Cyprus dams at critically low levels

Cyprus is facing a significant water shortage, as dam levels have plummeted due to drought and high temperatures, raising the alarm among national and local authorities, which are urging the public to limit use as much as possible.

According to the Water Department, the country’s dams are only 30% full as of September 16. This figure is a sharp drop from last year’s 52.9% rate and officials are worried about how the island’s water reserves will hold up in the coming months.

The total water stored in Cyprus’ dams currently stands at 87.87 million cubic meters, far lower than the 153.7 million cubic meters recorded around the same time last year.

The largest dam, Kouris, is only 27.98% full, a stark contrast to the 48.8% level it maintained at this time last year. Similar declines have been noted across the country’s other large dams.

This year’s dam inflow of 24 million cubic meters is one of the lowest on record. As a matter of comparison, the best year in the last decade was 2018-2019, when 265 million cubic meters of water flowed into the dams, while the worst was 2013-2014, with a mere 12 million cubic meters.