IN support of the government’s water security initiative, West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. is putting in P375 million for the P749-million project to rehabilitate one of Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System’s common purpose facilities, the Angat-Umiray transbasin tunnel in General Nakar, Quezon.
The 13.4-kilometer transbasin tunnel, Maynilad said, is used to convey raw water from the Umiray River to Angat River, and is an important part of the water supply system of Metro Manila and nearby provinces, serving 90 percent of its population or about 16 million people.
One of the rehabilitation works and upgrades to be implemented is the retrofitting of intake and diversionary structures to withstand the effects of inclement weather such as severe flooding, the water firm said.
The MWSS project will also add new features to the transbasin tunnel for better resiliency, such as additional slope protection, revetment walls and steel sheet piles along the weir.
According to Maynilad, the rehabilitation project, targeted for completion in the fourth quarter of 2018, will help to secure the water supply of Metro Manila residents, just in case of supply uncertainties brought on by climate change.
“Through sustained investments in water infrastructure enhancements, we can continue to meet the drinking water needs of an ever-growing population. We fully support the MWSS in this endeavor,” said Maynilad president and chief executive officer Ramoncito Fernandez.
Previously, the water firm announced the completion of a P136-million pipe-replacement project in Parañaque City, which addresses the problem of leaks and breakages on the 30-year-old distribution system in Merville area.
In a statement, Maynilad said 20 kilometers of old, leaky pipelines were replaced. This will allow the company to recover 1.36 million liters of water per day that was previously lost to leaks.
The recovered water is enough to supply the water needs of about 1,000 customers, the firm reported.
More important, it said the project would enable the company to maintain a strong water pressure of 16 pounds per square inch for more than 5,000 households in Merville Subdivision, Camella Homes, South Admiral 1 and 2 Subdivisions, Molave Park Subdivision, Inland Subdivision, Cubic Homes, Bella Villa Homes, Buena Vida Homes, Greenville Subdivision and Jade Manor Townhomes.
In 2017 alone, Maynilad spent P2.79 billion for pipe-replacement projects in Quezon City, Navotas, Valenzuela, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas and Cavite, all parts of its concession area.
“To date, we have already replaced about 49 percent of the distribution system in the West Zone. We intend to sustain these water-infrastructure enhancements so that we can recover more water and bring it to the areas that need it most,” Fernandez reported.
Since the water company’s re-privatization in 2007, Maynilad has replaced around 1,982 kilometer of old pipes—about the same length as the distance between Manila and Siem Reap in Cambodia.
The West Zone is composed of the cities of Manila (all except for portions of San Andres and Santa Ana), Quezon City (west of San Juan River) West Avenue, Edsa, Congressional Road, Mindanao Avenue (the northern part, starting from the Districts of the Holy Spirit and Batasan Hills), and Makati (west of South Super Highway).
It also includes Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas and Malabon all in Metro Manila. Maynilad also partially provides water services for residents in the cities of Cavite, Bacoor and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario, and all of Cavite province.
