Households in Selangor faces frequent water supply disruption

The issue of lack of clean water in Selangor has been raised and debated by many over the years. Some even went as far as claiming that the insufficient water saga is not real. If ones could refer to several statistics and reports published in the recent years by the relevant parties in the media, the insufficient clean water phenomena is already there and is definitely real. The recent articles published by SYABAS states that the frequent water disruption in several areas shows that the current water situation in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya has become critical because the treated and distributable water reserve margin is less than 1% throughout 2013. The company further states that with the current reserve margin at hand, the occurrence of several unscheduled water disruptions is inevitable should the demand for treated water constantly increase. The company also emphasizes that the minimum treated water capacity required is at least 10% whilst the suitable or adequate requirement is 20%. Based on the same articles, it is reported that close to 600,000 households are vulnerable to frequent water supply disruption. In addition to frequent water supply disruption, the insufficient water supply is also affecting seriously the development of industry and commercial sectors in the Selangor. The Menteri Besar of Selangor recently cited after the meeting with the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) that 878 projects have been put on hold since June 2013 because of lack of water. Although the Menteri Besar claims that several initiatives had been put in place by the Selangor Government to increase the water supply capacity to cater to the needs of consumers until the Langat 2 project starts, it is reported that the initiatives that would deliver additional 297 Million Liter Per Day clean water are scheduled sometime between 2014 and 2016 only. Even then, the increase will still not be able to cope with the annual increasing demand caused by the increasing population and economic development. The reserve capacity of treated water is still expected to remain at less than 1% or at a negative state.