The water storage rate of Shimen Reservoir fell below 80% for the first time this year, and the North Water Bureau assessed that it could survive the dry season safely.

(Photo by reporter Li Rongping)

[Reporter Li Rongping/Taoyuan Report] The Shimen Reservoir will be used to irrigate the first phase of rice cultivation on February 1. The catchment area has also seen less rainfall recently. The water level of the 245-meter-full dam dropped below 240 meters for the first time this year. The water rate has fallen below 80%. As of 7 o'clock tonight, the water level of the dam is 239.86 meters, the water storage capacity is 163.01 million tons, and the water storage rate is 79.42%. It can still survive the dry season safely.

Guo Yaocheng, deputy director of the North Water Bureau, said that the Shimen Reservoir, which was still full in January this year, has dropped significantly in recent days, mainly because the first phase of rice cultivation began on February 1 and is expected to end in mid-March. The Shimen and Taoyuan management offices of the Water Conservancy Department have adopted water-saving irrigation and pond water supply to reduce water output from the reservoir.

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Guo Yaocheng said that through daily monitoring and cross-regional water source dispatching (Xindianxi’s supporting capacity has reached 814,000 tons per day), the North Water Bureau controls the daily water output of people’s livelihood and industries below 1.16 million tons, and the current storage capacity is still Compared with the average water storage capacity in the past five years, the water storage capacity is about 15.5 million tons higher, and the water supply is still stable; the North Water Bureau also conducts independent water conservation through the Taiwan Water Corporation, calling on the public to save water together, so as to facilitate the connection between the typhoon season and let the reservoir survive this year safely dry season.

In addition, as the water level drops, the 303-meter-long Xinxikou Suspension Bridge Lake tour route, which is a limited version of the reservoir, cannot be crossed for the time being. At this stage, tourists who take yachts to Shimen Reservoir can only go to and from the dam, Amuping Wharf, Dragon Ball Bay and Ginger Mother Island.