The National Water Resources Board (NWRB) officer-in-charge Nathaniel Santos said Monday Angat Dam’s water supply is still manageable to meet the domestic requirements of Metro Manila’s 15-million population and the irrigation needs of the 27,000-hectare farmlands in Bulacan and Pampanga until the El Niño episode will be over by July this year.

NWRB officer-in-charge Nathaniel Santos gave this assurance despite the receding water level in the dam.

In Zamboanga City, however, the Zamboanga City Water District (ZCWD) officially implemented its water rationing scheme effective Thursday last week due to the continuous decrease in the water supply level in the Pasonanca water reservoirs. ZCWD Assistant General Manager Alejo Rojas Jr. said the city is now observing water rationing schedule just like in 2007 when the city had also experienced low water supply.

He said water supply at the reservoir continues to decrease and “the trend is not getting better so we decided to implement the waterrationing scheme.”

Rojas said that under the waterrationing scheme, the Central Area, where most business establishments are located, will have 12 hours of water; East Coast Areas, 10 hours; and West Coast Area, nine hours.

As this developed, Deputy Presidential Spokesman Gary Olivar said President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is exhausting all means to address the impending energy crisis, proof of which is the commissioning of a fact-finding committee last week to Mindanao, led by Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes, to look into the power shortage in the troubled region.

Likewise, Deputy Presidential Spokesman Ricardo Saludo said the government should offer more incentives, including subsidies or some adjustments in the rates, to attract more investments in the energy sector.

The water elevation in Angat Dam, the supplier of water to 97 percent of the National Capital Region’s (NCR’s) population, as of 8 a.m. Monday was 194.63 meters from 195.75 meters last Friday.

Santos noted that in December, 2009, the inflow of water to Angat Dam was only 22 percent of normal flow, and for January 1 to 12, the inflow increased but still 30 percent of the normal, the lowest in six years since 2004.

To address the situation, water allocation for irrigation requirements of Bulacan and Pampanga, and water supply of Metro Manila was reduced to ensure available supply until July 2010 when El Niño is expected to be over.

The Philippine government also appealed to all industries and other private firms, especially those using substantial amount of water in their process, to come up with water conservation measures to contribute in the mitigation of the effects of El Niño phenomenon in the country’s water supply.

Environment and Natural Resources acting Secretary Horacio Ramos urged the industries to take active involvement in the water conservation measures of the government as dry spell is expected to worsen in the coming months.

Earlier, Malacañang directed all government agencies to cut down on their water consumption by 10 percent and observe water conservation measures.

“We are urging the country’s top companies to reuse their wastewater and tap it for other uses such as to water plants, cool boilers, flush urinals, and toilet bowls, even to wash company vehicles,” Ramos said.

“In the face of climate change, it is important that Filipinos should now adopt water conservation as a way of life, and not just only during the summer months. Every drop of water we save can spell life to some of our countrymen in far-flung areas in need of water to drink,” he added.

To mitigate the effects of reduced allocation from Angat Dam, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), through its concessionaires, Maynilad and Manila Water, will activate back-up wells and fast-track repairs of leakages in the water system. MWSS is also scheduled to activate a new water source and treatment plant in Laguna de Bay.

The Department of Agriculture, through the National Irrigation Administration, will implement scheduled land soaking and provide shallow tube well pumps to farmers in Bulacan and Pampanga.

Ramos likewise directed all offices of the DENR, including its regional offices, to practice water conservation measures in their respective areas, asking them to check and plug leaking pipes and faucets.

He said the agency’s implementation strategies to conserve water are now in full swing in the central office in Quezon City.

Among these are water shutdown from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m., repair of leaks, designation of a maintenance crew to open and close water valves on rotation basis, and use of its treated wastewater for gardening and watering purposes.

Last February 19, Ramos also issued a memorandum order directing all DENR offices to appoint a water marshals to monitor the compliance of offices to a 10 percent water reduction.

He also ordered the offices to come up with a monthly comparative report of water consumption to the DENR central office for monitoring of compliance. (With a report from Charissa M. Luci)