GEORGE TOWN – Penang Water Supply Holdings Sdn Bhd (PBAPP) has announced that the supply of water for 465,004 consumers in the state will be disrupted due to turbidity in the Sg Muda following high octane floods.
Muddy or highly turbid waters from the recent floods that occurred upstream Baling in neighbouring Kedah state have compelled PBA to reduce the treated water production at its Sg Dua main intake treatment plant in Butterworth.
The plant meets the needs of up to 80% consumers of in the state.
In a statement, PBAPP said that the areas affected are George Town, areas from southern Bukit Dumbar to Balik Pulau, Bukit Mertajam and Nibong Tebal.
Its chief executive officer, K. Pathmanathan, urged consumers here to conserve water and hopes that the supply can be restored to normal capacity soon.
He stressed that this is an unscheduled water supply disruption that is caused by external factors, specifically the flooding in Baling.
"PBAPP reduced water production earlier today in line with its concern for public safety (turbidity in raw water is unsafe for consumption)," he said.
PBAPP cannot, and will not, supply "unsafe treated water" to consumers here, he stressed, adding that the water agency nevertheless apologises for any inconvenience caused to consumers in Penang
"We will continue to provide updates via our social media channels such as Facebook," he said.
Pathmanathan said that the emergency response team has been placed on standby to mitigate any situation which may arise from the slowdown in treating the Sg Muda raw water in view that it may be filled with sendiments.
The team is working hard to restore supply to normalcy by 8pm today. This is also the time when the production at the treatment plan is supposed to be ramped up to normal levels.
This is the third incident where water safety from the Sg Muda catchment area has been compromised.
Baling is constantly under siege because of floods bringing debris and mudflow with the gushing waters. , where among the villages hit, is the Kg Iboi,
The blame falls on land clearing for plantation and logging in the Gunung Inas area.
Universiti Sains Malaysia’s School of Humanities water expert Prof Chan Ngai Weng had earlier suggested that alternative sources of water, such as via desalination, conservation and a cross-border water deal with Perak, be worked on as options to counter the dependency on Sg Muda since its water security is now compromised.
National Water Services Commission chairperson Charles Santiago has called for more inter-state cooperation to combat the new challenges in providing efficient water supply in view of climate change bringing severe weather patterns, triggering mudflows. – The Vibes, September 29, 2023
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