Six areas for pilot membrane filtration process — Dr Rundi

SERIAN: The state will use a membrane filtration system to treat water supply under the Sarawak Alternative Water Supply (Sawas) programme.

Minister of Utilities Dato Sri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom said the Rural Water Supply Department had identified six locations in the state for the pilot project using the membrane filtration process.

He said the Sawas projects were for the most remote areas, which are not accessible by road.

“People in these areas are heavily dependent on gravity feed for their water supply.

“So in the next 10 years, we have to get them to have decent

People in these areas are heavily dependent on gravity feed for their water supply.

and safe water to drink by means of membrane filtration,” he told reporters after a site visit to the Slabi water treatment plant here yesterday.

He explained that membrane f i ltration has been used to treat water in some parts of the Baram.

“But for the six locations, it’s going to be our pilot projects. We want to make it a statewide project for the most remote areas that are located beyond reticulation.

“They cannot wait for another 10 years otherwise they will be drinking water which is not that safe to drink. Safe here means free of germs, bacteria, viruses and so on,” he said.

Dr Rundi said they might also need to install solar power for the filtration system to function.

He said a few kilowatts of energy would do, as long as it could pump the water into the membrane to make it safe enough to drink.

Membrane filtration has become a viable and recognised method of water treatment, producing a water quality safe for human consumption.

Various types of membrane technologies have been used successfully in centralised and decentralised applications.

Dato Sri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom, Minister of Utilities