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Monday, October 10, 2005
Firm inches towards plan to supply water to Baguio
BENGUET Corporation (BC), the lone bidder to the Bulk Water Supply Project (BWSP), reiterated Sunday its commitment to pursue the plan of delivering water to the city amid problems bugging the project's implementation.
Officials of the former mining company said conditions for the project implementation are being set between BC's management and the Baguio Water District (BWD).
Preparation and signing of the contract, they said, will take about three months. This followed after the BWD board of directors issued the notice of award to BC last August 16.
But Danny Galang, BC's BWSP consultant, said "there are still several process that we need to go through before we could finally supply water to Baguio."
The implementation of the BWSP, which aims to supply Baguio with additional 50,000 cubic meters of water daily, continues to hit a snag, especially after BC declared its plan of converting its former open pit mines in Antamok into an impounding dam where water would be drawn for delivery to the city.
Critics raised health and legal issues against BC's water storage and delivery scheme. They claimed consumers could not afford to use water contaminated with toxic chemicals that are reportedly obviously present in abandoned open pit mines.
But Galang said the water that is impounded in the open pit will be removed, and that the area, which embraces about 20 hectares, will be further developed.
He also said water to be delivered to the BWD tank at Ambiong, and eventually to Baguio consumers is treated since it will undergo several treatment processes.
He identified at least eight "sophisticated stages" which will be undertaken to ensure that the water is free of any harmful element.
The elements include, among others, the process of aeration or the removal of iron and manganese from the water; reverse osmosis, a process done in small water treatment stations; and chlorination.
The company also dismissed apprehensions that the seven million capacity water reservoir could not actually meet the 50,000 cubic meters daily water needs of Baguio.
Galang said the impounding dam would only serve as a back up source during the dry months when the flow of the Antamok River and other tributary sources would recede.
The sources were reported to be producing at least 150 to 400,000 cubic meters of water during the rainy months, and around 30 to 35,000 cubic meters during the dry season.
To stock enough water to be used during the dry months, Galang said a water channel would be installed right at the source into the treatment plant to supply the city.
Excess water will flow to the reservoir and will be pumped out only during summer when the river's flow could not sustain the 50,000 cubic meters demand, he said.
"That's why the claim that our reservoir would not be able to maintain the needed supply for Baguio's needs is all misconceptions," he added.
The company estimates expenditure of around P2.8 billion for the project. (JC)
(October 10, 2005 issue)
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