It is worrying to notice that the water level at the Sungai Selangor dam, which supplies water to more than 60% of the people in the Klang Valley, is reducing at a fast pace with a current reading of 35.69% (as of July 25, 2014). Since the water rationing being lifted on May 1, 2014, at the level of around 37-38%, the rainfall has been irregular.
The months of June and July are projected to be the driest months based on 20 years of historical data by the Meteorological Department of Malaysia and the current reading of the Sungai Selangor dam levels proves to be a valid early warning to us while we are still waiting for the rainy season to come after the monsoonal change somewhere in September.
With the resurgence of haze in peninsular Malaysia and the recent rainless days, water consumption is expected to increase as people tend to use more water to keep themselves hydrated and cool down. While we might experience reductions in water consumption in the Klang Valley during the festive season as most people will be away from the city, it does not mean that problem is solved as the water problem will only reoccur when everyone returns to the city.
As of today, we have yet to hear from the government agencies as to where mitigation measures such as cloud-seeding will be carried out in order to at least clear off the haze. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has reported that the haze will persist until September due to the open burning activities in central Sumatra, Indonesia. No concrete solution was mentioned to solve the matter.
More information on the current water situation in Selangor needs to be disseminated to the public. Amounts of water being extracted from the ex-mining pool, success rate of the cloud-seeding operation and also data of daily treated water production from the water treatment plants vs the daily consumption of water must be made publicly available.
With this information, the public will be more mindful in their water consumption and thus reduce the water demand. In addition, the government agencies will have more time to plan and implement any mitigation plans in order to avoid acute water shortage.
Political games and finger-pointing must be put aside in order to solve this problem. All stakeholders must communicate and work together as a way forward in tackling this looming water problem.
* Foon Weng Lian is secretary-general for the Water and Energy Consumer Association of Malaysia (Wecam). TMI
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