MWSS secures loan for new aqueduct project

Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) procured a $116.602 million (P5 billion) loan from Export-Import Bank of China to finance the Angat Water Utilization and Aqueduct Improvement Project The Manila Times reports.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Deputy Governor Armando L. Suratos announced the news Thursday reports bworldonline.com. The loan will mature in 20 years, which includes a five-year grace period, and has an annual interest rate of 3%.

The project will involve the construction of a new aqueduct, rehabilitating the existing one and interconnecting several aqueducts of the MWSS. The project aims to maintain and optomize the quantity of raw water from Manila’s main source of water, the Angat Dam to the Water Treatment Plants via the Ipo Dam-Bicti-La Mesa Portal system The Philippine Daily Inquirer reports. Angat Dam provides 90 percent of water supplied to the metro.

The water shortage could peak in June affecting a fifth of Manila and two adjecent provinces affecting 339,172 households or 2.5 million individuals in 687 barangays according to MWSS projections gmanews.tv reports. North Caloocan, south Manila, Tondo, Novaliches, Fairview and Pasay were identified as vulnerable areas.

Enough Water

Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Horatio C. Ramos said Friday that Metro Manila’s water supply is manageable while calling for mitigating measures and water conservation efforts to “avoid the worse [case] scenario of water rationing.”

Mitigating efforts include activation of 65 groundwater wells by MWSS and its concessionaires Maynilad and Manila Water, operation of Maynilad-owned Putatan water treatment plant and mobile treatment plants and repairing leaky pipes.

President Macapagal-Arroyo issued Administrative Order No. 278 which directs government offices to conserve 10 percent of their normal water consumption.

“We have to adopt these measures in order to ensure enough supply of water for the households in Metro Manila and for the irrigation of farmlands in Pampanga and Bulacan at least throughout the months of February until June. PAGASA has reported that by May we will be expecting at least one typhoon and one to two typhoons by June. This is the time that we welcome typhoons to bring in some rains in our dams,” Ramos told the Manila Bulletin.

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