MANILA, March 25 ------ How does the end of the Amihan (northeast monsoon) affect Maynilad's water supply?
According to Jennifer Rufo, Corporate Communications head of Maynilad Water Services, the end of the Amihan could mean less turbidity or the measure of relative clarity of a liquid. She noted that increased turbidity in Angat Dam and Laguna Lake caused Maynilad to increase treatment capacity in recent years.
During the onset of the northeast monsoon, the direction of the wind would push the water to Maynilad treatment plants. "However, due to the shallowness of the lake, the sediments in the lakebed are disturbed and go straight to the treatment plant," Rufo said. Treatment plants must work harder during prolonged turbidity episodes to produce clean water, she said. "Mas madalas yung filtration na kailangan, so nagkakaroon ng clogs. Mas madalas po yung ating cleaning. So basically, yung tubig na dapat i-produce natin at ibigay sa customers, ginagamit natin siya panglinis ng filters," Rufo said in explaining how turbidity affects water supply.
Rufo said Maynilad is working with other government agencies to ensure enough water supply ahead of the onset of El Niño, a weather phenomenon characterized by below-normal rainfall. PAGASA said the El Niño phenomenon could develop in the second half of 2023. Among the stopgap measures being eyed to conserve water and augment supply are pressure management, reactivation of deep wells, use of raw river water in treatment plants, fixing leaks of aging pipelines, and deployment of at least 100 mobile water tankers.
Source: news.abs-cbn.com
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