Nicosia: Despite water inflows into dams over the past few days, Cyprus remains far from emerging from the drought, and the need for water conservation persists, officials told the Cyprus News Agency (CNA), stressing that further substantial rainfall is required.
According to Cyprus News Agency, Senior Officer of the Water Development Department (WDD), Gianna Oikonomidou, stated that although the ground is currently saturated, several more rounds of rainfall are needed before the situation can be considered improved. She urged the public to continue conserving water and to make use of rainwater wherever possible.
Oikonomidou reported that total inflows into dams over the past three days amounted to approximately 2.4 million cubic metres, including about 1.2 million cubic metres in dams in Paphos district. As of January 26, the total volume of water stored in dams stood at 34 million cubic metres, corresponding to 11.8% of capacity, compared with 26.1% on the same date last year. The total storage capacity of Cyprus' dams is 335 million cubic metres.
She emphasized that while the recent rainfall has led to a slight improvement in the water balance, stronger and more sustained precipitation is needed for dams to build the reserves required to allow Cyprus to exit the drought period. Additional rainfall during this period, when soils are saturated, is more likely to flow into dams, she added.
Oikonomidou also addressed concerns about rainwater flowing into the sea, noting that this is part of the natural hydrological cycle. She explained that runoff contributes to the replenishment of underground aquifers, which are a key component of the island's water balance, and helps counter seawater intrusion in aquifers affected by salinisation. Rational water management, she said, is based on balance, ensuring environmental protection alongside storage.
Regarding measures to strengthen water management, Oikonomidou revealed that works are ongoing to increase spillway capacity at additional dams, as part of a broader package of water infrastructure projects exceeding pound 200 million. These include pipelines, reclaimed water schemes, and water supply and irrigation projects aimed at boosting water availability.
Senior Fisheries Officer, Vasilis Papadopoulos, told CNA that rainfall reaching the sea is not only unavoidable but also beneficial for the marine environment and coastal areas. He explained that runoff transports nutrients and organic matter from land to sea, refreshes surface waters, regulates salinity in coastal zones and supports marine biodiversity, while sediments carried by rain help protect coastlines from erosion.
Papadopoulos noted that while such conditions support marine ecosystems and fish populations, fishermen should not expect a dramatic increase in fish stocks solely because of recent rainfall.