PBBM orders creation of new water mgmt office

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has ordered the creation of a new office that will manage the country’s water resources amid challenges brought about by climate change.

The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said the President ordered the formation of the Water Resource Management Office (WRMO) during Wednesday’s multi-sectoral meeting in Malacañang to consolidate water management efforts of all concerned government offices.

“We have to bring them together so that they are all following the overall plan,” Marcos said.

PCO said the core task of WRMO would be to formulate and ensure the implementation of the Integrated Water Management Plan (IWMP) of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

An executive order (EO) will be drafted to enforce the said “collaborative mechanism under the WRMO.”

Once the WRMO becomes operational, Marcos said he wants it to prioritize “reducing the country’s reliance on groundwater and deep wells, as well as managing surface water supply.”

“There’s enough water in the Philippines, we are just not using it properly so it ends up being wasted,” Marcos said.

Marcos pushed for the creation of the WRMO due to the pending new law, which will create the proposed Water Resource Department (WRD).

The WRMO will be coordinating with the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO) in lobbying in Congress for the WRD.

The country is heavily reliant on its water resources for its food supply, sustaining its growing urban areas, as well as its power supply through hydro power plants.