Water treatment plant used to address water shortage
A water treatment plant from Manila Water Company is currently being used to address the shortage of water from Metro Iloilo Water District (MIWD).
Three more water treatment plants are expected to arrive this week – two coming from the Spanish Embassy and one from the National Power Corporation.
Mayor Jerry Treñas said the water treatment plants will address the water needs of the city residents particularly those in the evacuation centers.
According to MIWD Interim General Manager Edwin Reyes, the water treatment plant will stay in the city for 15 days to provide potable water while the MIWD pipelines are being repaired. Manila Water Company sent a seven-man crew to operate their water treatment plant.
Reyes said the water treatment plant will draw water from the Iloilo River which is near the MIWD office. The water will come out clean before distribution.
Reyes said the water treatment will pass several stages such as salination, purification and chlorination. It will also undergo reverse osmosis. The technology is like in water refilling station but it is more advanced, he said.
The water treatment plant is coupled with mobile treatment laboratory. Any water that comes out from the plant is subjected into a water potability test before the distribution.
Reyes assured the water produced from the treatment plant is safe and potable.
Manila Water Associate Manager of Quality and Regulation Ray Robles said they use conventional and reverse osmosis in treating the water pumped from the Iloilo River. It will undergo filtration, purification and chlorination.
The water treatment plant is capable to produce 1,000 liters of water per hour out of the seawater. It can produce even more potable water if the source is fresh water. The facility could produce 3,000 liters of water per hour, said Robles.
There is no problem with the technology since the equipment was already used during the Typhoon Milenyo. The recipients did not complain of any sickness after drinking the water produced from the water treatment plant, said Robles.