Build water recycling facilities, institutions in Cordillera: DOST

By Liza Agoot 

BAGUIO CITY – The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in the Cordillera Administrative Region urged government offices and commercial buildings to put up water harvesting facilities to recycle and process potable water.
    Dr. Nancy Bantog, regional director of the DOST-CAR, aired this during opening of Disaster Risk Resiliency Month observance Monday here, as the country expects a drier condition due to El Niño phenomenon.
    “We encourage institutions to have their facilities. Government buildings and even privately owned buildings should be encouraged to harvest rain for better utilization," Bantog said.
    In earlier event, Environment Management Bureau regional director Jean Borromeo urged private companies like malls to follow the example of SM-Baguio mall that installed a water filtration system after constructing a rainwater harvesting facility to be recovered and reused.
    “Baguio City records a very high rainfall, the highest in the country but there is water shortage and rationing for domestic use. If only we make good use of the rain, we might even have surplus water,” Borromeo said.
    SM Prime Holdings said its water filtration system could recover at least 175 cubic meters of water per day for use in the mall’s premises.
    The city government urged the public to save on water as the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said that while El Niño is currently weak, it shows signs of strengthening in the coming months.
    “We should all be practicing water conservation and water recycling in our households not only when there is water shortage,” the city government’s press release said Monday.
    With water rationing being experienced year-round, the city government is crafting an El Nino master plan as a mitigation measure against the projected water shortage problem. -- PNA