Water supply cut for Metro Manila

MANILA, Philippines — The National Water Resources Board (NWRB) will decrease the allocation for Metro Manila and nearby provinces starting tomorrow since Angat Dam’s water level remains low, an official said yesterday.

The allocation of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System from Angat Dam will be reduced to 44 cubic meters per second from 46 CMS.

The NWRB also reduced the National Irrigation Administration’s allocation from 30 to 25 CMS.

Allocation for the National Irrigation Administration has also been reduced to 25 CMS from the current 30 CMS.

“This is considering the level of Angat Dam (is) at around three meters below the minimum operating level of 180 meters and to manage the relatively low level of the dam,” NWRB executive director Sevillo David said in a text message.

Metro Manila sources 96 percent of its water from the decades-old Angat Dam, which supplies water to nearly 17 million consumers in Metro Manila and the nearby provinces of Rizal, Bulacan and Cavite.

Thousands of hectares of agricultural land in Bulacan and Pampanga, as well as hydropower generation, are dependent on Angat Dam for irrigation.

As of yesterday, Angat Dam’s level slightly rose to 177.94 meters, a 0.13 difference from 177.81 meters elevation level a day before.

Angat Dam’s level is currently below the normal rule curve elevation of 185.7 meters, which is the minimum reservoir elevation needed to be maintained by dam operators to ensure the availability of water for irrigation, power generation and domestic supply.

La Mesa Dam, which is used as reserve raw water storage for emergencies or water shortages, is slightly above its critical water level of 75 meters. It is currently at 79.01 meters.