THE Buhisan Dam is no longer producing water, and with its other water sources also seeing problems, the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) said its total production has now plummeted 21 percent.
The Buhisan Dam’s drying up has resulted in low pressure to no water in several barangays in Metro Cebu, the water district said Friday.
The dam is the second surface water facility, along with its Compostela water facility, that has declared zero water production due to the drought brought by the El Niño phenomenon, MCWD spokesperson Minerva Gerodias told “Beyond the Headlines,” SunStar Cebu’s online news and commentary program on April 26, 2024.
Buhisan’s normal production is 6,000 cubic meters per day, but by April 10, this had halved to just 3,143 cubic meters of water per day, before totally disappearing in just two weeks.
As for the Compostela water facility that takes water from the Cotcot River, under normal circumstances, it could produce 12,500 cubic meters of water a day.
The problems of its surface water sources have combined to raise MCWD’s production deficit to over 63,000 cubic meters of water per day or over 21 percent of its usual production.
The normal production of MCWD is 301,000 cubic meters of water a day, but as of April 25, MCWD’s production had dropped to just 237,472 cubic meters a day, Gerodias said.
Some two weeks ago, or on April 10, the water utility’s daily deficit was just 46,000 cubic meters of water a day, for a total production of 254,252 cubic meters.
Surface water
Currently, MCWD’s other surface water sources have also seen further drops in water production output.
The Jaclupan wellfield in Talisay City is now producing just 8,000 cubic meters per day, from 14,193 cubic meters per day last April 10. Its usual production is 30,000 cubic meters a day.
The Lusaran Hydro’s water production is now at 11,000 cubic meters per day, down from 15,000 cubic meters per day last April 10. This means it is now producing just a third of its usual 30,000 cubic meters a day.
Gerodias said only the water supplier from the Luyang River in Carmen town had not been affected. Manila Water Philippine Ventures has a 10-year contract to supply MCWD with 30,000 cubic meters of surface water daily from the Luyang River.
MCWD serves the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay and Lapu-Lapu, and the towns of Consolacion, Liloan, Compostela and Cordova.
Measures
To alleviate the low to intermittent water supply in severely affected barangays, Gerodias said the water utility will deploy water trucks to supply these areas.
She said this water supply will be sourced from underground water sources of private water suppliers and the surface water from the facility in the northern town of Carmen.
Gerodias said its existing private water suppliers had committed to provide an additional 45,000 cubic meters of water a day from their underground water sources after the MCWD urged them to improve their water production, and this will be distributed in the coming days.
This will be on top of their existing service contracts with the water district, Gerodias said.
Desalination plant
Moreover, Gerodias said they are awaiting the start of the operation of the Opao Desalination Plant in Mandaue City, which will initially produce 10,000 cubic meters of water per day. At full capacity, it can produce 25,000 cubic meters of water a day.
She said the joint venture project of Pilipinas Water Resources Inc. (PWRI) and 8990 Housing Development Corp., the proponents of the Opao desalination facility, was scheduled to test the equipment on Sunday, April 28 as part of its preparation for the upcoming operations.
“Hopefully, gamay lang ang atong adjustment after that para madayon na gyud ang atong commissioning sa atong desalinated seawater gikan sa Opao Desalination Plant,” Gerodias said.
(Hopefully, the adjustment after that will just be minimal so that we can finally proceed with the commissioning of the desalinated seawater from the Opao Desalination Plant.)
On the other hand, the Mambaling Desalination Plant is set to operate by the end of May 2024.
Gerodias said more desalination facilities are expected to be operated in Metro Cebu in the coming years. These will be situated in the cities of Cebu and Lapu-Lapu in the next three years
Affected barangays
Gerodias said 11 additional barangays in the cities of Cebu and Talisay have been identified as affected by water supply shortages and these were San Nicolas, Bulacao, Punta Princesa, Pardo, Banawa, Mambaling, Tisa and the barangay where V. Rama Avenue is situated in Cebu City and Pooc, Tabunok, San Isidro in Talisay City.
Gerodias said MCWD is finalizing the schedules for the deployment of water trucks to the above-mentioned barangays which will be announced later.
These are on top of the first 12 identified barangays on April 10, namely Umapad, Opao, Alang-Alang, Looc and Subangdaku in Mandaue City; Lorega San Miguel, Binaliw, San Jose, Talamban and Pit-os in Cebu City; and Cansojong and San Roque in Talisay City.
Coordinate
Gerodias said MCWD commended the initiative of some barangay officials to deploy their fire trucks and water trucks to deliver water to their affected constituents.
She urged them to coordinate with the water district so they can be guided on which hydrants to source water from.
Gerodias urged MCWD consumers to conserve water as they face the issue of water supply shortages amid the drought.
State weather bureau Pagasa has forecast the drought conditions to persist till the end of May.