Already beset with problems with their water supply, residents of Laguna province may find themselves in a tighter pinch as authorities have warned that the El Niño phenomenon may cause potential problems with the province’s water supply.
In the five years of OpinYon Laguna's existence, hardly has a year gone by without it featuring complaints from residents about water supply (or the lack thereof).
In fact, the issue of water supply in some parts of the province has proved to be so bothersome for some local executives who have been forced to speak out strongly against local water concessionaires for allegedly failing to do their mandate.
Who can fail to remember San Pedro City Mayor Art Mercado’s warning to the Villar-led PrimeWater San Pedro last year that they could face real consequences for its reported failures in providing its consumers with potable water supply?
Then there’s the most recent decision of Los Baños Mayor Anthony “Ton” Genuino to take matters into his own hands and decide on the construction of alternative water sources after a barrage of complaints regarding the services of the Laguna Water District Aquatech Resources Corporation (LARC).
Now, however, Laguna province may find itself in a tighter pinch, as authorities have warned that the El Niño phenomenon may cause real problems in the supply of water not only in Metro Manila but in nearby provinces as well.
El Niño warning
Recently, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) announced the onset of the El Niño phenomenon – a climate pattern that lowers the possibility of rainfall, thereby raising the chances of dry spell and droughts.
Pagasa has warned that this cycle of El Niño could last well into 2024, which brings the real possibility of a shortage of water supply in the next few months.
And it comes at a time when an extreme rise in temperature (just last July 6, Metro Manila recorded the hottest temperature this year at 37 degrees Celsius), which meant that Lagunenses will be consuming more water than needed to combat the heat.
What are local water utilities doing?
Which brings the ultimate question that every Lagunenses are asking: what are their local water utilities doing to avert a possible water catastrophe in the province?
Given their spotty track record in the past few years, the replies OpinYon Laguna received from these concessionaires should be taken with a mix of optimism and skepticism.
In a press statement sent to OpinYon Laguna, Laguna Water, which services most of the first, second and third districts of the province, gave the reassurance that it is “doing its best to mitigate the upcoming effects of El Niño.”
“Having adequate water supply, Laguna Water has already laid out reliability plans and contingency initiatives that will ensure the sustainability of our water operations," Laguna Water General Manager Constantine Uy said in the statement.
While Laguna Water’s current sources – groundwater and the Matang Tubig Spring in Cabuyao and Calamba cities – are “still enough” to accommodate Laguna Water customers, the company is now also reportedly looking for alternative sources of water, as well as reducing its losses due to leakage.
PrimeWater San Pedro, on the other hand, has not responded to OpinYon Laguna’s queries about what it intends to do regarding the El Niño phenomenon – not surprising, given the same old excuses and promises it had given to OpinYon Laguna last year in response to Mayor Mercado’s warnings about their services.
LARC has also not responded to OpinYon Laguna’s questions as of press time.
Effect on agriculture
Another factor authorities are now looking at is the potential impact of the El Niño phenomenon to Laguna province’s agricultural sector.
This is especially important, as Department of Agriculture – Calabarzon officials projected a “below normal” rainfall for the province from November to December this year.
“Ang El Niño ay [inaasahang] magdudulot ng mas kaunting tag-ulan na magdudulot din ng mainit na panahon. Kaya di lamang po sa halaman at hayop, pero dapat din po ang ating mga magsasaka ay alagaan din ang kanilang kalusugan,” the DA regional office said in a message to OpinYon Laguna.
Officials have prepared an “El Niño Action Plan”, as well as a “widespread information dissemination” program for farmers to prepare for the expected drought that could affect their crops, the agency added.
“Bilang paghahanda, nag-utos na po si Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban na i-monitor ang supply para maiwasan ang oversupply at ang undersupply ng pagkain. Isinasagawa din po ng DA ang agarang pag-position ng mga seeds at fertilizer para makapagtanim agad ang mga farmers,” DA officials said.
What about golf courses?
While government officials and the private sector have been harping on the possible effects of El Nino to the local water supply, there's one factor that no one's apparently talking about: what about the golf courses who consume large amounts of water?
There are, in fact, six major golf courses in the first and second district of Laguna alone: one in San Pedro City, one in Santa Rosa City, two in Cabuyao City, and two in Calamba City. Most of them are owned by multimillionaire business establishments and cater to the country’s wealthiest families.
Given that golf courses need constant maintenance (which meant watering their lawns everyday), there's some concerns that these courses may be drawing in more water than what could be supplied for the entire first and second district alone.
While there's currently no official statistics on how much water these courses consume in a single year (despite intensive research by the OpinYon news team), here are some numbers that could give us an idea.
Jose Dorado, Jr., deputy administrator of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), recently claimed that some golf courses in Metro Manila consume at least 700 to 1,400 cubic meters of water per month – most of it sourced from deep wells or the Angat Dam.
By contrast, the average resident in Metro Manila consumes only 3.24 cubic meters of water a month, based on data from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS).
Dorado, by the way, has reportedly called on Metro Manila mayors to pass ordinances regulating the use of water by golf courses, car wash, and swimming pools to address the dwindling water level in Angat Dam.
To date, we haven't heard of similar proposals from local government units in Laguna to address this unbelievable wastage of water that caters only the whims of the rich.
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