Tap water again safe to drink, Maynilad tells customers

MANILA, Philippines — Go ahead, drink from the tap.

Maynilad Water Services Inc. lifted last night its advisory warning customers in its service area not to drink water from the tap.

Maynilad issued an advisory at 9:30 p.m., declaring: “We are pleased to inform you that, effective immediately, you can resume using tap water for drinking and all other purposes.”

It said the June 1 advisory “Don’t Drink from the Tap” for portions of Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Parañaque as well as Bacoor and Imus in Cavite had been lifted.

“Improvements in the raw water quality from Laguna Lake, coupled with our enhanced production processes, have enabled us to resume the distribution of water supply that meets the prescribed quality standards,” Maynilad said.

Earlier yesterday, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) said it was investigating Maynilad for the loss of potable water in some of its service areas.

MWSS chief regulator Patrick Ty said they would meet with Maynilad officials to discuss the decline in the water quality.

“Maynilad should provide potable water to customers around the clock. We want to understand the situation and investigate why they are not able to provide potable water,” Ty told reporters yesterday.

On Saturday, Maynilad issued the advisory about the tap water, citing turbidity in water quality. Around 159,000 households were affected.

Maynilad earlier explained that it had to make adjustments in its treatment processes to maintain “acceptable” water quality standards after the water conditions in Laguna de Bay changed in the past days. Maynilad sources raw water from the lake.

The salinity or salt content of the raw water from Laguna de Bay spiked amid the rains as the country transitioned to the wet season, according to Maynilad corporate communications head Jennifer Rufo.

Maynilad opted to “relax slightly” its water quality to be able to maintain adequate water production and avert a total loss of services, Rufo said.

The MWSS said Maynilad should have anticipated the seasonal change in the quality and condition of raw water in Laguna de Bay.

A probe by the MWSS Regulatory Office usually takes about three to four months, Ty said.

Maynilad must fix the water quality problem within three days in accordance with its concession agreement, he said.