Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Water Department (JANS) will stop selling water to water tankers to ensure adequate pressure for the water delivery system in the State Capital.
Kota Kinabalu MP Chan Foong Hin said following the water disruption in the city, he had met with the department to seek for its plans to resolve the issue.
“Chee Chun Chieh, the department’s district engineer for Kota Kinabalu, explained that they had formed a task force in June 2023 to resolve the issue of dry taps in Kota Kinabalu.
“I was made to understand that one of the biggest challenges that JANS had faced in its task to restore water supply to all taps in Kota Kinabalu is none other than the loss of water pressure and loss of water balancing in the water supply network.
“This is because water is normally delivered from higher areas to lower areas, assisted by gravity,” said Chan.
“Throughout Kota Kinabalu, there are several water tank towers where water is delivered up to these towers, stored and then delivered to the end users, also with the assistance of gravity,” he said in a statement, Monday.
Chan added there are numerous factors that contributed to the lack of pressure to deliver water up to those water tank towers.
Among them are direct tapping from the main delivery pipe and the selling of water at JANS water depot to water tankers.
He said the department’s strategy is to stop selling water to tankers to ensure water balancing so that there will be enough pressure to push the flow of water, even to higher areas.
By adjusting the balance, a flow rate would be set, and consistency could then be established throughout the delivery system.
“Hopefully with this strategy, JANS can restore water to all taps in Kota Kinabalu.”
