The study is being conducted by the water, land and natural resources ministry with the cooperation of the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) and the Johor government.

“We want zero dependency for Johor and we don’t want them to get (treated) water from Singapore anymore.

“At the same time, the study will ensure sufficient water supply in Johor in the future,” its minister Xavier Jayakumar said after launching a SPAN water conservation campaign in conjunction with World Water Day at the Petaling Jaya Boulevard.

He said the findings of this study will be submitted to Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad in a month’s time.

Johor Menteri Besar Osman Sapian had said last month the state government planned to stop depending on Singapore for its treated water supply.

At present, Singapore buys raw water from Johor at the price of 3 sen per 1,000 gallons and then sells back treated water to Johor for 50 sen per 1,000 gallons.

Asked about the water levels at dams nationwide because of the hot weather, Xavier said they were under control.

“Although the water levels at several dams are low, they are not critical. Anyway, it has started to rain and we expect certain areas hard hit by the hot weather to experience rain this month,” he said.

Earlier, Xavier announced the appointment of seven new SPAN commissioners – Steven Choong Shiau Yoon, Abdul Rashid Maidin, Gurdial Singh Nijar, Abdul Halim Jantan, V Subramaniam, Faizal Parish Abdullah and Sarajun Hoda Abdul Hassan.

“They will determine the direction to be taken by SPAN and ensure the commission functions smoothly,” he said, adding that they were picked based on their experience and expertise in water-related matters.