Problem on lack of water worse than power shortage, says Treñas
Iloilo City is not only suffering from unstable power supply but also shortage of water. City Mayor Jerry Treñas even said that the water problem is worse compared to the problem on power.
“You cannot just produce water. Even if you have already the supply, there should be enough water pipelines connections for the efficient distribution of water,” Treñas noted.
Treñas said, he was informed that the Metro Iloilo Water District (MIWD) can only supply water to 26 percent of its total concessionaires which includes Iloilo City and several towns in Iloilo province. Everyday, the water district has a requirement of 40,000 cubic meters of water.
The mayor met Friday with the sub-committee on water headed by City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) head Engr. Noel Hechanova and the board of directors of MIWD to get an update of water situation in the city.
Treñas said there is much to be done on the supply and distribution of water in the city. He will have a second round of meeting with the MIWD directors this week to come up with a better plan for the improvement of supply and distribution of water in the city.
Nevertheless, Treñas said he was briefed on the present clustering of water service connections in the districts of Jaro and Lapaz. The clustering of water service connections will improve the water supply and may do away with the illegal connections.
The MIWD is working on a project which will reduce the water pilferage and eliminate wastage of water because of its dilapidated water pipelines. The replacement of old water pipelines with a new one will improve the supply, said Treñas.
The filtration of MIWD's water basin in Sta.Barbara is also on-going. The board will present their recommendation on the water supply problem in the city this week, said Treñas.