Exec: Metro Manila can get water from Pasig River, Laguna de Bay

A view of the Pasig River at the Ayala Bridge, which connects Ermita and San Miguel districts of Manila. (File photo by NIÑO JESUS ORBETA / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

MANILA, Philippines — Pasig River and Laguna de Bay can solve the water shortage in Metro Manila, according to an executive of a water management firm.

Antonio Tompar, president and chief executive officer of Mactan Rock Industries, explained that water firms could take water from Pasig River and Laguna de Bay and subject it to desalination — that is, removing its salt content — to make it potable.

“It will cost less than a kilowatt to produce so it’s going to be very [much] cheaper,” he added.

This, however, would be a long-term solution, Tompar told reporters in an ambush interview on Wednesday, on the sidelines of the Water Philipines 2019 Conference, a three-day event at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay.

In the case of Pasig River, which is heavily polluted, its water could still be made potable by subjecting it to a clarification process, Tompar said.

Antonio Tompar, president and CEO of Mactan Rock Indutries, gives an interview at the Water Philipines 2019 Conference, a three-day event, which runs from March 20 to 22, 2019, at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay. (Photo by CONSUELO MARQUEZ / INQUIRER.net)

“It removes the mud,” he explained. “It can clean anything from muddy to clear water. We are using chemicals to remove the contaminants.”

The process makes use of a flocculation tank channel, which mixes chemicals with the water to enhance the formation of larger particles or flocs that could be easily be separated from the water.

After this, the water is placed in a clarifier tank where its particles and dirt are separated from the clean water.

Recently, the Senate and House of Representatives started their separate probes the water shortage that affected customers of Manila Water Co. Inc. in parts of Metro Manila and Rizal province.

The east zone water concessionaire implemented a water service cutoff due to the declining level of water at La Mesa Dam.

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