MCWD warns public of inconvenience due to Talamban pipe-laying project

THE Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) appeals to the residents, especially the motorists, to bear with the temporary inconvenience brought by its ongoing pipe-laying project in barangays Pit-os, Bacayan and Talamban in Cebu City.

The activity will affect the traffic flow of the area for the duration of the project.

Mainlines expansion/civil works division manager Allan Chu said the target date of completion is Dec. 9, but their contractor New Culion Builder Corp. is asking for a 65-day extension.

This is because the project started late due to problems in the procurement of the ductile iron pipes.

To minimize the project’s impact on the traffic flow, the contractor only excavates and lays pipes at nighttime or between 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.

The excavated soil is kept in a dump truck.  After laying the pipes in a certain segment, digging is immediately backfilled to avoid obstructions in the area.

The contractor also coordinated with the barangay officials and the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) to avoid congestion.

The Pit-os-Bacayan-Talamban water supply project is expected to deliver a minimum of 6,000 cubic meters of potable water a day to residents and businesses in the area.

Due to the lack of water supply, residents in Bacayan buy water from private suppliers at P40 per cubic meter or more than double the water rates of MCWD.

MCWD invested P54 million for the project.

MCWD general manager Armando Paredes earlier said water sources include MCWD’s Talamban wellfields and possible private sources through joint venture contracts.