As Bogotá battles an extreme heat wave and alarmingly low water reservoir levels, Mayor Carlos Fernando Galán could be forced to declare a state of emergency for the Colombian capital. “This is the driest year Bogotá has experienced since 1995, with water inflows to the Chingaza system at their lowest in nearly three decades,” Galán stated during a recent visit to the Chuza reservoir, a vital source for the city’s water supply.
Typically, August, September, and October bring much-needed rainfall to Bogotá, but this year the city has seen a dramatic reduction in precipitation. The Chuza reservoir, which serves the city’s nine million inhabitants, is operating at just 36% capacity—down from 58% at this time last year. While Mayor Galán has acknowledged the efforts of residents to conserve water, he warned that these actions alone won’t be enough to avert the crisis unless significant rainfall arrives soon. “The only way to restore the reservoir levels is rain, and so far, we haven’t seen any,” Galán added.
As of October 10, the Chingaza system had a storage level of 44%, far below the 70% target that the city’s water utility company—Acueducto—had hoped to reach by the end of the month. The current conditions in Bogotá’s supply system, along with 11 municipalities in the greater Sabana de Bogotá region, suggest that the city could face a severe water shortage by early 2025 when the dry season sets in. Much-needed rainfall across the high-altitude wetlands—páramos—also looks increasingly unlikely in October and for the rest of the year, threatening already endangered ecosystems and the survival of wildlife.
Should Chingaza’s levels drop to 36%, matching those of La Chuza, the city will be forced to implement water rationing every five days. During a recent meeting with President Gustavo Petro, Mayor Galán discussed the city’s water crisis in depth. Petro has proposed declaring an emergency to enable extraordinary measures, including unifying national and municipal budgets and collaborating with community action groups to implement permanent rainwater collection systems.
Following the meeting, Minister of Environment Susana Muhamad announced a joint initiative to address Bogotá’s growing water crisis. This partnership between the district and national government aims to tackle immediate and long-term solutions, with the possibility of declaring a disaster still under consideration.
“We have initiated a joint effort to develop a comprehensive plan between the District and National Government to address water challenges in the short, medium, and long term,” said Muhamad. “This may include a disaster declaration, which would have implications over the next year, as well as more permanent measures.”
Having battled intense forest fires during the early months of his administration, and now facing the prospect that Bogotá could reach “Day Zero” when the city’s water supply begins to run dry, Mayor Galán has confronted an unprecedented climate crisis during his first ten months in office. Solutions beyond the current 10-day rationing scheme will be needed to avoid the looming emergency.
