The National Water Resources Board (NWRB) maintained the 52 cubic meters per second water allocation for the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) to prevent interruptions.

At the ''Laging Handa'' public forum Thursday, NWRB Executive Director Sevillo David Jr. said the board granted the request of the water concessionaire to retain the water allocation to support their improvement maintenance activities.

“First, this is to support the efforts of MWSS while their system is undergoing improvement, to augment the supply of their water sources, and to improve their recovery from their leakages. So while they are doing this the NWRB granted their request to retain the water allocation of 52 cubic meters per second to prevent water interruptions,'' said David.

From June 16 to 30, the NWRB will lessen the water allocation for MWSS to 50 cubic meters per second.

In a separate interview, David said he expects lesser allocation in the second half of June to not affect the water supply.

“We are expecting the present efforts of MWSS and other concessionaires in addressing the lost water from their system will help them recover. So that when they receive the allocation of 50 cubic meters per second on June 16, this will significantly help and this will not have a major effect on the supply of our countrymen. We will regularly review (their water requirement),” David said.

The NWRB has also approved a water allocation of 40 cubic meters per second for the National Irrigation Administration.

It is also preparing for the possible effects of El Nino on the water supply since there will be lesser rainfall.

“We are seeing that this can possibly affect the water supply particularly the water level of Angat dam. That’s why we need to prepare for the effect of El Nino and ensure that the consumers have enough water supply. So we are continuously urging everyone to conserve water,” David said.

As of 6 am Thursday, the water level of Angat dam remains normal at 189.64 meters.

At Ipo Dam, the water level is at 98.1 meters while in La Mesa Dam it is at 76.88 meters. Jaspearl Tan/DMS