THE Water Department is keeping tabs on the quality of the raw water being channelled to its Kogopon Treatment Plant in Papar and the Emergency Water Supply Scheme (EWSS) one in the Mandalipau area of the district.
A spokesman for the agency said both Plants had been operating intermittently for the past fortnight due to the fluctuating quality of the river water channelled to these facilities.
He said three separate notices had been issued about the shutdown of these facilities so far: on January 5, December 30 and December 27.
“The output from the two Plants individually fell by as much as 40 per cent on these occasions,” he said.
He said the “kekeruhan (turbidity)” of the Papar River had become more pronounced in these instances as a result of the inclement weather which the district has been experiencing.
“We have to temporarily halt the activities at the two facilities whenever the NTU [Nephelometric Turbidity Units] readings go up.”
“The NTU are an indication of the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by large numbers of individual particles which are generally invisible to the naked eye.”
Under normal circumstances, he said, about 40 million litres of treated water was produced daily (MLD) at Kogopon and 10 MLD at the EWSS Plant.
“For the last two weeks, we have been depending largely on our Limbahau Treatment Plant which has an output of some 13MLD.”
He said the recurring shutdowns had contributed to the supply woes which hundreds of consumers around Papar had been experiencing.
“This is especially so at premises located towards the end of our distribution line and in some parts of Kinarut like in Taman Limauan and Taman Kinarut Selatan.”
He said a rationing exercise was being implemented in the district to help those living and working in Papar to weather the present shortage.
“Our tanker operators have also been working flat out to deliver treated water to the affected areas.
“On Sunday night, the tyres of one of these vehicles got stuck in a verge near the town. The earth on the road reserve had turned muddy due to the bad weather at the time.”
He said the static tank at the mosque in Taman Limauan, as well as the balancing tanks in the neighbourhood, had been replenished from time to time since the end of December.
“Our personnel climb up to check on the level of the water inside these receptacles, prior to having them refilled.”
He said similar steps had been taken at the balancing tanks behind the pump-house for Taman Kinarut Selatan.
The agency’s tankers had been going around Taman Limauan when these vehicles could be spared, according to him.
“A hose is extended from the vehicle to the ground tanks of homes here.”
In cases where these receptacles were placed in the backyard – which was difficult for the tanker to access – he said consumers were forced to bring their empty containers to the tanker and carry them back to their premises.
ZIANNA of Kinarut said the taps in her house had run dry since December 23.
“I have been using the water stored in my tank very, very sparingly but these reserves won’t hold out for long,” she said. “Thankfully, there have been downpours in the evenings as many of us have taken to storing the rainwater to get by.”
She said the lack of a supply was especially difficult on her neighbours who had a newborn.
“They have been forced to buy huge bottles of mineral water just to make milk and wash their baby,” she said.”
Zianna said she had repeatedly contacted the Department’s office in Papar about these water woes.
“The staff who took my calls were unable to specify when the supply would be restored. They could only urge me to be patient while the agency works to restore a supply to the neighbourhood.”
