Malaysia: 28 water treatment plants in Pahang drying up

The Star 27 Feb 14;

KUANTAN: Twenty-eight of the 80 water treatment plants throughout Pahang recorded low levels due to the drought on Thursday.

The Public Relations Officer of Pengurusan Air Pahang Berhad (PAIP) Datuk Jafar Abdullah said the affected plants were located in eight districts, which obtained their water sources from Sungai Pahang and the Sungai Pahang tributaries.

He said seven of the plants were in the district of Lipis, Jerantut (5), Temerloh (4), Maran (4), Pekan (3), Bentong (3) and one each in Rompin and Bera.

"If the drought prolonged further, it will lead to the plants that record low water levels to be closed down," he said.

Jafar said the low level reading was also because of sand blocking the flow of river water at the water intake point. This causes the water to overflow elsewhere.

As a result, he said, cleaning works were being carried out at the water intake plant besides constructing a sand wall on the river to enable smooth flow of river water into the plant.

"However, the volume of water at the 28 treatment plants could still cater to the needs of the consumers in the area," he said.

Pahang supplies water to almost two million consumers at the rate of more than 34 million cubic metres per month.

Syabas: Brace for low water pressure
The Star 27 Feb 14;

KUALA LUMPUR: Some 300,000 households or 1.2 million consumers in seven areas in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya will have low water pressure or no water, according to Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas).

This follows a reduction in the volume of treated water released by five treatment plants on the orders of the Selangor State Economic Planning Unit, said Syabas assistant general manager (corporate communications and public affairs) Priscilla Alfred.

She said the affected areas were Gombak, Kuala Lumpur, Petaling, Klang/Shah Alam, Kuala Selangor, Kuala Langat and Hulu Selangor.

“The existing reserve in water supply is too small and, in normal circumstances, is unable to meet the demand of the consumers because the five treatment plants supply 60% of the treated water needs of these areas,” she said in a statement yesterday, as reported by Bernama.

She added that the Selangor Water Management Authority (LUAS), which is responsible for raw water resources in the state, issued a written order on Feb 24 to Syarikat Pengeluar Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (SPLASH), which manages three of the plants, to reduce the intake of raw water from Sungai Selangor by 200 million litres daily.

Alfred said if the Syabas water supply distribution plan was approved by SPAN, it would be announced to consumers tomorrow for implementation from Sunday.

The Meteorological Depart­ment said cloud-seeding operations, which were supposed to begin yesterday, had been postponed to early next week because of a lack of suitable clouds.

“The operations will commence once cumulus clouds which are suitable for seeding appear, with forecasts indicating early next week,” the department’s senior meteoro­logist Azhar Ishak said yesterday.

Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz said the hot weather might even help to attract visitors from countries currently experiencing colder weather such as in Europe and the United States.

Deputy Defence Minister Datuk Abdul Rahim Bakri said the Armed Forces would do its best to help all consumers affected by water rationing.

He added that the military would consider all requests to expand its current assistance beyond Balakong – one of the worst-hit areas. It is currently helping out by assigning water tankers and personnel.