The La Niña phenomenon, which began in 2020 and ended in mid-April, generated a historic drought in Argentina. According to data from the National Meteorological Service (SMN), In 2022, below-normal rainfall was recorded, which positioned it among the 14 driest years in more than 60 years. In this context, one of the provinces that suffered the most from the drought was The Rioja which in recent months has developed different water works aimed at providing solutions to the population.
Last week, authorities from the Ministry of Water and Energy visited the town of Alcázar to verify the water drop in the stream in this area. Located in the Ángel Vicente Peñaloza department, Alcázar is facing a significant decrease in the flow of water in one intake, due to the scarce rains in recent years..
The authorities of the Water Secretariat were present in the town to evaluate the situation and what actions to take. In relation to this survey, the officials stated: “We were established in this town due to a request from neighbors who said that the water in Alcázar was being lost. They gave us images, which I understand were images from two or three years ago, which of course had good flow. In response to this request “We went to see and found that it is completely dry, the intakes are fine, but there is no water, there is no water.”.
During the visit to the area, officials explained: “When it rains in the mountain area, some water comes and the aqueduct is there, it can be captured. At the time, when there was a flood, all the intakes had even broken. This was repaired, and It was enough to capture all the water that comes; but now nothing comes, absolutely nothing. The water is from the spring and now, at this moment, absolutely nothing comes, and when there is flow it is used mostly for drinking water and. “some is allocated for irrigation, but it is very little because there is very, very little water there. It only reached some plots.”.
Finally, the authorities noted: “The water also went to Punta de Los Llanos, but the water downspout that the stream has, due to the water emergency, no longer generates that extra contribution; Therefore, currently, it only has some drilling, but nothing more for water supply.”. After the survey in Alcázar, the authorities are evaluating what measures to take to face the water emergency that affects the department.
La Rioja faces the water crisis
At the beginning of February, the local government developed three new wells to increase water flows, at the head of the department Rosario Vera Peñaloza. These drillings, in the northern area of Chepes, were carried out thanks to coordinated work between the government of La Rioja, through the Ministry of Water and Energy, together with the municipality of Rosario Vera Peñaloza. In parallel, the provincial government guaranteed house-to-house water supplythanks to five hydrant trucks and two tanks.
In February, work was also carried out in the town of Guandacol del department Felipe Varela, with the aim of improving water pressure for the residents of the Alto Palermo, El Retamito neighborhoods and surrounding areas. The tasks consisted of building a new aqueduct and bypass, which goes from the water purification plant to the drilling called “Seca”, which covers nearly 1,700 meters. There was also a new acquisition in a 2-kilometer stretch in the town of Unquillal, in the department Juan F. Quiroga; and the renovation of 1,000 meters of pipelinewhich connect the drilling with the town of Represa de la Punta, in the Independence department. It is important to note that all of these works were carried out with funds from the provincial treasury.
During the month of March, the provincial government invested in water works. In Villa UnionFor example, a 90 millimeter diameter pipe was merged from the termination point of the aqueduct that runs from the Airport Drains to the San José Cistern, to increase the level of that pumping system to the La Loma Water Treatment Plant. This aqueduct has an extension of 4 thousand meters.
At the same time, with the increase in flow, the Water Secretariat had to carry out internal network jobs of Villa Unión to strengthen the service in the southern zone, and increase pressure in the neighborhoods of the middle zone. In total, this work has an extension of 300 meters. Likewise, a 1,200 meter bypass and, with this action, the pressure drop in the high areas of the Banda Florida District was compensated.
