Penang ready to use Mengkuang dam as backup water supply

PETALING JAYA:

While there is no immediate threat to the state’s water supply, the Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP) says it is prepared to tap into the expanded Mengkuang dam should the water level at Sungai Muda worsen.

In a statement, PBAPP CEO K Pathmanathan said the expanded Mengkuang dam would serve as a backup water source during dry weather.

“PBAPP extracts about 1,200 million litres a day (MLD) from Sungai Muda for the optimal production of treated water at the Sungai Dua water treatment plant (WTP). This WTP produces about 85% of the treated water that is distributed in Penang daily.

“The maximum drawdown capacity from the expanded Mengkuang dam is 600 MLD, or about 50% of the raw water required by the Sungai Dua WTP to operate optimally.

“As such, so long as PBAPP can abstract 600 MLD of raw water from Sungai Muda and draw down 600 MLD from the expanded Mengkuang dam, there should be no unscheduled water supply interruption in Penang,” he said.

Yesterday, Penang chief minister Chow Kon Yeow said the drop in Sungai Muda’s water level would not prevent the state from continuing to extract water from the river.

This came after Kedah’s Syarikat Air Darul Aman Sdn Bhd (Sada) said there had been a drop in Sungai Muda’s water level due to the recent dry spell.

In his statement, Pathmanathan also said the water level of Sungai Muda at PBAPP’s Lahar Tiang Intake in Seberang Perai dipped below the “safe level” of 2m, registering 1.72m on Tuesday and dropping further to 1.61m yesterday.

He said PBAPP had successfully conducted a trial run for drawing water from the expanded Mengkuang dam in preparation for worst-case scenarios.

Efforts are also under way in Kedah to augment Sungai Muda’s water flow, he added.

“In Kedah, Sada has announced that the Kedah State Water Resources Board and the Sungai Muda River Basin Authority Office have increased the volume of water released from the Beris dam into Sungai Muda, from 864 MLD to 1,296 MLD,” he said.

Last month, PBAPP urged users to reduce their water consumption by 10% due to dwindling water levels.

Pathmanathan said from March 14 to 17, Sungai Muda’s water level had fluctuated between 1.71m and 1.89m, remaining below the 2m “safe level” required for water abstraction at the Lahar Tiang intake in Seberang Perai.

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Penang ready to use Mengkuang dam as backup water supply

The Penang Water Supply Corporation however assures that there is no immediate threat to the state's water supply.