The government has assured Gatundu North and Thika residents that they will benefit from the multi-billion shilling Kariminu II dam.
Athi Water Services Board CEO Michael Thuita said residents from the two subcounties are set to benefit from the Sh24 billion project that is already 87 per cent complete.
Thuita who had accompanied Acting Water Cabinet Secretary James Macharia on an inspection tour of the Dam on Thursday, allayed fears by residents that the project will bypass them to supply water to Nairobi, Juja and Ruiru areas.
The CEO said the government has initiated another project at Ndarugo river in Gatundu North constituency that will see residents from the area supplied with clean water for domestic use.
The standalone project, he said, has already started and laying of pipes is on course. Project will be completed before the end of this year.
Also set to benefit from the project is Thika town which will receive an additional 20,000 cubic metres in a new phase that will start in July this year.
“I want to assure Gatundu residents that they will have plenty of water in their homes once these projects are done. The projects are part of the Kariminu II dam project and residents can rest assured that water will not be pumped to Nairobi and leave them without the precious commodity,” Thuita said.
CS Macharia said the dam which will produce at least 70 million litres of water per day, will positively impact Kenyans across various areas especially in Nairobi which has been grappling with frequent water rationing.
“This will be one of the major projects within this area serving Nairobi metropolis and we are committed to have it commissioned soonest. It will address the water deficit that the city is currently facing,” he said.
He at the same time revealed that the Sh8.5 billion Northern Collector Tunnel is 97 per cent complete and will soon end water scarcity in Nairobi.
“This will provide about 140 million litres of water to Nairobi thereby eliminating the water deficit that Nairobi residents have been struggling with,” he said.
The mega project has three main components among them the dam, water treatment plant of 70,000m3/d and 67km of raw and treated water pipeline ranging from DN 500mm to 1,000mm.
Two terminal tanks will also be constructed of capacities 23,500m3 and 3,000m3 in Ruiru and Juja respectively.
Karimenu II Dam project entails construction of a dam of 59m height and 26.5 million m3 storage volume to produce 70,000m3/d per day of drinking water.
