Maynilad Water Services Inc. (Maynilad) said it will be testing purified used water as an future alternative drinking source if supply becomes scarce.

“By including used water to our supply source options, we have enhanced capability to generate more water whenever existing supplies run short,” Maynilad president Ramoncito Fernandez said Tuesday in a virtual press briefing held at the Maynilad Paranaque Water Reclamation Facility.

This strategy is modeled after Singapore, South Africa, Namibia, and the United States, which have been using treated used water as drinking water.

Maynilad also announced that it is spending P200 million on the modular treatment plants, which convert used water to potable water. Maynilad said it is aiming to produce 10 million liters daily from the La Mesa Treatment Plant.

Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) chief regulator Patrick Lester Ty said in the same briefing that Maynilad’s project is the “future of water” because it is “sustainable” and helps lessen the impact of climate change.

Foreign experts and scholars will be coming to the country develop this project, he added.

''New Water'' is “potable water supply that is produced after used water from households that passes through Maynilad’s rigorous treatment process to become drinkable,” according to Maynilad’s press release.

It will be coordinating with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Health (DOH), MWSS, and the Paranaque City government health office to guarantee that ''New Water'' is safe to drink. Jaspearl Tan/DMS