Dire consequences if no continuous, stable water supply
Published on: Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: A review on managing water resources for domestic and agriculture use must be done to address the rising concerns of a water shortage in the State. Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman on Monday said such effort was necessary to ensure suitable and efficient development of infrastructure in the respective areas in the long run.
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"Industries risk coming to a standstill if there is no continuous and stable supply of water," he warned. Water management should not only be focused on supply and distribution. As the population has tripled in the last three decades, work to manage the resource has become more challenging. Over the years, demand for water supply from all sectors ranging from agriculture to power generation is growing to sustain its development along with domestic consumption, he added. "We need to adapt to challenging situations in future by improving the management of water resources. Demand will always grow, and we need to think and plan ahead before we face a critical water shortage."
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Musa said this during the opening of the World Water Day event, here on Monday. His speech was read by Deputy Chief Minister cum Infrastructure Development Minister Tan Sri Pairin Kitingan. He added that in the span of five years from 2005, water demand has increased from 863 million litres a day in 2005 to 994 million litres a day and that a similar rise is experienced in power generation. Unpredictable weather patterns and climate change have also made it more challenging to sustain the resources, he explained.
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And although Sabah is blessed with abundant rainfall, supposedly sufficient to meet water demands from all sectors, "rain does not necessarily fall in areas where it most required," he pointed out. He said due to such variables all stakeholders must work together to solve the problem and that the government has already spent a large amount of capital to set up and improve all present facilities. To date, the government has clinched 100 per cent coverage of treated water supply in the urban areas, and 75 per cent in the rural areas, supported by another eight per cent from gravity-feed sources. Despite the scorecard, Musa said the government is also determined to improve its industries and as example, it wants to up 60 per cent of the State's rice production to reduce reliance on imports .With only around 30 per cent of output at present, a sufficient amount of water supply is needed for the job. Although it may not be able to address Sabah's long-term food security concerns, it would at least, raise the yields of Sabah farmers, he said. On another development, Musa also stressed the importance of managing local water catchment and safeguard Sabah's water resource in view of constant flooding."We need to be assured that our water sources are not contaminated and that we have reliable and safe supply by protecting watersheds," he said. Musa called on all quarters to also work together to ensure efficient growth in the socio-economic and industrial sectors, without compromising watersheds that provide this resource. Earlier, he said the government has implemented several programmes to mitigate floods, including the construction of new drainage systems, upgrading catchment areas and monitor and control of water flow at source. Concerns over flooding have been growing in recent years, with the abundance of water linked to incessant rain also threatening damage to property and life. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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