Johor Dam Levels Remain Under Control, Four Locations Monitored Following Hot Spell

ISKANDAR PUTERI, Feb 3 (Bernama) -- Water levels at all 16 dams in Johor remain at safe levels and are operating well despite the state facing prolonged hot weather over the past month.

Johor Works, Transport, Infrastructure and Communications Committee chairman Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh said overall dam capacity in Johor currently exceeded 70 per cent, indicating that raw water supply remained sufficient to meet current needs.

“In Johor, we have 16 dams — 10 operated by the Johor Water Regulatory Body (BAKAJ), four by the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID), one by Petronas and one by Singapore’s PUB (National Water Agency). At present, overall, the dams are still active, and water levels are still okay,” he said when met after the handover ceremony for the project to complete the remaining works of the concrete bridge on the Gelang Patah-Pendas route here today.

However, Mohamad Fazli said four dams had recorded water levels below 60 per cent and required close monitoring, although they were not yet at critical levels.

The dams are the Upper Layang Dam at 46.89 per cent, Pulai 1 Dam (47.63 per cent), Gunung Pulai 2 Dam (56 per cent) and Lower Layang Dam (60.33 per cent).

“These four dams are under BAKAJ’s management and based on today’s readings, Feb 3, all have yet to reach critical levels. All dams and water treatment plants are still operating well,” he said.

On how long the dams could sustain supply if dry weather persisted, Mohamad Fazli said dams in Johor were designed with storage margins to withstand droughts of between three and six months.

“We have already gone through more than a month without rain. So a coordination meeting will be held tomorrow to arrange areas that need to be prepared in the event of plant closures or reduced operations, but for now, the situation remains under control,” he said.

He added that the proposal to implement cloud seeding would be discussed, although its implementation would depend on necessity and weather factors, including wind speed, which could affect the effectiveness of the operation.

On Sunday, the media reported that all mosques and surau across Johor had been directed to perform the istisqa’ prayer (for rain) in congregation for three consecutive days following dry weather and several fire incidents in the state.

Several open burning incidents have occurred recently, with the largest reported at Jalan Sungai Kapal, Taman Bayu Damai, Pengerang, near Kota Tinggi, involving a peatland fire covering nearly 100 hectares, including at Batu 13 Bukit Naning, Muar, near the Johor State Farmers’ Organisation (PPNJ) estate, involving about 12 hectares of peat forest.

Meanwhile, Mohamad Fazli said the RM13 million concrete bridge construction project on the Gelang Patah-Pendas route was completed on Jan 27, and was expected to benefit 80,000 users.

He said the project, which began in 2016, had previously been classified as a sick project as it was initially scheduled for completion between 2019 and 2020, but faced constraints due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to appoint a new contractor.

“Alhamdulillah, it has now been completed and can be used. The project also involved the installation of street lights and road widening. In addition, the bridge will help improve the flow of Sungai Gelang Patah, thereby reducing flood risk in the area,” he said.

-- BERNAMA