Azmin: No water rationing in Selangor

SHAH ALAM: The Selangor government has assured the people that there will not be any water rationing exercises this year.
In giving the assurance, Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Azmin Ali said although the El-nino phenomenon is expected to go on until September, the state government has taken several measures, including cloud seeding, to ensure that the water levels at its dams do not fall below the critical levels.
"We will do our best to ensure there will not be any water rationing in Selangor," he told civil servants at the monthly gathering of state government departments here today.
According to Selangor Waters Management Authority's website, the water in the seven dams in the state are between 83.3% (in Tasik Subang Dam) and 62.03% (in Sg Selangor) filled.
The authority's acting director Nor Zamri Sondor has been reported as saying that cloud seeding operations and transfer of water from 19 alternate catchment ponds in the state to the seven dams have been proven to be a proactive move in stabilising the water levels.
On protecting the environment including disallowing forests to be exploited and controlling logging permissions to companies, Azmin said both the federal and state governments should carry out proactive roles in these matters.
He pointed out the state's policy of retaining at least 30% of its land area for forest is a good move to ensure stability of the environment for clean water and sustainability of the wildlife within it.
According to the Selangor Forestry Department, there are some 250,129ha of forest area in the state which is 31% of the overall land in Selangor.