To ensure that water will remain available for preventative measures against COVID-19, the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) announced that they will be maintaining normal allocation of raw water from Angat Dam to the concessionaires of Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) until June.
The agency assured that water in Angat Dam is sustainable until the onset of the rainy season in June, noting that the water levels were more than eight meters higher than the level of the dam on the same date last year.
“With Pagasa rainfall projection indicating near normal rainfall condition until September, the water level in Angat Dam is projected not to fall below the minimum operating level of 180 meters (above sea level) despite the full allocation to MWSS and the releases for irrigation in its wet cropping season come June,” reads NWRB’s statement.
NWRB also noted that supply from the Angat Dam to MWSS has been raised to the normal flow of 46 cubic meters per second (cms) since the third week of March. This was after several months of water being supplied at 42 cms, with rotational service interruptions implemented by Manila Water Co. Inc. and Maynilad Water Services Inc. during non peak consumption hours.
In order to support the government’s program on food security, the agency has allocated 15 cms of water from Angat Dam for the irrigation of farms in southern Bulacan. To ensure a steady supply of water, the NWRB is coordinating with MWSS and the National Irrigation Administration.
Header photo by Inquirer.net
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