About 40% of Stepanakert is Deprived of Water

About 40% of Stepanakert is deprived of water, while the remaining 60% has water supply around the clock. The "Water Sewage" LLC has been operating with four work groups, providing residents with free water supply in the water-deprived neighborhoods of Stepanakert from 8 AM until past midnight. They deliver 100 tons of water to residents daily.

In an interview with NEWS.am, the director of Artsakh's Water Sewage LLC, Gagik Poghosyan, stated that the shortage of water resources is due to two factors: the increase in water users and the amount of precipitation. “In the post-war period, the population of Stepanakert has increased by 15,000. For example, in 2020, we worked under emergency mode until mid-September, utilizing the maximum capacity we had. If the population of the capital increased in the summer of 2021, it is evident that water will not be sufficient. The second factor is that the amount of precipitation has decreased over the last 3-4 years. Given these circumstances, I had previously calculated that our water stocks would not be enough,” Poghosyan explained.

Residents of Stepanakert express their dissatisfaction, stating that they have not received a drop of water for about a week, wondering how long they must live under these conditions. In the heat of summer, residents demand that water supply be restored for at least one or two hours each day.

“Do you think that opportunity exists, and I’m not doing anything? If even 1% of the possibility were there, believe me, I would do it. Do you think it’s easy for me that I haven't been home for 7 days, working day and night to find a solution? There is no water in our home either. My employees and I are touring the deprived streets of the capital these days, distributing water. This is a natural disaster; we are doing the impossible to restore water supply as soon as possible. Currently, approximately 75 thousand people live in Stepanakert; this city needs 288-290 liters of water per second, while at the moment, I have 160 liters of water per second. What can I do? Where can I bring more water for these people?” Poghosyan responded.

Water outages in Stepanakert began on the evening of August 6. The director of the "Water Sewage" LLC had informed the Security Council during a meeting at the end of May about the low water reserves, emphasizing that the water issue would be unavoidable in the summer. “I said at that time that, with the reserves we had, we could manage until the end of July. Thanks to proper coordination of work, the water resources sufficed until August 6. By August 7, 20% of Stepanakert was already water-deprived,” Gagik Poghosyan mentioned.

According to the director of "Water Sewage" LLC, 17 artesian deep pumps are being used in Stepanakert. “Due to the drought, we have been using these pumps for about 4-4.5 months, which push 15-16 liters of water per second. As of yesterday, these pumps are only able to push 5-6 liters of water per second, meaning productivity has dropped threefold, as there is no water left in the groundwater,” he added.

To restore water supplies in Stepanakert, Gagik Poghosyan stated that it needs to rain. “If anyone tells the people otherwise, know that they are deceiving them.”

It is noteworthy that by the decision of the mayor of Stepanakert, starting from August 10, the water usage of all car wash points and recreational areas operating in the capital has been suspended until the restoration of water supplies at the treatment facilities supplying the city.