The provision of the drinking water service carried out by the Decentralized Entity of Sanitary Works (EDOS) has been affected in recent days by various causes, which has caused a significant impact on the Concordia community.
The agency reported on the causes, their effects, and the measures being taken:
•Piping system without maintenance, with breaks, leaks, and excessive consumption during a water emergency: for years, the distribution network has suffered from a lack of maintenance, causing multiple problems. Among them, breaks and leaks reduce efficiency, increase losses, and cause supply interruptions. The lack of awareness regarding the rational use of water aggravates the situation. It is essential to promote civic awareness to ensure responsible consumption, especially in these critical moments.
From EDOS, "we are working hard on the maintenance of the system, despite the scarce resources available. In addition, we are carrying out an awareness campaign regarding responsible consumption and the reduction of waste by users."
•Population increase and a Water Treatment Plant designed for fewer inhabitants: The unplanned demographic growth of the city has exceeded the production capacity of the San Carlos Water Treatment Plant. This leads to an insufficient supply of drinking water, affecting the population. In this context, the Water Treatment Plant was originally designed to treat a flow of 2,500m3/hour; it currently operates at 20% above its design capacity, reaching a purification of 3,000m3/h. To reinforce the distribution system, there are a total of 37 wells distributed throughout different points of the city, contributing a total of approximately 1,500 m3/hour, which implies a 50% increase with respect to the Plant's production.
•Drop in supply pressure due to high demand: We are currently under a yellow alert for high temperatures in Concordia, which leads to significant consumption, causing a decrease in supply pressure and affecting the ability to reach all users adequately, mainly in high areas or neighborhoods far from the Plant and/or wells.
•Lack of payment by users: This situation limits the resources available for maintenance, improvements, and operation of the system, leading to a decrease in the quality of the service and affecting the agency's ability to make the necessary investments. Since January 29, service reductions have been carried out for delinquent users after mass notifications were made for them to come forward and regularize their situation, accessing affordable payment plans with the intention that everyone can get up to date.
•Low water level of the Uruguay River: This produced an approximate 15% decrease in production flow. To address this situation, maintenance was performed on one of the intake electric pumps.
•New Water Treatment Plant: This is a project in which the agency assists as an observer. EDOS warns that, once it is put into operation, for which there is no precise date, "we are concerned about the state of the infrastructure in the water distribution network, based on the fact that once the rings of the new plant are connected to the current network, collapses in the system could be generated."
To normalize the water supply in the city, we are taking a series of specific actions:
• Preventive and corrective maintenance of the distribution network and the Water Treatment Plant.
• Implement a leak and break management plan in the network to reduce losses.
• Promote civic awareness campaigns on the rational use of water, especially during times of high demand.
• Strengthen the distribution system through measures such as the optimization of existing wells and the evaluation of possible expansions according to demographic growth.
The agency reported on the causes, their effects, and the measures being taken:
•Piping system without maintenance, with breaks, leaks, and excessive consumption during a water emergency: for years, the distribution network has suffered from a lack of maintenance, causing multiple problems. Among them, breaks and leaks reduce efficiency, increase losses, and cause supply interruptions. The lack of awareness regarding the rational use of water aggravates the situation. It is essential to promote civic awareness to ensure responsible consumption, especially in these critical moments.
From EDOS, "we are working hard on the maintenance of the system, despite the scarce resources available. In addition, we are carrying out an awareness campaign regarding responsible consumption and the reduction of waste by users."
•Population increase and a Water Treatment Plant designed for fewer inhabitants: The unplanned demographic growth of the city has exceeded the production capacity of the San Carlos Water Treatment Plant. This leads to an insufficient supply of drinking water, affecting the population. In this context, the Water Treatment Plant was originally designed to treat a flow of 2,500m3/hour; it currently operates at 20% above its design capacity, reaching a purification of 3,000m3/h. To reinforce the distribution system, there are a total of 37 wells distributed throughout different points of the city, contributing a total of approximately 1,500 m3/hour, which implies a 50% increase with respect to the Plant's production.
•Drop in supply pressure due to high demand: We are currently under a yellow alert for high temperatures in Concordia, which leads to significant consumption, causing a decrease in supply pressure and affecting the ability to reach all users adequately, mainly in high areas or neighborhoods far from the Plant and/or wells.
•Lack of payment by users: This situation limits the resources available for maintenance, improvements, and operation of the system, leading to a decrease in the quality of the service and affecting the agency's ability to make the necessary investments. Since January 29, service reductions have been carried out for delinquent users after mass notifications were made for them to come forward and regularize their situation, accessing affordable payment plans with the intention that everyone can get up to date.
•Low water level of the Uruguay River: This produced an approximate 15% decrease in production flow. To address this situation, maintenance was performed on one of the intake electric pumps.
•New Water Treatment Plant: This is a project in which the agency assists as an observer. EDOS warns that, once it is put into operation, for which there is no precise date, "we are concerned about the state of the infrastructure in the water distribution network, based on the fact that once the rings of the new plant are connected to the current network, collapses in the system could be generated."
To normalize the water supply in the city, we are taking a series of specific actions:
• Preventive and corrective maintenance of the distribution network and the Water Treatment Plant.
• Implement a leak and break management plan in the network to reduce losses.
• Promote civic awareness campaigns on the rational use of water, especially during times of high demand.
• Strengthen the distribution system through measures such as the optimization of existing wells and the evaluation of possible expansions according to demographic growth.