Angat Dam’s water elevation rises above critical

MALOLOS , Philippines  —  The elevation at Angat Dam’s water reservoir rose above its 160-meter critical level yesterday.

Monitoring by the Bulacan provincial government showed that the dam’s water level was at 160.34 meters yesterday morning, an increase of 0.43 meter when compared to Monday’s 159.91 meters.

However, this is still 19.66 meters below the 180-meter minimum operating water level where the irrigation supply allocation to nearby provinces can resume.

Josephine Salazar, regional director for Central Luzon of the National Irrigation Administration, had said that Angat Dam officials usually release the allocation when water elevation is above 180 meters.

To help solve the recurring problem of water shortage, Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez has suggested the creation of mini dams in the provinces near Metro Manila.

“It is ironic that Metro Manila is submerged in flood waters even at the slightest downpour, yet households do not have a steady supply of water from their faucets,” he said. 

Aside from the mini dams, Romualdez said the 18th Congress could help the national government through a bill that will create a “central authority on water resource management” that will be called the Department of Water.

He said he got the Department of Water idea from Rep. Gavini ‘Apol’ Pancho whose Bulacan home province is always affected by floodwaters, with several towns remain submerged for weeks every rainy season. 

“I fully subscribe to the proposal of Cong. Apol. Since the creation of Department of Water is a priority of President Duterte, I will ask other leaders of Congress to include the mini-dam concept in the legislative measure,” Romualdez said. 

“The mean annual rainfall of the Philippines varies from 965 to 4,064 millimeters. It is time that we study the possibility of rainwater harvesting as a source of drinking water for our cities and municipalities,” he added.

Pancho explained that the construction of mini-dams in nearby provinces would not only help address the regular water supply problem but also partly solve the yearly flooding problem in Metro Manila.

“Recently, the heavy downpour submerged several areas of Bulacan and parts of Metro Manila yet the water level in Angat Dam rose only by a meter. If we can collect the rainwater in small dams, then we may have a steady supply of water even for agricultural, commercial and industrial use,” Pancho said.   – With Delon Porcalla, Helen Flores