Ciego de Avila, Jun 21 (acn) The drought hitting Cuba for over a year now forced Ciego de Avila’s local authorities to strengthen measures to further control the rational use of drinking water.

A new schedule for the pumping of the liquid to residential and economic areas in the northern and western region of the city was established, announced Sergio Barrios, provincial representative of the Water Resources office.

The measure is part of a program implemented by the Provincial Administration Council seeking to protect the province’s aquifer, which is one of the most important in the country.

Fifteen hydrogeological sectors are under a warning due to the effects of the drought that has affected the country since November 2008 and was intensified in 2009.

In addition to the weather conditions, Barrios mentioned the waste of water by consumers and leakages in old pipelines have caused a drop in the amount of collected water.

The pumping hours in 13 water pumping stations supplying agricultural plantations were also regulated, said the Agriculture delegate Emilio Varela.

Varela added that all agricultural enterprises and cooperative units have been demanded to extreme actions to make irrigation more efficient.

The five water reservoirs are filled only to their 32 percent total, one of them is filled only to the seven percent of its full capacity.

The lack of rains have caused a drop in the production of plantain,sugar cane and milk, and water tankers have had to be sent to cattle raiding farms in certain communities.