Residents urged to brace for rationing

Water rationing has become inevitable in most parts of Meru County due to the prevailing dry spell.
County executive for water Dr. Eunice Nkirote speaking in Tigania central sub county Friday, said the department of water had partnered with other players in the management of the water resource to find a short term solution to the current scarcity.
Dr. Nkirote said almost all water sources including dams in the county had very little water levels, hence the need to initiate a rationing program to ensure nobody suffered more due to lack of the essential commodity.
She said adequate consultation and comparing of notes had taken place among key players in the sector, especially those involved in water for irrigation management to consider giving priority to domestic use ahead of the anticipated October –December rains.
The county executive urged the public to enhance water storage methods at household level so as to cope with the rationing program which had become inevitable in all the sub-counties.
Dr. Nkirote noted that some areas were more hit than others especially the semi-arid areas towards Isiolo and Laikipia counties and the lower parts of the region towards Tharaka Nithi County.
However, she appealed to the public to maintain law and order in their respective areas of residence to avoid any form of conflict between neighbours as they strived to quench their thirst and that of their livestock.
The county executive further assured members the public that more strict regulations would be enforced in future to control over extraction of water from rivers among other sources, in a bid to sustain a balanced utilization of water within the county and downstream.
By Makaa Margaret