Rising Angat Dam level allays Metro supply fears

CITY OF MALOLOS, Philippines—The water level at Angat Dam, one of Metro Manila’s sources of potable water, has been rising thanks to rains dumped in the last few days, officials noted.

Water elevation at the reservoir rose to 211.96 meters above sea level on Friday, close to the high maintenance level of 212 masl.

The development should ease the supply fears faced by Metro Manila, which draws most of its water from the dam located in neighboring Bulacan province, according to Rodolfo German, general manager of Angat River Hydro Electric Power Plant (Arhep), which is under the management of San Miguel Corp.

“We expect the levels to rise further,” German said, adding that excess water would be used to generate electricity for the power plant.

Bulacan disaster risk reduction and management officer Raul Agustin said recent rains about by the northeast monsoon and the tailend of a cold front should address apprehensions over the next El Niño phenomenon, a prolonged dry spell projected to begin in January.

On Wednesday, the dam’s water elevation was at 211.34 masl. It was at 209.42 masl on Dec. 12 or five days earlier. Last summer, it dropped to just over 160 masl, prompting authorities to reduce irrigation supplies and conduct cloud-seeding operations to induce rainfall.