BAGUIO CITY — Water supply is a perennial problem in this city especially during summer and peak tourist season. It is at these times that the water firm is forced to ration water through scheduling as city government officials are helpless in the effort to improve the sorry state of this important resource.
To date, the city government continues to develop its facilities in a bid to meet the ever-growing demand for clean, potable water here.
But despite the problem, the Baguio Water District (BWD) is assuring the public that the water supply of the city is sufficient to meet the daily requirements of the city residents and visitors.
Though the BWD management admitted that it can provide only 35,000 cubic meters of the total requirement of 52,000 cubic meters a day, BWD General Manager Teresita de Guzman said that the agency will be implementing contingency plans during the peak tourist season this summer.
De Guzman said that during the wet season (from late June to October), the city relies heavily on eight open water sources such as springs and water reservoirs for the needs of city residents. These sources allow underground supply to replenish themselves as well as to save on electric cost.
During the dry months (from November to early June), BWD utilizes the 55 water-distribution facilities comprising mostly of deep wells."
The water firm is able to meet the requirements of residents by rationing. Specific areas in the city receive their supply of water on a given day, enough for residents to fill up their water tanks or other containers. The stored water usually lasts long enough until the next rationing.
The BWD executive admits that when during the tourist season, the average consumption of water jumps to as high as 90,000 cubic meters a day. (A cubic meter of water can fill five drums.)
"The implication of this scenario is that as residents receive visitors, the use of their water held in reserve depletes more rapidly than usual, requiring residents to demand for more," De Guzman said.
Because of this situation, De Guzman said, the water agency has adopted contingency measures to meet the big demand.
The contingency plan involves the need to keep the deep well pumps from breaking down and causing undue stoppage of the weekly rationing schedule. Spare pumps have been provided in the event that a breakdown occurs. Aside from this, the BWD also keeps on standby generators in the event of power failure.
She also said that BWD will add more work shifts for the mobile water delivery service to cope with the additional demand, and it will detail skeletal work forces at night and on weekends to respond to problems that may arise.
