Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 10) — Water concessionaires have started implementing augmentation measures to lessen the impact of long hours of service interruption in Metro Manila, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) said Monday.
Patrick Dizon, division manager of site operations management of the MWSS, told CNN Philippines that the agency is asking “the concessionaires to implement their new augmentation measures.”
So far, the MWSS has approved the construction of additional modular water treatment plants that will be used to treat water from rivers around Metro Manila and nearby areas.
One is located in Anabu in Cavite, which had a soft launch in June. It is expected to produce 5.5 million liters per day, Dizon said.
Another facility in Julian, Cavite can produce 3 million liters per day, while a plant in Marikina can treat around 20 million liters per day, he added.
The MWSS also asked the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) to approve the use of standby deep wells, Dizon said.
NWRB Executive Director Sevillo David Jr. said the 48 cubic meters per second (CMS) allocation for concessionaires and the 20 CMS for the National Irrigation Authority (NIA) were already implemented as the water level in Angat Dam dipped to 179.99 meters early Saturday morning amid the El Niño phenomenon.
As of Monday morning, Angat’s water level further dipped to 179.23 meters, way below its normal high-water level of 210 meters and its minimum operating level of 180 meters.
Meanwhile, Senator Grace Poe, chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Services, urged the MWSS to take action on the nine-hour service interruption that will affect almost 600,000 customers of Maynilad Water Services Inc. starting July 12.
She also urged authorities to determine whether the water service providers are adhering to their obligations stated in their franchise.
Meanwhile, Metro Manila Council President Francis Zamora told CNN Philippines that mayors in the National Capital Region met to discuss what measures they can implement to address the water supply problem.
Zamora, who is also the mayor of San Juan, said each local government unit formed a task force that will focus on water supply. The local chief executives also passed their own ordinances on regulating the use of water, depending on the situation in their area, he added.
