Photo by Edward Lustan / INQUIRER.net
The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) has called for the crafting of a masterplan for Manila Bay not only to clean up the polluted bay but also to ensure that sewerage and wastewater problems are addressed over the long term.
The MWSS also directed its two concessionaires, Manila Water and Maynilad Water, to reengineer and fast-track their wastewater treatment projects to arrest the deterioration of the waters of Manila Bay.
“We welcome all efforts of collaboration to clean up and rehabilitate Manila Bay. However, I strongly recommend that a masterplan, which should have been done long time ago, is needed right now to properly address the sewerage and waste problems in Mega Manila,” said MWSS administrator Reynaldo Velasco.
He noted that Manila Water follows a used water master plan as approved by the MWSS while Maynilad has its roadmap to attain 100-percent sewerage coverage also by 2037.
Shared responsibility
“The rehabilitation of Manila Bay waters is a shared responsibility and does not depend only on the two water concessionaires,” Velasco added.
Local government units and ordinary citizens have to do their share, he said.
Maynilad has invested P23.3 billion in wastewater projects since 2007.
By 2020, its sewerage coverage will increase to 26 percent.
On the other hand, Manila Water expects its sewerage coverage to increase to 22 percent by 2022.