Unresolved questions and troubles of Sabah’s water supply and distribution

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah still has a myriad of unresolved questions and troubles regarding its water supply and distribution, said former State Water Department (JANS) director Datuk Dr Ir Ts Amarjit Singh.

He cited an example in a recent statement by the State Government which revealed that the state’s current demand is at 1,600 million litres per day (mld) but JANS can only supply 1,400 mld.

Amarjit said based on the deficit amount and population size, the 200 mld shortfall would equal to around 22 percent or 800,000 people that are starving for water in Sabah.

“So is 0.8 million of Sabah’s more than three million population devoid of water at the moment? I hope this is not true as it would be very alarming if that is the case,” he said in a statement.

Amarjit also pointed out a discrepancy in recent statements made regarding the Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) water fiasco.

He said it was initially stated that UMS requires 2.98 mld of water but in a later statement, it was then said the campus’ requirement had increased to 5 mld last December.

“How can this be? Was there a sudden increase in staff or students to explain the jump in the campus’ water requirement? It is puzzling,” he said.

Amarjit also wondered why the need for the newly minted MyJANS mobile application as SabahPay, an application launched in 2020, also allows JANS subscribers to pay their water bills through their smart devices.

“Why do we need two applications which share a similar function? It is not only redundant but also seems like a waste of funds,” he said.

He also commented on a recent statement which stated that JANS has an outstanding RM262 million owed by its subscribers, and he suggested that discounts be provided as an incentive for them to pay the bills.

“By giving discounts, the people would surely be more motivated to settle their water bills.

“This can prevent JANS from incurring financial implications which could affect its water supply and distribution operations,” he said.

Amarjit, who is also a member of the International Water Association (IWA), also questioned on whether the feasibility study of the Papar Dam will be vetted by qualified experts.

He raised a concern that even though it was recently stated that the feasibility study has been received by the Works Ministry, the people going through it have a large impact on the project’s final decision.

“I think such a controversial project such as the Papar Dam should have its feasibility study checked by independent and qualified experts on the matter, and not by concessionaires or consultants.

“This is to avoid any monkey business going on behind the scenes with the latter parties, and to get an unbiased and professional opinion on the controversial project,” he said.

In the same vein, Amarjit questioned why the State Government is still considering the Papar Dam project when inland dams have shown to bring many negative impacts to its surroundings.

He said inland dams can not only displace, injure or even kill a significant number of people and create flooding risk upon failure, they also disrupt local ecosystems and are more costly to build.

“These traditional dams have also shown to have area submergence and water wastage problems, and building reservoirs behind them can also lead to higher greenhouse gas emissions,” he said.

Amarjit said the State Government should instead look at eco-friendly alternatives such as an Off River Storage (ORS) system, which can integrate water catchment areas such as lakes and ponds into a river system.

He said an ORS not only promotes sustainability by producing less residual waste from water treatment plants, but it can also ensure continuous and uninterrupted supply of higher quality raw water.

“It is possible to build an ORS system in the Papar River. This system would not only provide a new source of raw water, but it also has many other benefits such as recreational, tourism, or flood mitigation purposes.

“Such a system is already being built in Selangor through the Rasau Water Supply Scheme, which, upon completion, is expected to be able to produce a total capacity of 1,400 mld and supply to 467,000 consumers by utilising relatively dirty raw water from the Klang River,” he said.

Amarjit said another ecofriendly technology that Sabah can adopt to fix its perennial water issues is coastal reservoirs, which stores fresh water on sea coasts near a river delta.

He said coastal reservoirs can not only greatly minimize environmental impact due to various advantages such as not having any land requirements, but they are also highly sustainable with a life span that can last for many decades.

“It is also possible to build a coastal reservoir in the Papar River at its mouth where it meets the South China Sea. Such a reservoir would not only provide another source of raw water but it would also save costs and can be utilised as a flood control mechanisme.

“This type of reservoir has been built in many countries including the 53-year-old Plover Clove reservoir in Hong Kong, which has a water storage capacity of 230 mld equivalent to 230 billion bottles of one litre beverages.

“Several local leaders have also voiced out in agreement for such a technology to be built here in Sabah, such as former Putatan Member of Parliament (MP) Awang Husaini Sahari,” he said.

Amarjit stressed that these queries, issues and suggestions require immediate attention by the State Government to not only patch up or resolve the state’s longstanding water issues but also to propel it towards a more sustainable and eco-friendly water supply, management, and distribution.