ILOILO: Concessionaires of Metro Pacific Iloilo Water (MPIW) have been warned of continued water service interruptions as it experiences a 'severe water supply shortage' after the raw water volume of its bulk water suppliers has reached 'critically low levels.' The MPIW serves seven districts of Iloilo City and the municipalities of Oton, Sta. Barbara, Cabatuan, Maasin, San Miguel, Pavia, and Leganes. 'Our water supply production level has decreased from 57.142 to 56.200 MLD (million liters per day), significantly dipping below the critical level,' it said in a statement on Tuesday. The MPIW said the water levels in the Aganan, Maasin, Jalaur, and Tigum rivers are 'plummeting at an alarming rate' due to the El Niño phenomenon. 'The prolonged dry spell and rising temperatures have led to reduced bulk water production. Consequently, our bulk water suppliers are only able to deliver an average of 60 MLD to MPIW, way below the critical level threshold,' the statement said. The MPIW apologized to the city gov ernment and concessionaires, noting that measures to address the constraint, including the rollout of a major project, are being implemented to significantly reduce water losses. These include pipe rehabilitation, the use of technology such as the Sahara Mobile Leak Detection, and Tyfo-Fibre Wrap Technology; the development of a desalination plant, which began pre-development works in January; and securing other sustainable water sources in the Visayas. Jalaur multipurpose project update Meanwhile, the Jalaur River Multipurpose Project II (JRMP II) Watershed Management chief Steve Cordero said water impounding at the high dam has begun after the closure of the diversion tunnel a few weeks ago. The overall accomplishment of the project is now at 74.45 percent and is expected to become fully operational by the end of 2025. 'We started impounding as early as now because based on our technical assessment, it will take at least 12 months before we can reach the spilling level of our structure. So as early as now if we are looking into the possibility of operating our project by 2025, we need to start impounding the water now,' he said in a press briefing on Tuesday. However, Cordero said the project could already provide irrigation services before the full operation. 'There are portions of our project where we can already restore some existing areas and generate new areas for generation,' he said, citing Zone 1 covering portions of the towns of Calinog and parts of Lambunao and Passi City. Former senator Franklin M. Drilon, who facilitated the project when he was still with the Senate, called on the contractor Daewoo E and C to tap local contractors to fast-track the construction of service or irrigation canals. 'I urge the contractor to sign up with local contractors because canals are really complicated infrastructure. Local contractors can do it with the supervision of the contractor. I urge Daewoo to double time so canals can be completed and hopefully be in full operation even before 2025,' Drilon said. Source: Philippines News Agency