IMPROVED WATER LEVEL. The water level at Angat Dam is improving, with 204.29 meters recorded on Wednesday (Jan. 8, 2020). Because of this, the National Water Resources Board will increase the water allocation for Metro Manila's domestic water needs and irrigation for Bulacan farmlands. (File photo by Manny Balbin)
CITY OF MALOLOS, Bulacan --The National Water Resources Board (NWRB) will increase the water allocation for Metro Manila's domestic water needs and irrigation for Bulacan farmlands.
Sevillo David Jr., NWRB executive director, on Wednesday said the board approved the increase last Monday as a result of the improving water level at Angat Dam, the primary source of drinking water for Metro Manila and irrigation water for farmlands in Bulacan and some parts of Pampanga.
With the higher water level at the dam, David said the NWRB will hike the allocation for the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), which supplies water to Metro Manila and adjacent municipalities/cities of Bulacan and Rizal, at 42 cubic meters per second (cms).
The National Irrigation Administration (NIA), on the other hand, will get 20 cms for irrigation in Bulacan and Pampanga provinces this month.
The normal water allocation for the MWSS is 46 cms while the usual irrigation allocation for Bulacan and Pampanga’s farmlands is at 30 cms.
David assured that water allocation for farmlands will increase to 30 cms as requested by farmers if the water level at Angat Dam continues to improve.
The NWRB cut its water allocation to only 10 cms for irrigation and 40 cms to Metro Manila when the water level declined last year.
Based on the monitoring of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (PDRRMO) of Bulacan as of 8 a.m. on Wednesday, Angat Dam's water level was at 204.29 meters as against the 201.60 meters recorded at 5 p.m. last December 31.
"This is an increase of 2.69 meters on the dam’s water elevation. However, this is still below the desired water level of 212 meters by this time,” said Liz Mungcal, PDRRMO head. (PNA)
