THE National Water Resources Board (NWRB) on Thursday announced that it was extending the current allotment of water from Angat Dam to water concessionaires for two weeks.

The agency said it would be retaining the water supply allocation from the Angat-Ipo-La Mesa system at 52 cubic meters per second (cms) for both Manila Water and Maynilad.

NWRB Executive Director Sevillo David Jr. said the reason for extending the allocation was that of preventing water service interruptions as the concessionaires worked to improve leakage recovery.

The extension will run from June 1 to 15, 2023, after which the allocation will go back to 50 cms to prevent Angat’s water level from going down.

As of May 31, Angat’s water level decreased to 189.64 meters (m) from 189.81 m, though this is still above the dam’s minimum operating level of 183 m.

During the two-week period, 40 cms will be allocated for irrigation in anticipation of the planting season for farmers.

David said they are preparing for the impact of El Niño to the supply at Angat Dam.

“’Yung effect sa water supply natin baka po hindi makarecover ng sapat ‘yung Angat Dam, so kailangan din po natin paghandaan (Our water supply might be affected and Angat Dam might not recover sufficiently, so we need to prepare),” he said.

However, the Metropolitan

Manila Waterworks and Sewerage System warned of possible water interruptions after two weeks if the leakages are not resolved.

In a separate briefing, David is counting on the rainy season, especially in July, to increase Angat Dam’s water level to prevent any interruption.

Ronaldo Padua, Maynilad supply operations head, said the increased allocation provides relief for their customers.

“The rotational interruption we did in the past is totally gone. Now, we expect the continuity of uninterrupted supply,” Padua said.

Manila Water likewise assured uninterrupted water supply.