IPOH: The bodies of water at the Taiping Lake Gardens mainly function as one big detention pond that helps mitigate flash flooding.
Taiping Municipal Council president Khairul Amir Mohamad Zubir said the lake and ponds would retain water for several hours to let run-off from storms, irrigation and drainage systems and rivers flow to the sea.
"The lake is a former tin mining site.
"There are several bodies of water there, including the Allamanda Pond and Seven Sisters Pond.
"These function as detention ponds to prevent flash floods in the town," he said when contacted Friday (July 26).
(Detention ponds temporarily hold run-off while retention ponds are designed to hold water permanently.)
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It was reported that the iconic lake gardens had begun to resemble a parched field after a prolonged dry season over the northern part of Perak.
It was said there had been no rainfall in the wettest town in Peninsular Malaysia for the past two weeks.
On Thursday (July 25), Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad said the lake would be left to replenish its bodies of water naturally.
Khairul Amir said about 15% of the water at the Lake Gardens comes from Sungai Buloh, while 85% is from rainfall.
"The water level at the lake has dropped to the point that the bed is visible, because of prolonged hot weather and low rainfall.
"We will let the lake return to normal naturally and we also hope the extreme weather will not be prolonged," he added.
