Government calls for water source protection
By Brenda Kayo:
Water and Sanitation Deputy Minister Liana Kakhobwe Chapota has expressed concern over the natural resources degradation situation in Chimwankhuku Forestry Reserve, Mchinji District.
She said natural resource depletion in the forest reserve was negatively affecting Central Region Water Board (CRWB)’s ability to supply water to consumers.
Speaking on Saturday, when she visited a CRWB water scheme and planted trees in the Central Region district, Chapota faulted charcoal producers for perpetuating the situation.
“The tendency of cutting down trees and charcoal burning is culminating in climate variability, thereby affecting the quantity of water available for supply to users. This is because when water is not sufficient, CRWB faces a problem to supply water,” she said.
CRWB Board Chairperson Edson Mombera echoed the sentiments, saying natural resource degradation frustrates the board’s efforts.
“This is the reason we are promoting reforestation. Planting trees in this area is very important because we are conserving the catchment area, where we draw water from to supply to our customers.
“It is true that we are not supplying enough water to our customers. There are several reasons why we are not managing to supply water to them but there are programmes which have been designed to rectify the problem. For instance, we intend to build a dam in Kholongo [area],” Mombera said.
