Gov’t cautious on water supply

Allocation for irrigation to be cut

DESPITE DAYS of heavy rains in Luzon these past weeks, the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) will try to preserve water in dams by cutting allocation for irrigation and maintaining the current level for household use, the head of the regulator said yesterday.


Changes in water allocation will take effect next month and the new levels may stay until the end of the year.

NWRB Executive Director Vicente S. Paragas said in a phone interview that the board is "afraid there may not be enough water for the summer."

"The allocation approved by the board is to lower the allocation [sic] for irrigation and maintain allocation for domestic water supply because we have to manage the levels in the dams even if the weather is cooperating with us," said Mr. Paragas.

Water allocation to the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) will be lowered in staggered amounts. From Nov. 1 to 15, water for irrigation will drop to 15 cubic meters per second (m3/s) from the current 20 m3/s. From Nov. 16 to 30, the allocation will drop to further to 10 m3/s.

Mr. Paragas said the board may ask NIA if it will be amenable to another drop in allocation at the end of November. Otherwise, he said, the latest approved allocation may continue until the end of the year.

Domestic water allocation -- for use by households -- will remain at 32 m3/s. This allocation has remained since the NWRB lowered allocation from 33 m3/s last July due to dwindling water in Angat Dam in Bulacan which supplies about 97% of Metro Manila’s water.

A check with the National Power Corp. which administers Angat Dam showed the water level there yesterday at 187.27 meters (m) against the 180 m "critical level."

Ipo Dam, about 7.5 kilometers downstream from Angat Dam, was at 99.68 m, while La Mesa Dam in Quezon City was at 79.83 m.

Levels at Angat Dam are expected to hit 203 m by end of December. Mr. Paragas said the minimum level of Angat Dam by December should be around 212 m to ensure enough water in the summer months.

Water levels Angat Dam fell to 157.58 m last July, causing low water pressure in parts of Metro Manila, particularly in the so-called "west zone" that is served by Maynilad Water Services, Inc.

Maynilad serves an estimated 7 million customers in Metro Manila and parts of Cavite. Its concession area covers most of the City of Manila (all but portions of San Andres and Sta. Ana), parts of Quezon and Makati cities, as well as the cities of Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas and Malabon, all in Metro Manila, and the municipalities of Bacoor, Imus, Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario in Cavite.

A spokesman of the concessionaire said in a telephone interview yesterday that the decision to keep water allocation as is will keep production below normal level. "At 32 m3/s, our water production will remain below its normal level of 2,400 million liters per day (MLD). Our current water production level is at 2,150 MLD. We have yet to receive a formal notification, although our representative the inter-agency technical working group has been made aware of the allocation for November," said Maynilad spokesperson Cherubim G. Ocampo.

Customers, however, should not be further compromised since current production levels will be kept.

NIA administrator Antonio S. Nangel said in a phone interview that his agency will be discussing the water allocation with NWRB. He said NIA will push for an increase in allocation to irrigation if Luzon will continue to receive heavy rains.

"There would be an effect in irrigation if the allocation is low [beyond November]. Our water requirement of 35 m3/s would not be met," Mr. Nangel said.

"By January and February, when the local flow from other sources is low and the rains dry up [sic], we would have a problem," he warned.