates at 5,5% of its capacity.
SP 247 – The president of Sabesp, Dilma Pena, assured this Wednesday, the 8th, that there is no water rationing in the state of São Paulo and that any eventual lack of water during the night are "isolated problems," affecting only 1% to 2% of the total population.
"There is no rationing, there is management of water availability," said Dilma, adding that rationing means a total interruption of water pressure. The statements were made during testimony before the São Paulo City Council's CPI (Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry) investigating the company's contracts with the city of São Paulo.
She told lawmakers that the Cantareira System, the main water supply network for the São Paulo metropolitan area, is experiencing the worst crisis in its history. But she stressed that the works to utilize the second portion of the reserve, which will bring an additional 106 billion liters of water to the system, will be completed this month.
In a statement released after the testimony, the company stated that there is a difference between "isolated problems" and "widespread water shortages." Read below:
As has already been explained to the press on several occasions, occasional problems can occur in properties without a water tank, which violates national regulations, due to tanks of inadequate size for the number of people living there, leaks, or illegal connections to the water supply network, for example.
It is worth highlighting that Sabesp's percentage is much better than the Brazilian average and has been improving year after year. Isolated cases do not constitute a widespread water shortage, as Dilma Pena pointed out. In fact, even in the face of the worst water crisis in history, the number of complaints about water shortages registered with Sabesp's Customer Service Center decreased in 2014 compared to 2013.
Due to the lack of rain, Sabesp is considering reducing the flow of water from the Cantareira reservoir. Read the full report below from Agência Brasil:
Cantareira reservoir level drops to 5,5%, and Sabesp is considering reducing the flow rate.
Fernanda Cruz - The Superintendent of Water Production at the São Paulo State Basic Sanitation Company (Sabesp), Marco Antonio Lopez Barros, admitted that he is studying reducing the flow of the Cantareira System. The State and Federal Public Prosecutor's Offices have already filed a public civil action requesting that the use of water from the Cantareira be restricted.
According to Sabesp, the reduction in flow may be part of the contingency plan required by the Department of Water and Electric Energy (Daee) and the National Water Agency (ANA) to begin drawing water from the second portion of the dead volume. The company reported that the volume of flow reduction has not yet been determined.
According to ANA measurements, the flow from Cantareira released to Sabesp is today 16,6 cubic meters per second. Yesterday (7), it was at 17,27 cubic meters per second. Volumes are falling as water scarcity increases. The total level of the Cantareira reservoirs remains worrying and reached 5,5% of capacity today (8). A year ago, the level was 39,8%.
This is the worst water crisis in São Paulo's history. According to the state government, starting on the 30th of this month, part of the volume of the Guarapiranga System will be used to supplement the Cantareira System.