Tiraspol, 8 February. /Novosti Pridnestrovya/. Pridnestrovie has been experiencing hydrological drought since last summer. According to the republican meteorological office, the Dniester's winter mean water is very low, despite the fact that the river level has risen by one metre.
Whether the Dniester's level will further rise in spring will depend on the amount of rainfall in its upper reach and the activities of Ukraine's Dniester Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP).
«There is a sufficient amount of snow in the upstream flow of the Dniester, and we are certainly expecting a spring flood. But the fact is that most of the flood will be accumulated by the Dniester reservoir. This is why our republic is unlikely to see a pronounced spring flood," said the head of the hydrology department of the republican met office, Lyudmila Gavrilenko.
According to her, last year the Dniester HPP fulfilled its dewatering obligations and thus reduced the effects of the drought in Pridnestrovie but, at the same time, increased the accumulating capacity of its reservoir to 500 million cubic metres.
«They [Dniester HPP] will, of course, let the water from the reservoir but not in the amount we need," underscored Gavrilenko.
In addition to the weather conditions, the situation is complicated by the construction by Ukraine of the cascade of power plants on the Upper Dniester.
«There are projects for the construction of mini-HPPs in Western Ukraine, and they are building them. According to different sources, six or seven in number. In any case, it will not have a positive effect on the river level. These HPPs need water feeding. And there is no considerable amount of snow to speak about — there have been no heavy rains or snowfalls. Therefore, we are still facing unfavourable conditions," said the director of the republican met office, Vitaly Kolvenko.
Novosti Pridnestrovya has already reported there are concerns over the construction of new hydroelectric power plants not only in Pridnestrovie but also in Moldova and Ukraine itself. So, the residents of Ternopil Oblast issued a statement demanding to «impose a moratorium on the construction of HPPs on the river Dniester».
In addition, a group of Pridnestrovian, Moldovan and Ukrainian environmental NGOs sent a letter about the construction of six new HPPs in the upstream flow of the Dniester to the European Union and other international organisations.
