Tagum Water District appeals for ROW to expand service areas

DAVAO DEL NORTE – Tagum Water District (TWD) officials have echoed their appeals to landowners to grant road right-of-way to water pipelines that stretch to their properties to serve more communities with potable water supply.

Board of Directors chairperson Arlene J. Adlawan of TWD during the recent One Davao Presser- Davao del Norte edition, called on landowners located near its pipelines to donate a parcel for the TWD pipes to cross to target communities.

She was particularly referring to areas in barangays Libuganon, Bincungan, and Busaon, which TWD targets to reach through its mainline along the national highway at the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and through its pipeline in Bacuring, Brgy. San Isidro.

“We have the resources. Ang amo nga mapasabot namo sa mga donors sa road rights-of-way nga maagi-an ang atong mga pipes, hangyo mi i-donate na ninyo ang mga yuta nga maagian sa mga tubo aron smooth ang dagan ug daghan ang maka-enjoy sa maayong suplay sa tubig (We would like the donor of the road-right-of-way to donate the land where the pipes would be crossing to set a smooth flow and to make more [households] enjoy good water supply),” she said.

Adlawan also said that TWD had networked with barangay officials whom it had asked assistance to secure road rights-of-way from landowners.

During the same presser edition, TWD Manager Pilar Mula revealed that TWD had allocated P73.95 million budget this year for the installation of a water supply transmission pipeline from Brgy. Bincungan to Brgy Liboganon, Tagum, City.

Adlawan cited this project as one of the means of increasing the number of their concessionaires which reached a total of 50,665 as of December 2023, of which 44,608 are households; 5,797 are commercial establishments; and 260 are government institutions.

Mula said TWD had penetrated only 78 percent of the population of Tagumenyos, however, it was able to set a service connection growth of more than 47 percent every five years since 1985.

TWD has tied up with the Tagum Water Company, Inc. from which TWD has been sourcing the 66 percent water supply for its concessionaires, while drawing the 34 percent supply from its existing deep wells.

To widen its service, the BOD of TWD is looking for means to bring down the current water connection fee at P3,500. /