Manila Water empties over 39,000 septic tanks for H1 2023

Manila Water conducts septic tank siphoning from a house. This November, Manila Water will bring its desludging caravan to 70 cities and municipalities in Metro Manila and Rizal Province to provide septic tank siphoning at no additional cost. For the first half of 2023, Manila Water said it has emptied more than 39,000 septic tanks under its desludging program. Photo from Manila Water

Manila Water conducts septic tank siphoning from a house. This November, Manila Water will bring its desludging caravan to 70 cities and municipalities in Metro Manila and Rizal Province to provide septic tank siphoning at no additional cost. For the first half of 2023, Manila Water said it has emptied more than 39,000 septic tanks under its desludging program. Photo from Manila Water

MANILA, Philippines — Manila Water has emptied a total of 39,712 septic tanks in the first half of 2023 through its desludging caravan.

Every month, Manila Water’s desludging caravan goes around barangays in its service areas in the East Zone of Metro Manila and Rizal province to offer siphoning services at no additional cost.

READ: Manila Water stresses importance of desludging for environmental, community health

As part of its service obligation as well as its commitment in improving public health and sanitation, Manila Water regularly provides desludging to its customers to ensure that household and human wastes contained in their septic tanks, or septage, will be collected and properly treated in the company’s septage treatment plants before discharging back to bodies of water.

“We understand that the majority of households in the country rely on septic tanks for wastewater management instead of a sewer system. However, septic tanks, even with proper maintenance, only offer primary treatment, leaving behind residual waste called septage. Unfortunately, this septage can contaminate groundwater and municipal drainage systems, eventually finding its way into rivers and other water bodies.” said Dittie Galang, head of Manila Water’s Corporate Communications Department.

READ: Manila Water urges customers to avail desludging service to avoid toilet overflow

“At these treatment plants, we ensure that the septage undergoes appropriate treatment before it is safely disposed. To efficiently provide desludging services to customers, we maintain a fleet of vacuum trucks that regularly clean septic tanks according to a scheduled plan, with no additional cost to the communities,” Galang added.

READ: Manila Water underscores importance of desludging

For the month of November, Manila Water said its desludging caravan will go to 70 barangays, which are:

Manila

Quezon City

Mandaluyong City

Makati City

San Juan City

Pasig City

Taguig City

Antipolo City

Cainta

Montalban 

Angono

Taytay

Manila Water said residents in these areas can check with their respective barangay councils or call the Manila Water Consumer Help Desk at 1627 for the exact schedule of the caravan’s visit in their locality.

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