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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider PAGASA encourages Metro Manila folks to conserve water due to dwindling Angat water level

PAGASA encourages Metro Manila folks to conserve water due to dwindling Angat water level

Published Feb 23, 2022 02:23 pm

Angat Dam (JANSEN ROMERO / MANILA BULLETIN / FILE PHOTO)

Residents in Metro Manila were advised to start conserving water, as the level of Angat Dam, which supplies 98 percent of the region's domestic water requirements, may drop to its minimum operating level of 180 meters by April.

"May posibilidad na ma-reach natin yung 180-meter low-water level as early as April. Kasi po ang expected natin sa March 31, 2022 eh magiging 183.29 meters po ang ating water level sa Angat provided na ang forecast basin rainfall natin ay nasa 81.8 millimeters at ang dam allocation natin ay 63 cms . (There is a possibility that we will reach the 180-meter low water level as early as April. Because what we are expecting on March 31, 2022, is that our water level in Angat will be 183.29 meters provided that our forecast basin rainfall is 81.8 millimeters and our dam allocation is 63 cms cubic meters per second)," said weather specialist Sonia Serrano of the Hydro-Meteorology Division of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

"Kapag na-reach natin yung 180 meters, ang gagawin ng Angat Dam, magi-stop sila ng allocation sa power generation pero ang irrigation ay tuluy-tuloy pa rin. (When we reach 180 meters, what the Angat Dam will do is stop allocating power generation but irrigation will continue)," Serrano said during the PAGASA's climate outlook forum on Wednesday, Feb. 23.

Under the National Water Resources Board's (NWRB) protocol in the release of water from Angat Dam, water releases for irrigation needs in Bulacan and Pampanga will be temporarily halted or reduced once the dam's level falls below its 180-meter minimum operating level.

This means that Metro Manila’s domestic water needs will be prioritized over irrigation and power generation.

Serrano said that Angat Dam's water level of 195.78 meters, as of Feb. 22, is the lowest during this period for the past 11 years.

PAGASA's Climate Monitoring and Prediction Section chief Ana Liza Solis said regular technical working group (TWG) meetings are being conducted to sustainably manage the water in Angat Dam.

The TWG is composed of the NWRB, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System, National Irrigation Administration, National Power Corporation, and PAGASA.

Solis and Serrano appealed to the public to "conserve water as much as possible" amid the absence of significant rainfall over the Angat watershed in Bulacan and the impending dry season in the country.

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