Angat Dam water level continues to drop

NORZAGARAY, Bulacan – Water elevation at the Angat Dam continues to drop despite the onset of rainy season.

However, dam managers said there is nothing to worry over the receding water elevation as inflows brought by afternoon rainfall is almost equal to the allocation given to Metro Manila which draws 97 percent of potable water from the dam.

Records obtained by The STAR showed that water elevation at the giant reservoir dropped to 162.80 meters above sea level yesterday morning, compared to 163.18 masl recorded on Thursday, or a difference of .38 meters.

This .38 meter four-day difference is lower than the average of one meter receding rate every three days recorded in March, April and May.

According to Engineer Rodolfo German, manager of the Angat River Hydroelectric Power Plant, it only showed that water elevation at the dam is now leveling off.

The Angat River Hydroelectric Power Plant is an agency of the National Power Corp. (Napocor) that manages the Angat Dam here which supplies 97 percent of the metropolis’ potable and industrial water requirement.

“Water elevation at the dam is beginning to level off due to rainfall we have every afternoon,” said German.

He said that Angat Dam is now receiving at least three million liters of inflow from rain. This is about the same amount that the dam supplies to Metro Manila everyday.

“This is good news and we expect more rains as the Pagasa forecast at least two typhoons for the month of June,” he said referring to the country’s weather bureau, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.

He also said predictions that water elevation at the dam will hit the lowest 158 masl will not happen anymore.

The said lowest water elevation at the dam was recorded in mid-September 1998, or more than a year after the country suffered the onslaught of El Niño.

At present, Metro Manila is receiving an allocation of 35 cubic meters per second (cms) which is lower than the 37 cms that was allocated earlier this month.

Vicente Paragas, acting executive director of the National Water Resources Board, said that rainfall at the dam remain erratic at the start of the month despite the onset of the rainy season.

He said that they will work closely with Pagasa and will issue another advisory based on the weather forecast and current water elevation on the dam.

Meanwhile, allocation for the National Irrigation Administration that supplies irrigation to 27,000 hectares of farmlands in Bulacan and Pampanga remained at zero.

German said that they might start releasing water for irrigation by July, but it will still depend on water stored at the dam’s reservoir.