MIWD steps up efforts to increase water supply

MIWD steps up efforts to increase water supply

By Elsa S. Subong, Sunday 19th of August 2012

ILOILO CITY, Aug. 19 (PIA) -- The Metro Iloilo Water District (MIWD) has taken steps to increase its water supply for its consumers as the bulk water suppliers have yet to become operational.

MIWD Manager Lee Jayme Jalbuena said they have drilled two deep wells along the Tigum River in Bgy. Tabucan, Cabatuan to increase its supply by at least 40 liters per second.

Jalbuena said these two production well, built by Negros Rotadrill, Inc. cost about P2.3 million, inaugurated August 17.

He said the additional volume of water can serve about 2,800 households in Iloilo City and the towns of Cabatuan, Sta. Barbara, and Pavia.

Jalbuena added that MIWD will soon build additional wells in Oton and San Miguel to extract 5,000 cubic meters of water per day.

Further, it will also pursue the construction of centralized treatment facilities in these towns to guarantee the safety and quality of water supply from ground sources.

“We are also improving our service by rehabilitating old and dilapidated pipelines and pumping stations in Lapaz, Lapuz and Jaro districts,” Jlabuena said.

Meanwhile,Local Water Utilities Administration Chairman Rene Villa said these initiatives augment the water supply but they still do not solve the water crisis in the city and province.

Villa said the solution is in the hands of the Flo Water Resources Iloilo, Inc., contractor of the P1.3-billion bulk water supply project, which failed to operationalize it last March 26 as agreed.

The supplier failed because of lack of permit yet from the National Water Resources Board, and some other requirements not complied with.

Villa said the supplier promised to complete the project by October 16 this year and pay for the liquidated damage caused by the delay.

The bulk water supply aims to deliver an additional 25,000 cubic meters of water per day to MIWD consumers, coming from two injection points – Sta. Barbara to Pavia, and Leganes to Jaro. (JCM/ESS/PIA-Iloilo)

Cabatuan.com - Timeline 2012