How long do you reckon Mark, are we talking weeks or maybe 2 or 3 months? Getting anxious now

the rains if they come usually start around October time, however its not so much the rain as most of this runs off , but the winter snows which usually fall on the Trudos from January to end march, i have been in Cyprus when 5 ft of snow has fallen in one night,i believe this year there was not enough to open the ski runs, and last year not much more, by the time you go things may be a little easier as a couple of emergency desalination plants are due on line, together with water now bing imported from Greece should reduce the problems, but even then conservation is the watch word

yasus
wizard

In my 20 years of holidaying in Cyprus I've never known it so bad.

I'd say 2 or 3 years before water levels are back to what they ought to be at any given time of year.
The (at least 1 more) de-salination plant(s) will need to be up and running before that will happen.

In my humble, inexperienced, unqualified opinion, water cuts will probably be in force for at least another 6 months, maybe even 18!!

Agriculture Minister Michalis Polynikis wrote:

The Cypriot public shouldn't sit back now and consume water without thinking. People should continue saving water until we complete the procedure for the confrontation of the drought, which will not be any time before 2009.

That's "the procedure for the confrontation of the drought", not the end of the drought!

There are plans for 1 mobile desalination plant and mooted plans for a permanent facility at Paphos.
A tanker from Greece is off-loading at present.

Mark

There was also a plan for an undersea pipeline into the north from that place about 70 miles to the north of Cyprus but for some reason that never got off the ground......
Shame as it was a good plan and a permanent fix.

Bringing in fresh water by tanker wouldn't have anything to do with the vested interests of Cypriot shipowners would it, surely???

The tourist areas are fine and have no trouble with water, its on the outskirts and in the villages where there is a chance you can rut out. They turn your water off 3 times a week, but all building have big water tanks on the roof so it is unlikley you will run out, unless of course the girls keep washing there hair.l

Water has been transported from Greece, but as yet hasn't been offloaded due to a problem with the pipeline. This will ease the situation for now once the water starts to flow, but the storage tank means we haven't ever run out. We use the washing machine at the times when the water is turned on 3 times a week!

The drought wasnt too bad for my holiday in Pissouri (30.07.08-13.08.08) We were staying in a private Villa and had to cut back on the water on Mondays and Thursdays ie not to use the dishwasher or washer. The owner had their own water supply (bore hole or well??)

I'm not surprised there isn't much water in Cyprus as its all coming down here in the UK ! - According the the calender its summer time but its still raining most days and at the end of last week I was following a gritting wagon ! !

Global warming has changed where the sun and where the water is going me thinks !

Steve

I know the feeling - a couple of weeks ago I was driving back to work at mid-day. It was 31 July, height of the holiday season here in Cornwall and I had my headlights on as well as the windscreen wipers going flat out.
The weather was so bad that everyone was trying to get into the towns, etc and at one point they closed Falmouth off because it was full!

In fact since I got back from Paphos on 17 June we've had only 4 days here where it hasn't rained. Summer? Forget it!

Perhaps we should have an arrangement where everyone leaving the UK for Cyprus should take a jerrycan full of water!

Dave

We have just returned and were very fortunate to have water at the villa we stayed in every day, we were in Coral Bay area, not far from a big hotel, so that may have been the reason! However we went to view a couple of the dams and the one nearest Coral Bay is virtually empty and the one near Nikkoklia is also very low.