Governor: Water customers in 6 towns may face rationing

Gov. Jenniffer González Colón, fourth from the left, said Tuesday that drinking water service subscribers in six island towns could soon receive notices regarding rationing due to drought conditions. (Facebook via Jenniffer González Colón)

By THE STAR STAFF

Gov. Jenniffer González Colón said Tuesday that customers in six island municipalities could soon receive notices regarding drinking water rationing due to drought conditions.

“The most vulnerable areas are the Jagual ward in San Lorenzo, the Comerío area, Río Grande, Canóvanas, Loíza, and Cidra …” the governor said during a Facebook broadcast. “This means that between next week and the last week of July, these areas could receive a notification from the Aqueduct and Sewer Authority regarding a monitoring or service interruption plan -- which would be announced in advance, as this is obviously based on projections.”

“Between next Monday and possibly the last week of July, monitoring will take place to determine whether or not a plan will be implemented for these areas; any such plan would then be announced by the director of the Aqueduct and Sewer Authority,” she added.

Separately, the governor announced that customers served by the Finca Rosso Uno Treatment Plant will be without service on July 29-30.

González Colón said “coordination is underway” with the mayors of Bayamón and Guaynabo regarding the scheduled improvements during those two days, which she said “involve repairing two pumps that exploded last year -- pumps for which an investment had already been made.”

She added that “there is sufficient time for the coordination required to install those two pumps.”

González Colón held a follow-up meeting at La Fortaleza with the Drought Committee, which was reactivated a few weeks ago, to continue monitoring the drought and to evaluate measures available to mitigate its impact.

At the meeting, National Weather Service Director Ernesto Rodríguez reported concerns regarding the persistent lack of rainfall across various regions of the island. Although some rainfall occurred last week, Rodríguez noted that it was insufficient due to the low frequency of precipitation in areas critical to the water supply, such as El Yunque and the Lake Carraízo watershed, where severe drought conditions persist.

He also noted that forecasts for the coming week do not anticipate a significant increase in rainfall, maintaining concerns regarding water resource availability.

The governor said her administration will continue to monitor weather conditions and coordinate with relevant agencies to implement necessary strategies -- including possibly some used in other jurisdictions facing drought issues -- to protect the water supply and minimize the drought’s impact on communities.