KUALA LUMPUR – The National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma), Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia), and Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) have commenced cloud-seeding operations over the Teluk Bahang Reservoir and Air Itam Reservoir water catchment areas, starting today.
In a statement, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali said the cloud-seeding mission aims to address the water depletion in both reservoirs, as requested by the Penang government.
“As of June 12, 2023, the water capacity at the Air Itam Reservoir stands at 48.6%, while the Teluk Bahang Reservoir is at 44.4%,” said Armizan, who is in charge of special functions.
The Central Disaster Management Committee directed Nadma and relevant agencies during their meeting on May 16 to enhance preparedness in dealing with the impact of the hot and dry weather during the southwest monsoon.
“One of the outlined approaches is to strengthen coordination in cloud-seeding operations and closely collaborate with state governments,” he said.
MetMalaysia has predicted that the southwest monsoon weather, which began on May 15, is expected to persist until September.
The southwest monsoon will result in a lack of cloud formation and low rainfall distribution in most areas, leading to hot and dry weather.
“The success of the operations depends on suitable atmospheric conditions such as high humidity, the presence of cumulus clouds, and weak wind speeds. These factors enable the generation of targeted rainfall in the designated areas,” Armizan explained.
A similar operation was conducted in Penang from May 2 to 4, which successfully produced 100% rainfall in the targeted areas. The probability of rain for the current operation is estimated to be around 80% due to relatively low atmospheric humidity.
A C-130 Hercules aircraft from RMAF departed from Subang Air Base, carrying four tanks containing a mixture of 800kg of salt and 6,000ℓ of water prepared by MetMalaysia.
Armizan said that state governments requiring assistance to conduct cloud seeding can submit proposals to Nadma for assessment.
He added that MetMalaysia needs to evaluate the suitability of the proposed locations and the forecasted atmospheric conditions to ensure the success of the operations.
Over the weekend, Armizan said that Sabah’s water supply reserve margin was low, standing at 7.3% at the end of last year. He stated that Sabah, Perlis, and Melaka are the only states with a water supply reserve margin below 10%.
The minister further said that Penang and Terengganu have a comfortable reserve margin exceeding 20%, while Selangor, Pahang, Negri Sembilan, and Johor have a moderate reserve margin ranging between 10% and 20%. – The Vibes, June 12, 2023
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