BACOLOD CITY, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL — Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) has recently declared that the dry season in the country has started. A warmer temperature is already felt and is expected to last until May. Anticipating this increase in water usage, PrimeWater, together with its joint venture partner, Bacolod City Water District (BACIWA), strengthens innovation initiatives to further enhance water supply requirements in its served areas in Bacolod City.
The maintenance and improvement of water quality in certain areas are being prioritized through the development of additional water sources. This is to address immediate water needs, particularly in Barangay Taculing, which covers Puentebella and City Heights.
PrimeWater-BACIWA partnership also reported significant improvements in their 27-month partnership, which includes improved average water pressure from 5 pounds per square inch (psi) prior to JV in 2020 to around 7 psi in 2022 and a recovery of 10 MLD of water in terms of water losses, or what is referred to as non-revenue water (NRW), which is water that is wasted due to but not limited to leakages, illegal connections, and malfunctioning water meters, enabling additional average water availability improvement from 17 hours Pre-JV to 20 hours to concessionaires in the city.
To continuously provide a clean water supply to Bacolodnons, regular pipeline flushing is also conducted at a minimum daily average of 100 blow-off valves to remove the diluted coating of naturally occurring sediments and stop additional build-up within the pipes.
As an added innovation, regular pipeline cleaning is also conducted to flush out unwanted sediments in waterways through compressed air. To date, a total of 11.848 kilometers in 5 subdivisions have gone through continuous pipeline cleaning to ensure the quality of water is maintained.
“BACIWA’s pipelines are mostly very old and some even at around 80 years old before the joint venture agreement (JVA) with PrimeWater. Given this challenge and the continuously growing demand, we do not have enough resources [ML1] to maintain very old water pipes across the city. This is the reason we have to seek a joint venture partner who can invest in rehabilitating and building the capacity necessary to ensure sustainable water supply for the city, not just today but for generations to come,” Bacolod City Water District Director Mona Dia Jardin emphasizes.
Water quality is also maintained by conducting regular daily and monthly tests in compliance with the Philippine Standard for Drinking Water (PNSDW) standards and the local City Health Office. Recent parallel testing also showed that Primewater-BACIWA passed the water quality assurance activity conducted by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Safe Water Project through joint chlorine residual monitoring from 12 sampling points across Bacolod City, ensuring the utmost quality of water to the highest standards.
“PrimeWater, in partnership with BACIWA, is committed to delivering and finding more ways to provide quality and sustainable water supply in our served areas amid the city’s progress and continuous population growth. Our concessionaires may rest certain that other water service improvement projects are expected in the coming months,” concludes Ms. Farah Jenny Monteclaro, PrimeWater Bacolod City Branch Manager.
[ML1]Capital expenditure – original term used by GM
