Manila Water Company: Erap City, Assured of Water Supply

Erap City, Assured of Water Supply

Posted: Wednesday May 30, 2007

“Erap City will have a steady and reliable supply of water directly from the tap.” This was the assurance given by Manila Water to around 45,000 residents in Rodriguez, Rizal. The town is one of the fastest growing areas within the existing coverage of the East Concession. It is the site for the resettlement community known as “Erap City”, which is a major relocation area for residents affected by the Pasig River Rehabilitation Project.

“Most of the beneficiaries in this area come from the poorer sector of the society. We are committed to provide water and sanitation services to these communities, not only as part of our business objectives, but also as one of the social and environmental commitments of the company,” explains Manila Water President Tony Aquino.

Through Manila Water, the community will now be less dependent on ground water as a major source of its water supply. Aside from being harmful to the environment and to the health of the residents, ground water extraction is also an unreliable long-term source of potable water.

The delivery of water to this area is made possible through the P300-million Rodriguez Well-field Project which is already operational. The newly-constructed project involved the completion of a series of infiltration or “shallow” wells near Marikina River in Curayao, Rodriguez, which are expected to yield a total volume of around 10 million liters per day of water. This project is conceived as a medium-term solution to augment water supply to Rodriguez town, pending the implementation of more long term projects, such as the Rodriguez Treatment Plant and the Laiban Dam Project. These projects will address the water supply problem for the residents of these communities, which include the subdivisions of Dela Costa Homes, Dina Subdivision, Kasiglahan Village and other neighboring communities.

Photo shows the residents of Kasiglahan Village during the inauguration of the new water distribution system of the village. Photo inset shows LWUA Administrator Orlando C. Honrade, Manila Water President Antonino T. Aquino, Rodriguez Mayor Pedro T. Cuerpo and MWSS Chief Regulator Eduardo C. Santos during the ceremonial opening of the discharge pipe.