At least RM130 million needed to address water supply problem in Bau — Henry
KUCHING: At least RM130 million is needed for the government to address the water supply problem in Bau district and to meet the demand for the next 25 years.
Tasik Biru assemblyman Dato Henry Harry Jinep said this includes replacing the old pipes with the new ones, as well as to upgrade the capacity of the Batu Kitang and Bau water treatment plants.
He explained that demand for treated water had increased tremendously with the population growth, resulting in the current supply to be insufficient and some areas experiencing low water pressure and sometimes no water.
“The current capacity caters for (what the situation was) 30 years before. We did not have this problem previously because there was not big population.
“But the time has come for a new supply planning for the next 25 years,” he said at a site briefi ng on the water issue jointly held with Kuching Water Board ( KWB) and Rural Water Supply Department ( JBALB) at Singai near here yesterday.
The brief ing was held in conjunction with the symbolic turning on of the valve at the main pipeline which connected the KWB line to JBALB pipeline to ensure sufficient water supply to the villages in Bau, with water now supplied from the Matang treatment plant.
This connection was done to solve the problem of low water pressure from the Bau treatment plant, which had resulted in dry taps in Singai villages.
With this connection, some 350 households in villages from Bobak, Daun, Tanjong to Segong are expected to enjoy 250,000 cubic litres of water daily.
According to Henry, this step is taken while waiting for major upgrading works to be undertaken soon by the state government which will include the upgrading of the Bau treatment plant which had been allocated RM20 million, as announced by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg.
Meanwhile, the site briefing was attended by local community leaders from the Singai area to give them correct information on the current issue over water supply which had affected many residents in and around the area.
It was held at the roadside in Kampung Sagah, Singai.
The briefi ng was also attended by Bau district officer Anielia Siam and representatives from various government agencies such as JBALB, KWB and Ministry of Utilities.