Rizal to get water from Laguna de Bay-

In order to provide clean and reliable water at reasonable rates in Metro Manila, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) contracted out the water supply and sewerage services of the east zone of the city to the Manila Water Company under a concession agreement in 1997. Since then, the Manila Water Company has undertaken several initiatives to provide potable water to its service area, which covers 23 cities. For instance, it has implemented the Angat water supply optimisation project, Umiray Angat transbasin project, Metro Manila groundwater development project and Balara water treatment plant rehabilitation project, among others, to provide bulk water supply services, reduce non-revenue water and enhance distribution systems in Metro Manila. Further, the company has adopted a holistic approach to sustainability by undertaking environmental initiatives, such as preservation of water resources and proper disposal of treated wastewater. It has also been successful in reducing the non-revenue water generated in Metro Manila from 63 per cent in financial year 1997 to 13 per cent in financial year 2017.

Among the areas served by the Manila Water Company is the province of Rizal. The civic agency executed several projects in the region to augment water supply services in Angono, Antipolo, Baras, Binangonan, Cainta, Cardona, Jala-Jala, Morong, Pililia, Rodriguez, San Mateo, Tanay, Taytay and Teresa towns. For instance, the Rodriguez water treatment plant project has been implemented to meet the current and long-term demand for reliable surface water in Rodriguez and San Mateo. Further, the Tubig Para Sa Barangay programme has been operationalised to enable marginalised households to connect to piped and metered water supply connections in Rizal. The Manila Water Company has also executed the North Rizal water system project to provide clean and potable tap water to the citizens of Rodriguez and San Mateo in Rizal as well as Marikina city, helping eliminate the use of deep wells.

Such projects have allowed the civic agency to fulfil the water demands of a rapidly expanding population and growing commercial and residential establishments in Rizal. However, the region continues to rely on water extracted from deep wells, which has led to a severe deterioration in the quality of groundwater in Rizal. Moreover, the groundwater level is not adequate to meet the demand of the entire province. The Angat reservoir, which is the only source of water for Metro Manila, is also not sufficient to meet the potable water demand in the region. Thus, these water sources cannot fulfil the long-term water demand of Rizal and its nearby regions. In the face of this, the civic agency has increasingly come to realise the vital role that lakes can play in ensuring water supply.

To provide a long-term water resource for Rizal province, the Manila Water Company has initiated the Rizal Province Water Supply Improvement Project (RPWSIP). The project involves tapping water from the Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the country. Its shoreline runs across three major regions – the eastern part of Metro Manila, the northern portion of Laguna province, and several coastal towns of Rizal. Thus, it makes for a potential water source for towns that are yet to be covered under an adequate water supply scheme.

Project scope

Under the project, the Manila Water Company has decided to draw about 50 million litres per day (mld) of water from Laguna de Bay. An agreement was signed in this regard between the Manila Water Company and the Laguna Lake Development Authority on August 30, 2013. The water drawn from Laguna de Bay will be supplied to intake locations at Brgy, Calahan, Cardona and Rizal, where it will be processed and treated.

The project is being executed in a phased manner. It is expected to supply potable water to about 300,000 consumers in several municipalities of Rizal province. Under Phase I of the project, the scope of works includes construction of a 50 mld water treatment facility at Cardona, intake structures, raw and treated water pumping stations, and storage reservoirs. It also includes laying of distribution pipelines to supply water from Laguna de Bay to Angono and Taytay towns in Rizal. Under Phase II of the project, groundwater will be supplied to seven other towns – Baras, Cardona, Jala-Jala, Morong, Pililia, Taytay and Teresa. For this, deep wells and elevated tanks will be constructed, and the required distribution pipelines will be laid. A total of 67,838 cubic metres per day (cu m per day) of water will be supplied to the nine towns in Rizal under the two phases of the project. Of this, while 47,500 cu m per day of water will be supplied to Angono and Taytay under Phase I; the remaining 20,338 cu m per day water will be supplied to the seven other towns under Phase II.

Financing for RPWSIP

The project is expected to entail a total investment of PhP 1,093.19 million. Of this, PhP 580.41 million will be for Phase I and the remaining PhP 512.78 million for implementing Phase II. Funding for the project is being partially provided through the French Protocol, which is a French treasury credit facility under the French Republic. A PhP 56.36 million loan was granted for the project in December 2002. It has a maturity period of 16 years, till December 31, 2018. The repayment period for the loan is 10 years, starting from the date of maturity.

Technology involved

Various unique and innovative technologies have been used for comprehensive water treatment of Laguna de Bay water. For instance, a pre-ozonation chemical treatment has been used for disinfecting water. At the same time, clarifiers based on a technology called Actiflo® have been used to reduce odour by flocculating raw water with microsand and polymer molecules. Another technology called Actiflo Carb® has been inducted which uses carbon for removing pollutants and providing high quality treated water. In order to retain suspended particles such as iron and manganese and to correct the acidity level of the water supplied, various filters have been provided under a technology called Filtraflo™.

Project progress

The feasibility report and design for the project have been prepared by the Council of Filipino Consultants, Inc. based out of the Philippines. In November 2014, the Manila Water Company invited bids for the project. In April 2016, the contract was awarded to a consortium of Sta. Clara International Corporation and OTV (Veolia Water Technologies), with the Philippines-based GHD as a project management consultant. The contract mandates the execution of Phase I of the project on a design-build-operate basis. It also includes operation and maintenance of the water supply infrastructure for a period of one year.

The civic agency has also appointed AMH Philippines, Inc. as a technical consultant for the project. The company will undertake structural analysis and design of water treatment facilities including the dual media filter, wastewater storage tank, sludge dewatering building, intake pumping station, treated water reservoir, and reverse osmosis tank.

While Phase I of RPWSIP was initially scheduled to be operationalised by August 2017, it is now expected to be completed by end-2017. Once this phase is commissioned, the Manila Water Company is planning to roll out the second phase of the project. The entire project is expected to be commissioned by 2019.

The way forward

While the Manila Water Company’s efforts to ensure water security to about 6.5 million citizens through the implementation of various projects is laudable, it will need to ensure the sustainability of water resources, develop new water sources and periodically assess and rehabilitate old water supply infrastructure. To do so, the Manila Water Company is planning to introduce new projects for rehabilitation of distribution mains and construction of new aqueducts. Further, interim and long-term water projects have been planned to provide approximately 4,000 mld of potable water in the coming years.