New Straits Times 2 Apr 14;
CYBERJAYA: Come Friday, a staggering 6.7 million people will be forced to endure water rationing as taps continue to run dry despite the steady rainfall.
In a desperate bid to manage its dwindling water reserves, the Selangor government has further slashed the volume of water released from the Sungai Selangor dam by an additional 500 million litres daily.
This is in addition to its previous reduction of also 500 million litres daily, effectively bringing the total reduction to a billion litres daily since the water crisis began on March 2.
Unveiling the next phase of water rationing yesterday, the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) and Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) said the move is expected to affect 6.7 million people in nine districts - Gombak, Petaling, Klang / Shah Alam, Kuala Selangor, Hulu Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Langat, Hulu Langat and Sepang.
Also not spared were 620,237 households in Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur, who would also face water rationing.
SPAN chairman Datuk Ismail Kassim described the situation as “critical” and said the next phase of rationing was necessary.
The Sungai Selangor dam, he said, provides 60 per cent of the Klang Valley’s water source.
“Given the present situation, the Selangor government had no choice but to reduce the water output from the Sungai Selangor dam.
“If the dam’s water levels are not carefully maintained, its reserves will deplete and its impact on Selangor, the Federal Territory and Putrajaya will be severe,” he told a press conference at SPAN headquarters here, yesterday.
Ismail said the recent rainfall had not improved the situation at the seven dams - Sungai Selangor, Sungai Tinggi, Sungai Semenyih, Sungai Langat, Klang Gates, Tasik Subang and Sungai Batu, which supply water to treatment plants in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.
"Although it has been raining in Klang valley since March 16, the amount of rainfall is still low. Aside from that, the rainfall this year is lower, coupled with the increased production of treated water compared to the previous years.
“Despite the rainfall, water levels have only increased slightly in the dams. The rain did not fall in the required catchment areas,” he said, adding that this has prompted the authorities to implement the next phase of rationing.
Ismail said the next phase of rationing for Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya residents will begin at 9am this Friday until April 30.
The areas would be divided into four zones and water supply would be provided based on the the two-days on, two-days off system.
Consumers can refer to the distribution table provided in the SPAN website (www.span.gov.my) to identify their respective areas.
On days when areas are scheduled to receive water, supply would begin at 4pm. After the two day period, water would then be cut off at 9am.
“Some places such as high areas or areas at the end of the distribution system would receive their supply three to four hours late,” he said.
Ismail said water rationing will continue until the end of the month, unless the situation improves.
Meanwhile, the scheduled water distribution in Taiping, Perak and its surrounding areas will start on Thursday (April 3).
Ismail said SPAN had approved the application by the Perak Water Board to carry out the programme involving 27,982 accounts following the drop in water level at the Taiping Headworks water treatment plant.
Syarikat Air Johor Holdings Sdn Bhd would also proceed with the scheduled water distribution in Mersing as the water level at the Congok dam was at 4.22 metres, below the critical level of 4.50 metres. He said the schedule would be reimplemented at the Lok Heng and Waha Felda settlements, and other areas in Sedili, Johor.
Disbelief, outrage over water rationing
ADRIAN DAVID AND ELVINA FERNANDEZ New Straits Times 2 Apr 14;
CHANGING LIFESTYLE: Residents, business owners want authorities to improve the situation fast
KUALA LUMPUR: MALAYSIANS reacted with a mixture of disbelief and outrage over the announcement that even more water cuts would be headed their way beginning this Friday.
Having been forced to change their lifestyles to weather the water crisis, residents and business owners alike were demanding that the authorities figure out a way to improve the situation fast.
"It's frustrating. We had to change our lifestyles to suit this never-ending rationing," said Shannon Selvaraju, 26, of Bukit Bandaraya, Bangsar.
Her family, she said, had to take drastic measures, including using disposable underwear and sending clothes to the laundry, to limit water usage at home.
"We had to eat out more as the limited water we stored at home was for bathing and cleaning."
Her reaction came in light of yesterday's announcement by the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) and Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) that, come Friday, the next phase of water rationing would be implemented.
This time, it would affect 6.7 million people in a continuation of the water crisis, which had plagued mostly Selangor residents since March 2.
The move will affect households in nine districts -- Gombak, Petaling, Klang / Shah Alam, Kuala Selangor, Hulu Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Langat, Hulu Langat and Sepang. An additional 620,237 households in Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur will also face water cuts this Friday.
Helen Fernandez, a legal assistant from Segambut, said her family-of-three spent more on food delivery and mineral water.
She said it was annoying to be forced to be cautious about water usage.
"It's ridiculous and embarrassing when we have visitors and worry if they would want to use the toilet."
Salak South resident C.C. Tan said the water rationing would be acceptable if the authorities kept to the schedule.
"Unfortunately, our experience over the past month showed they don't always keep to the schedule, nor do they do it in a timely manner," said the 39-year-old.
Business owners were also being pushed to the brink. Kelly Wong, a hair salon operator in USJ6, Subang Jaya, predicted that her business would suffer drastically.
"Every aspect of my business needs water. I will have no choice but to limit my services to just haircuts. I don't see the point in storing water to wash hair because I would need the supply to come from a shower head.
"It won't be acceptable to use water scoops to wash my customers' hair. I need both warm and hot water to wash hair."
The Malaysian Employers Federation believed that if the crisis continued, it could lead to potential investors shying away from Malaysia in the long-run.
Its executive director, Shamsuddin Bardan, said it was ironic that an important utility like water repeatedly faced shortages as the nation moved forward towards a fully-developed status.
"Numerous large industries need constant water supply for their production and manufacturing needs. It would be not only inconvenient but costly for them to purchase water from other sources as it would drive up their overhead and operating costs."
He called on all quarters to look for alternate ways to harness the resources in the most efficient way possible. Otherwise, the water shortage could deter investors.
"All our efforts to woo them will be wasted." Additional reporting by Dawn Chan and Halim Said
Cloud seeding put on hold due to rainy season
The Star 2 Apr 14;
PETALING JAYA: Cloud seeding operations will be put on hold for a few days as the country is seeing near daily thunderstorms and showers of the inter-monsoon season, even if the levels in the dams in Klang Valley are not showing any signs of increasing.
National weather centre director Muhammad Helmi Abdullah said cloud seeding was unnecessary given the current rainfall patterns.
He added that it would only be a matter of time before the water levels rose as the rainy season continued.
“Let nature take its course. After a prolonged dry spell, one cannot expect water levels to increase after several days of rainfall.
“The soil around the water catchment area is so dry that water will simply be absorbed into the ground, making water levels in the dams appear unchanged,” said Helmi.
He added that the states in Peninsular Malaysia’s west coast area were expected to receive normal rainfall of between 200 and 300mm during the inter-monsoon season, and that would be sufficient to raise water levels at the dams if the wet spell continued in the coming weeks.
The inter-monsoon season, which is expected to begin at the end of this month, will last until the middle of May.
SMIs fear prolonged water rationing
The Star 2 Apr 14;
PETALING JAYA: Small and medium scale businesses are fearful of a prolonged water rationing exercise as they are already struggling to cope with the current rationing exercise.
SMI Association of Malaysia president Teh Kee Sin said some members claimed that the water shortage had caused them to “run into losses” as they were unable to accept the usual number of orders from their customers.
These members were those from the food processing and injection moulding industries.
Teh said it was impossible for the food processing industry to conduct their operations without water.
“They need to use a lot of water, but lack the funds to invest in tanks to store water. Sometimes, they are also constrained by space,” said Teh, who added that it felt strange that “an elite state” like Selangor faced frequent water shortages.
“The situation has cast a negative image on the country and does not reflect well on how we manage our water,” he said, adding that both the state and federal governments must put their differences aside in order to resolve water-related issues.
Meanwhile, Ossia World of Golf executive director Saw Swee Leong said that the water rationing exercise had caused a lot inconvenience to his workers.
He said the warehouse dealing with sports equipment and goods had 60 workers and they had invested a substantial amount of money to obtain three water tanks to cope with the shortage.
“We have placed a tank at each of our office floors to cover the rationing period,” he said,
Loong Yee restaurant operator Heng Teo Chean, 47, of Taman Midah, Cheras said he almost closed his restaurant after the taps ran dry since March 28.
Fortunately, the supply was reconnected on Sunday and he managed to open his premise.
“However, the water was murky and appeared like Chinese tea until yesterday morning,” Heng said, adding that he had purchased an additional tank to store water for the dry days.
Consumers taking precautions against erratic supply schedule
The Star 2 Apr 14;
PETALING JAYA: Some households are storing more water than needed during the water rationing period, causing others to brand them as “hoarders”.
However, those who are experiencing water rationing said they were merely “taking precautionary measures”.
Crystal Lee, a 26-year-old sales executive living in Taman Teratai, Cheras, said that she was doing so because there were times when the water supply did not resume on time.
With four adults in the house, Lee thinks that three big containers are sufficient for household activities such as cleaning the house and showering.
“I don’t think we are hoarding as our supply is enough to last for around 2.5 days,” she said.
“We are doing this because the resumption of supply is not consistent with the schedule provided by Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas).
“For example, we were supposed to have water yesterday but woke up to dry taps,” claimed Lee.
Sharifah Shuhada Syed Ghazali, a 42-year-old baker who runs a business from her home in Ampang Hilir, is another unhappy Syabas customer.
“They should stick to the schedule. Right now, I have not had water supply for five days.
“Even on days we are scheduled to get water, we only get supply at dawn and by 8am, our taps are dry,” said Sharifah.
Marketing executive Kelly Yuen, who lives in Ara Damansara, said her family of five was living with the consequences of not storing a bit more water than actual consumption.
“If I did that, I wouldn’t have to go to my office or my aunt’s house to bathe.
“I would use the stored water until it is finished before refilling,” said Yuen, who also expressed her unhappiness over the state of rationing.
“My sister called up Syabas and they informed us our rationing was lifted.
“To our disappointment, it was cut off again after those four days and we did not store enough water,” said Yuen.
Yesterday, The Star reported that although the dams in Selangor were close to running dry, many residents were still using nearly as much water as they were when the dams were full.
Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry secretary-general Datuk Loo Took Gee said that water consumption in Selangor had dropped by only 7% despite the rationing.
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