Angat Dam water level falls below critical mark

(MENAFN- Gulf Times) The water level at Angat Dam, the main source for Metro Manila, fell below a crucial mark yesterday as the dry season and an ongoing El Nino continued to affect the country.
The state weather bureau said that as of 6:00am, Angat had fallen to 179.97 metres, breaching the minimum operating level of 180 metres and well below the normal high water mark of 210 metres.
The supply of potable water to Metro Manila consumers is not expected to be affected, however, with authorities already having scheduled a reduction in irrigation allocations.
Next month, water releases for farmers will be reduced to 10 cubic metres per second (cms), down from 40cms and 35cms in March and April, respectively. The allocation for the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), on the other hand, will be maintained at 48cms.
The National Water Resources Board, however, has urged the public to conserve at least four litres of water or a total of 48mn litres daily to reduce demand on the Angat reservoir, which supplies 90% of Metro Manila's water supply. The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) expects Angat's water level to fall to as low as 173.5 metres in May given expected rainfall during the dry season, the impact of El Nino and projected consumption.
The weather pattern has already affected much of the country, but the weather bureau said some relief could be expected next month from increased rains.
'Our forecast is that it will be rainy in May, Pagasa senior climate specialist Rusy Abastillas said.
'Many areas will experience near normal rainfall condition, lowering the potential for dry spell and drought, he added.
As of April 21, 22 provinces in Luzon, 11 provinces in the Visayas and eight provinces in Mindanao were said to be suffering from droughts.
Meanwhile, 23 provinces were experiencing dry spells.
Next month, only 17 provinces are expected to remain in drought, while three provinces will continue to be hit by dry spells.
Most of the areas that will continue to be affected by droughts are in Luzon: Bataan, Metro Manila, Cavite, Marinduque, Romblon, Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Masbate and Sorsogon.
In the Visayas, the six provinces expected to remain in drought are Aklan, Biliran, Eastern Samar, Leyte, Northern Samar and Western Samar.
Mindanao is expected to be free of El Nino conditions as rainfall normalises. Last week, eight of its provinces were declared to be hit by droughts: Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Misamis Occidental, Davao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.
Abastillas, however, said that the effects of the 'weak El Nino could still prevail until August as some areas would experience below normal rainfall.

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