KOTA KINABALU – Sabah Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin today proposed the establishment of a water commission to resolve increasing water problems in Sabah.
Water disruptions and rationing are on the rise every year. The Sabah Water Department is forced to shut down its treatment plants each time water sources at river intakes are polluted.
The turbidity of the source rivers usually spike when debris and sediments are flushed downriver each time heavy rains occur.
Since Monday, the department has had to shut 22 water treatment plants down due to heavy rainfall over the past weeks, causing hundreds of thousands of consumers to go without water for days.
According to Bung Moktar, who is also state public works minister, the commission would further improve the management of treated water supplies for consumers and also reduce the RM300 million non-revenue water loss incurred by the department annually.
“The creation of the commission would mean that the state will have to amend its water supply enactment, as well as appoint private concessionaires to handle the treated water supply in Sabah,” he said at a press conference held at the Public Works Ministry office here today.
Bung Moktar said the 22 treatment plants in Sabah are in need of repairs or upgrades due to the ongoing problem, adding that many of them were built 22 years ago and are already outdated.
The plants are in Tamparuli, Kinabatangan, Tawau, Kunak, Keningau, Tenom, Nabawan, Sook, Beaufort, Sipitang and Kota Belud.
He also noted that some of the water pipelines in the state were built in colonial times and are old.
He added that the state is spending about RM500 million annually for water supply while making only around RM200 million in revenue a year.
As a result, not only has the state suffered losses, investors such as cooking oil refinery operators have decided to take their businesses elsewhere.
For a short-term solution, Bung Moktar said the water department has proposed preservation tanks in regularly affected districts.
He also said the retention ponds or off-river storage can be built to meet demands when the department is forced to shut down the plants.
“This is only a short-term solution," said Bung Moktar, stressing that the strategy will be different for different areas.
Dam to proceed
On the Kota Kinabalu Water Supply Masterplan Phase III, which includes the construction of a new dam, Bung Moktar said the government has to proceed with the project.
He said the dam project may be relocated along the same river.
“If we build the dam in Mandalipau downstream, the water supply can only be feasible for 60 years.
“But if we build the dam in Ulu Papar (upstream), it can last us for up to 85 years or more,” said Bung Moktar, adding that the department has already surveyed the locations.
He said the commencement of the project would be done after the Sabah government decides on it, notwithstanding opposition from the local groups.
The dam is the final leg of the masterplan. – The Vibes, January 22, 2021
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